Pass rate
75.3%
Around average — 2.4 pts ahead of the 72.9% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 473 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £36–£100
2002 MG Mgf MOT pass rate
- 2002
- typical 63,375 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Suspension
25.1% of faults · 21.0% nationally
mostly worn arm bushes, split ball-joint boots and broken coil springs.
Which year to buy
- Best 2003 80.3% pass
- Avoid 2000 75.0% pass
Across the 4 years on record, a spread of 5.3 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 69.9%
- Typical mileage
- 63k mi
The 2002 MG Mgf MOT pass rate is 75.3% of its MOT tests — 2.4 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Suspension is the biggest single reason it fails, at 25.1% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Fewer problems with tyres
Tyres are 10.2% of this car’s recorded faults, against 19.8% nationally — the mirror image of the usual story on a car of this age.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 28% of this model’s typical repairs come in under £30 in parts — the failures here tend to be the kind that need a garage rather than a bulb.
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 Mgf? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2002 MG Mgf compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.9%, so this figure is 2.4 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 69.9%. The median 2002 MG Mgf in this dataset had covered 63,375 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 73.9% of the time, April–September 76.1%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements", noted on 4.86% of tests.
- 473 recorded tests behind this page.
- 75.3% overall pass rate, 69.9% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the MG Mgf, the average is 76.1% — best year 2003 (80.3%), worst 2000 (75.0%).
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
- 473
- Typical mileage (median)
- 63,375 mi
- Make and model
- MG Mgf
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Brake Discs and Pads Set
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Mgf MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 55% so small gaps stay visible.
Where the MG Mgf is most common
Across all Mgf model years on record (2000–2003): 4,191 MG Mgf cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 9,884 tests. Peterborough (PE) has the most, with 164 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Peterborough (PE) | 164 | 77.6% |
| 2 | Derby (DE) | 131 | 80.9% |
| 3 | Birmingham (B) | 122 | 78.7% |
| 4 | Nottingham (NG) | 98 | 79.3% |
| 5 | Coventry (CV) | 91 | 74.4% |
| 6 | Sheffield (S) | 83 | 79.8% |
| 7 | Gloucester (GL) | 83 | 75.8% |
| 8 | Norwich (NR) | 82 | 74.8% |
| 9 | Ashford (TN) | 82 | 82.0% |
| 10 | Portsmouth (PO) | 74 | 69.7% |
| 11 | Oxford (OX) | 74 | 71.4% |
| 12 | Southampton (SO) | 71 | 75.9% |
| 13 | Cambridge (CB) | 71 | 81.9% |
| 14 | Leicester (LE) | 71 | 72.1% |
| 15 | Guildford (GU) | 69 | 77.2% |
| 16 | Reading (RG) | 65 | 78.2% |
| 17 | Bristol (BS) | 64 | 69.3% |
| 18 | Yeovil (BA) | 64 | 75.3% |
| 19 | Chelmsford (CM) | 64 | 79.9% |
| 20 | Exeter (EX) | 62 | 67.4% |
The twenty areas with the most MG Mgf cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the Mgf
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 96 | 75.0% |
| South West | 82 | 72.0% |
| East of England | 69 | 81.2% |
| West Midlands | 55 | 72.7% |
| North West | 53 | 75.5% |
| Yorkshire | 37 | 75.7% |
| East Midlands | 30 | 73.3% |
| Wales | 28 | 78.6% |
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 2002 Mgf
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 2002 Mgf
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 suspension joints 2.8% of tests
“ball joint excessively worn”
With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.
-
Check the exhaust and emissions 2.5% of tests
“catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits”
Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.
-
Check the lights 2.5% of tests
“stop lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning”
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.
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 2002 Mgf through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £36–£100 — and 28% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £36–£100
- Cheapest common item: stop lamp with a multiple light source up to…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content…
- £60–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 70%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 28%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 473 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 Mgf, side by side
4 model years on record, from 2000 to 2003. Across them the pass rate runs from 75.0% to 80.3% — a spread of 5.3 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 75.0% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2001 76.8% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2002 75.3%rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2003 80.3% catalyst emissions lambda reading…
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 2002 MG Mgf 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 2002 cars with a similar record
- Toyota RAV4 75.3%
- Mazda Mx-5 75.2%
- Volvo S60 75.2%
- Land Rover Discovery 75.4%
- Toyota Rav-4 75.7%
- Rover 25 75.7%
Closest pass rates among 2002 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 2002 MG Mgf 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 1,012 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 257 | 25.10% | 20.98% | +4.12 |
| Brakes | 245 | 23.90% | 20.89% | +3.01 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 126 | 12.30% | 12.21% | +0.09 |
| Tyres | 104 | 10.20% | 19.76% | −9.56 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 97 | 9.50% | 5.52% | +3.98 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 56 | 5.50% | 5.57% | −0.07 |
| Visibility | 50 | 4.90% | 4.97% | −0.07 |
| Non-component advisories | 34 | 3.30% | 4.18% | −0.88 |
| Steering | 27 | 2.60% | 2.57% | +0.03 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 16 | 1.60% | 1.76% | −0.16 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 4.9% | £45–110 |
| Ball joint excessively worn Suspension | Major | 2.8% | £18–45 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 2.5% | £60–250 |
| Stop lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.5% | £3–12 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 2.5% | £8–22 |
| Service brake imbalance across an axle Brakes | Major | 2.1% | £45–110 |
| Service brake performance excessively binding Brakes | Major | 2.1% | £60–150 |
| Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 1.9% | £60–140 |
| Parking brake performance inoperative on one side Brakes | Major | 1.9% | £60–150 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 1.9% | £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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 15.0% | £45–110 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 10.2% | £200–700 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 8.9% | £45–95 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 8.7% | £45–95 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 8.5% | £40–150 |
| Sub-frame corroded and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 8.0% | £180–450 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 43 | 86.0% | 22,048 mi |
| 30-60k | 159 | 82.4% | 47,599 mi |
| 60-90k | 192 | 69.8% | 72,695 mi |
| 90-120k | 68 | 69.1% | 102,027 mi |
| 120k+ | 11 | 63.6% | 146,177 mi |
Source: 473 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.
2002 Mgf MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2002 MG Mgf?
75.3% of the 473 2002 MG Mgf tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.9% for cars first used in 2002. First-attempt pass rate: 69.9%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2002 MG Mgf?
The three most recorded items are rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements (4.86%), ball joint excessively worn (2.75%), catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits (2.54%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2002 MG Mgf MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 86.0% of the time, falling to 63.6% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2002 MG Mgf in this dataset had covered 63,375 mi.
Does the season affect the 2002 MG Mgf MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 73.9% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 76.1%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.