Pass rate
91.4%
Above average — 0.2 pts ahead of the 91.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 24,160 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £34–£80
2021 MG Zs MOT pass rate
- 2021
- 4 trims combined
- typical 25,946 mi
Most common fault
Brakes
35.8% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Part only £25–£40 for Brake pads under 1.5 mm. What fitting it takes →
1.7 pts up across model years — 1.4% in 2002, 3.1% in 2022.
Which year to buy
- Best 2024 96.9% pass
- Avoid 2003 70.4% pass
Across the 14 years on record, a spread of 26.5 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 90.7%
- Typical mileage
- 26k mi
The 2021 MG Zs MOT pass rate is 91.4% of its MOT tests — about what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 35.8% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how MG Zs does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Brakes: 1.7× the national share
Brakes make up 35.8% of everything recorded on the 2021 MG Zs, against 20.9% nationally — 14.9 points above. Have the discs and pads measured rather than glanced at, and ask whether the handbrake holds on a slope.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 32% 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 Zs? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every MG Zs first registered in 2021 is combined here — 4 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2021 MG Zs compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 91.2%, so this figure is 0.2 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 90.7%. The median 2021 MG Zs in this dataset had covered 25,946 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Petrol — 62% of tests, with a 91.6% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 91.2% of the time, April–September 91.6%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords", noted on 1.45% of tests.
- 24,160 recorded tests behind this page.
- 91.4% overall pass rate, 90.7% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the MG Zs, the average is 87.4% — best year 2024 (96.9%), worst 2003 (70.4%).
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
- 24,160
- Typical mileage (median)
- 25,946 mi
- Make and model
- MG Zs
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Tyres
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Zs MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 76% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Petrol is the most common here (62% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Zs
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 4,625 | 92.3% |
| North West | 3,087 | 93.3% |
| Scotland | 2,865 | 87.6% |
| East of England | 2,632 | 91.9% |
| Yorkshire | 1,975 | 91.7% |
| West Midlands | 1,826 | 92.3% |
| South West | 1,807 | 92.1% |
| Wales | 1,743 | 88.6% |
| London | 1,306 | 92.0% |
| East Midlands | 1,153 | 91.4% |
| North East | 1,141 | 91.8% |
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 Zs
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 Zs
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 brakes 1.1% of tests
“brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick”
Look through the spokes of each wheel at the pad — less than 3mm of friction material, or a lip on the disc edge, is the usual failure. Check the handbrake holds on a slope with a few clicks, not at the top of its travel.
-
Check the windscreen 1.0% of tests
“windscreen damaged”
Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.
-
Check the wipers and washers 0.9% of tests
“wipers blade defective”
Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.
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 Zs through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £34–£80 — and 32% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £34–£80
- 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
- 90%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 32%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 24,160 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 Zs, side by side
14 model years on record, from 2001 to 2024. Across them the pass rate runs from 70.4% to 96.9% — a spread of 26.5 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2001 71.2% component mounting prescribed…
- 2002 72.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2003 70.4% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2004 73.6% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2005 75.3% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2006 74.9% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2017 80.0% coil spring fractured or broken
- 2018 83.9% headlamp not working on dipped…
- 2019 85.5% headlamp not working on dipped…
- 2020 89.1% has a cut in excess of the…
- 2021 91.4%has a cut in excess of the…
- 2022 89.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2023 91.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2024 96.9% has a cut in excess of the…
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 Zs 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
- Vauxhall Grandland X 91.4%
- Land Rover Range Rover Evoque 91.4%
- Volkswagen ID4 91.4%
- Audi A1 Technik 91.4%
- Citroen C5 Aircross 91.4%
- Skoda Scala 91.4%
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 Zs 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 18,011 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes | 6,498 | 35.80% | 20.89% | +14.91 |
| Tyres | 5,348 | 29.40% | 19.76% | +9.64 |
| Non-component advisories | 1,970 | 10.80% | 4.18% | +6.62 |
| Suspension | 1,278 | 7.00% | 20.98% | −13.98 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 1,241 | 6.80% | 12.21% | −5.41 |
| Visibility | 896 | 4.90% | 4.97% | −0.07 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 373 | 2.10% | 5.52% | −3.42 |
| Steering | 183 | 1.00% | 2.57% | −1.57 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 124 | 0.70% | 1.76% | −1.06 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 100 | 0.60% | 0.82% | −0.22 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.4% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Major | 1.1% | £18–45 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 1.0% | £80–200 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 0.92% | £8–22 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Major | 0.59% | £45–95 |
| Has ply or cords exposed Tyres | Major | 0.58% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs significantly and obviously worn Brakes | Major | 0.58% | £45–110 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 0.53% | £8–22 |
| Headlamp not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 0.50% | £5–25 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 0.49% | £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 | 13.3% | £45–110 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 8.6% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 5.8% | £18–45 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 5.6% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt Non-component advisories | Advisory | 3.8% | £20–80 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 2.9% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 15,028 | 93.6% | 19,499 mi |
| 30-60k | 8,298 | 88.1% | 40,030 mi |
| 60-90k | 739 | 84.4% | 69,003 mi |
| 90-120k | 73 | 89.0% | 101,084 mi |
| 120k+ | 18 | 94.4% | 160,493 mi |
Source: 24,160 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 Zs MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2021 MG Zs?
91.4% of the 24,160 2021 MG Zs tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 91.2% for cars first used in 2021. First-attempt pass rate: 90.7%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2021 MG Zs?
The three most recorded items are has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.45%), brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick (1.08%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (1.00%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2021 MG Zs MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 93.6% of the time, falling to 94.4% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2021 MG Zs in this dataset had covered 25,946 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2021 MG Zs?
Petrol: 91.6% pass rate across 15,010 tests. Electric: 91.1% pass rate across 9,150 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2021 MG Zs MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 91.2% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 91.6%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.