Pass rate
90.9%
Above average — 0.3 pts behind the 91.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 3,632 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £24–£64
2021 MG 5 Excite MOT pass rate
- 2021
- typical 45,200 mi
Most common fault
Tyres
45.4% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Part only £55–£85 for Tread depth below 1.6 mm. What fitting it takes →
Which year to buy
- Best 2021 90.9% pass · this year
- Avoid 2022 87.8% pass
Across the 3 years on record, a spread of 3.1 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 90.1%
- Typical mileage
- 45k mi
The 2021 MG 5 Excite MOT pass rate is 90.9% of its MOT tests — about what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 45.4% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how MG 5 Excite does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 2.3× the national share
Tyres make up 45.4% of everything recorded on the 2021 MG 5 Excite, against 19.8% nationally — 25.6 points above. Check all four tyres yourself, including the inner shoulders, and look at the date stamp — a tyre can pass on tread and still be six years old.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a MG 5 Excite? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2021 MG 5 Excite compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 91.2%, so this figure is 0.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 90.1%. The median 2021 MG 5 Excite in this dataset had covered 45,200 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 91.1% of the time, April–September 90.7%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 2.18% of tests.
- 3,632 recorded tests behind this page.
- 90.9% overall pass rate, 90.1% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the MG 5 Excite, the average is 89.3% — best year 2021 (90.9%), worst 2022 (87.8%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 3,632
- Typical mileage (median)
- 45,200 mi
- Make and model
- MG 5 Excite
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Number Plate Lamp
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the 5 Excite MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 76% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the 5 Excite
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 1,071 | 89.2% |
| London | 982 | 90.8% |
| South West | 254 | 90.9% |
| Scotland | 237 | 90.3% |
| East of England | 227 | 92.1% |
| West Midlands | 183 | 95.1% |
| Yorkshire | 178 | 94.4% |
| North West | 176 | 92.6% |
| East Midlands | 116 | 91.4% |
| Wales | 115 | 90.4% |
| North East | 93 | 91.4% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2021 5 Excite
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2021 5 Excite
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the lights 2.2% of tests
“registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
-
Check the tyre tread 1.7% of tests
“tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm”
Check all four tyres cold, including the inner shoulder where wear hides — 1.6mm across the central three-quarters is the legal limit, and most testers fail at 1.6mm without argument.
-
Check the shock absorbers 1.5% of tests
“shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak”
Press down hard on each corner of the car and let go. It should settle in one bounce; if it keeps rocking, or you can see oil weeping down a shock absorber, that is the fault a tester will find.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2021 5 Excite through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £24–£64 — and 52% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £24–£64
- Cheapest common item: registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the…
- £5–£20
- Dearest common item: windscreen damaged
- £80–£200
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 80%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 52%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 3,632 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the 5 Excite, side by side
3 model years on record, from 2020 to 2022. Across them the pass rate runs from 87.8% to 90.9% — a spread of 3.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2020 90.2% rear reflectors defective or…
- 2021 90.9%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2022 87.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2021 MG 5 Excite with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2021 cars with a similar record
- SEAT Leon Fr 90.9%
- Renault Zoe I 90.9%
- Land Rover R Rover Wstmnstr 90.9%
- Audi A4 Technik 90.9%
- SEAT Ibiza 91.0%
- Audi E-Tron 91.0%
Closest pass rates among 2021 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2021 MG 5 Excite 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 2,514 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 1,143 | 45.40% | 19.76% | +25.64 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 563 | 22.30% | 12.21% | +10.09 |
| Suspension | 251 | 10.00% | 20.98% | −10.98 |
| Non-component advisories | 173 | 6.90% | 4.18% | +2.72 |
| Brakes | 170 | 6.70% | 20.89% | −14.19 |
| Visibility | 141 | 5.60% | 4.97% | +0.63 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 51 | 2.00% | 1.76% | +0.24 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 9 | 0.40% | 0.82% | −0.42 |
| Road Wheels | 7 | 0.30% | 0.75% | −0.45 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 6 | 0.20% | 5.57% | −5.37 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.2% | £5–20 |
| Headlamp not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.0% | £5–25 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Major | 1.7% | £45–95 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Major | 1.5% | £30–75 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.4% | £45–95 |
| Headlamp not working on main beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.4% | £5–25 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 1.4% | £80–200 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.2% | £30–80 |
| Headlamp not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.2% | £5–25 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 1.1% | £5–20 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 16.8% | £45–95 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 4.6% | £45–95 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Advisory | 4.2% | £30–75 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 3.1% | £45–110 |
| Tread depth tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm Tyres | Advisory | 2.6% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 1.9% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 914 | 95.4% | 20,417 mi |
| 30-60k | 1,537 | 91.3% | 43,542 mi |
| 60-90k | 731 | 87.0% | 72,527 mi |
| 90-120k | 325 | 84.9% | 101,468 mi |
| 120k+ | 123 | 91.1% | 145,100 mi |
Source: 3,632 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2021 5 Excite MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2021 MG 5 Excite?
90.9% of the 3,632 2021 MG 5 Excite tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 91.2% for cars first used in 2021. First-attempt pass rate: 90.1%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2021 MG 5 Excite?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (2.18%), headlamp not working on dipped beam (2.04%), tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (1.68%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2021 MG 5 Excite MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 95.4% of the time, falling to 91.1% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2021 MG 5 Excite in this dataset had covered 45,200 mi.
Does the season affect the 2021 MG 5 Excite MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 91.1% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 90.7%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.