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2013 MINI Mini MOT pass rate

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Pass rate

84.9%

Around average — 6.3 pts ahead of the 78.6% that cars this age and mileage manage.

Across 66,682 recorded tests.

Typical repair bill £26–£69

Which year to buy

  • Best 2017 94.3% pass
  • Avoid 2001 68.2% pass

Across the 18 years on record, a spread of 26.1 points. See every year →

First-attempt pass
82.5%
Typical mileage
74k mi

The 2013 MINI Mini MOT pass rate is 84.9% of its MOT tests — 6.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 26.6% of what testers record.

MOT PASS RATES

The 2013 MINI Mini on the real record

84.9% of 2013 MINI Mini MOTs passed — 66,682 tests, 2023–2025

Pass rate

The answer from the DVSA's class-4 MOT records.

Expert verdict

Tyres: 1.3× the national share

Tyres make up 26.6% of everything recorded on the 2013 MINI Mini, against 19.8% nationally — 6.8 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 MINI Mini? Get an email when these numbers change .

Every MINI Mini first registered in 2013 is combined here — 6 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.

How does the 2013 MINI Mini compare?

Cars of this age and mileage average 78.6%, so this figure is 6.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 82.5%. The median 2013 MINI Mini in this dataset had covered 73,800 mi.

The most common fuel recorded here is Diesel — 57% of tests, with a 84.4% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 84.9% of the time, April–September 85.0%.

The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 5.80% of tests.

  • 66,682 recorded tests behind this page.
  • 84.9% overall pass rate, 82.5% on a first attempt.
  • Across every year of the MINI Mini, the average is 76.0% — best year 2017 (94.3%), worst 2001 (68.2%).

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
66,682
Typical mileage (median)
73,800 mi
Make and model
MINI Mini
Updated
2026-11-07

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 Mini MOT pass rate?

0-30k 93.0%
30-60k 88.5%
60-90k 84.6%
90-120k 81.6%
120k+ 79.1%

Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 71% so small gaps stay visible.

Fuel type and reliability

Diesel 84.4%
Petrol 85.6%

Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (57% of tests).

Where the MINI Mini is most common

Across all Mini model years on record (2001–2018): 432,690 MINI Mini cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 1,024,160 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 12,469 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 Share of all Tests Pass rate
1 Birmingham (B) 12,469 2.9% 27,224 80.6%
2 Peterborough (PE) 8,603 2% 21,000 76.4%
3 Ashford (TN) 8,284 1.9% 19,804 75.9%
4 Sheffield (S) 8,094 1.9% 18,920 79.1%
5 Guildford (GU) 7,916 1.8% 19,160 75.4%
6 Reading (RG) 7,908 1.8% 18,672 77.5%
7 Bristol (BS) 7,771 1.8% 20,028 71.9%
8 Nottingham (NG) 7,493 1.7% 18,649 74.2%
9 Portsmouth (PO) 7,414 1.7% 20,023 72.6%
10 Leicester (LE) 6,849 1.6% 16,202 77.6%
11 Brighton (BN) 6,736 1.6% 17,665 71.5%
12 Coventry (CV) 6,553 1.5% 15,138 77.9%
13 Chelmsford (CM) 6,270 1.4% 14,375 78.2%
14 Oxford (OX) 6,155 1.4% 15,382 75.7%
15 Crawley (RH) 5,827 1.3% 14,067 76.1%
16 Northampton (NN) 5,778 1.3% 14,476 73.8%
17 Gloucester (GL) 5,760 1.3% 14,990 73.2%
18 Norwich (NR) 5,729 1.3% 15,765 74.6%
19 Manchester (M) 5,711 1.3% 11,900 78.2%
20 Southampton (SO) 5,522 1.3% 13,706 74.2%

The twenty areas with the most MINI Mini 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 Mini

Region Tests Pass rate
South East 13,579 86.0%
East of England 7,941 86.2%
South West 7,894 82.8%
North West 7,808 84.8%
West Midlands 6,794 85.8%
Yorkshire 6,039 85.4%
East Midlands 4,681 85.7%
Scotland 4,179 80.2%
Wales 2,917 83.2%
North East 2,778 84.2%
London 2,072 88.8%

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 2013 Mini

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.

Tyres 26.6%
+6.8 pts vs national national 19.8% Compare tyre prices
Brakes 20.3%
−0.6 pts vs national national 20.9% Price brakes parts
Lamps & electrics 16.2%
+4.0 pts vs national national 12.2% Order bulbs & wipers
Suspension 14.4%
−6.6 pts vs national national 21.0% Price suspension parts
Show the other 6 fault categories
  • Visibility 6.2%
  • Emissions & leaks 5.2%
  • Advisories 4.3%
  • Body & chassis 2.2%
  • Road wheels 1.7%
  • Identification 1.5%

Shares are of every item recorded on 2013 MINI Mini tests — a composition, so they add to 100% across all sections, not per test.

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 2013 Mini

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.

  1. Check the lights 5.8% 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.

  2. Check the windscreen 3.9% 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.

  3. Check the tyre tread 1.0% 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.

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 2013 Mini through its MOT

Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £26–£69 — and 61% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.

Average repair across the 10 common items
£26–£69
Cheapest common item: stop lamp with a multiple light source up to…
£3–£12
Dearest common item: windscreen damaged
£80–£200
Common items a careful owner can do at home
80%
Repairs that still cost under £30
61%

Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 66,682 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 Mini, side by side

18 model years on record, from 2001 to 2018. Across them the pass rate runs from 68.2% to 94.3% — a spread of 26.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.

  1. 2001 68.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
  2. 2002 69.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
  3. 2003 70.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
  4. 2004 70.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
  5. 2005 70.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
  6. 2006 71.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
  7. 2007 72.0% position lamp not working
  8. 2008 73.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
  9. 2009 74.8% windscreen damaged but not…
  10. 2010 79.6% position lamp not working
  11. 2011 81.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
  12. 2012 83.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
  13. 2013 84.9%
    registration plate lamp(s)…
  14. 2014 86.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
  15. 2015 91.3% windscreen damaged but not…
  16. 2016 89.7% wipers does not clear the…
  17. 2017 94.3% tread depth below requirements of…
  18. 2018 85.9% has a bulge, caused by separation…

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 2013 MINI Mini 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.

Compare 2013 with another year →

Compare two different cars instead →

Other 2013 cars with a similar record

Closest pass rates among 2013 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 2013 MINI Mini 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 87,735 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 23,620 26.60% 19.76% +6.84
Brakes 18,058 20.30% 20.89% −0.59
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 14,411 16.20% 12.21% +3.99
Suspension 12,823 14.40% 20.98% −6.58
Visibility 5,527 6.20% 4.97% +1.23
Noise, emissions and leaks 4,637 5.20% 5.52% −0.32
Non-component advisories 3,859 4.30% 4.18% +0.12
Body, chassis, structure 1,965 2.20% 5.57% −3.37
Road Wheels 1,487 1.70% 0.75% +0.95
Identification of the vehicle 1,348 1.50% 1.76% −0.26

The exact failure items, in the tester's words

Share of the 66,682 tests on this vehicle that recorded each item
Recorded item Severity Tests Est. cost Part
Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment Minor 5.8% £5–20 Number Plate Lamp →
Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility Minor 3.9% £80–200 Windscreen →
Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment Major 2.5% £5–25 Headlight Bulb →
Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment Rectified 1.5% £5–25 Headlight Bulb →
Stop lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment Minor 1.3% £3–12 Stop Light Bulb →
Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres Major 1.1% £45–95 Tyres →
Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres Major 1.0% £45–95 Tyres →
Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility Major 0.97% £8–22 Wiper Blade →
Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension Major 0.85% £30–75 Shock Absorber →
Headlamp aim too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment Rectified 0.85% £30–80 Headlight Alignment →

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.

Items recorded as advisory on this vehicle
Recorded item Severity Tests Est. cost
Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres Advisory 17.1% £45–95
Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes Advisory 8.9% £45–110
Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres Advisory 8.8% £45–95
Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes Advisory 6.9% £18–45
Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension Advisory 4.0% £40–150
Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks Advisory 3.8% £200–700

Pass rate by mileage

Mileage Tests Pass rate Median odometer
0-30k 2,354 93.0% 22,544 mi
30-60k 17,730 88.5% 47,890 mi
60-90k 27,914 84.6% 74,657 mi
90-120k 14,294 81.6% 102,173 mi
120k+ 4,376 79.1% 138,308 mi

Source: 66,682 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.

2013 Mini MOT questions

What is the MOT pass rate for a 2013 MINI Mini?

84.9% of the 66,682 2013 MINI Mini tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 78.6% for cars first used in 2013. First-attempt pass rate: 82.5%.

What are the most common MOT failures on a 2013 MINI Mini?

The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (5.80%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (3.92%), position lamp not working (2.47%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.

Does mileage affect the 2013 MINI Mini MOT pass rate?

Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 93.0% of the time, falling to 79.1% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2013 MINI Mini in this dataset had covered 73,800 mi.

Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2013 MINI Mini?

Diesel: 84.4% pass rate across 37,692 tests. Petrol: 85.6% pass rate across 28,990 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.

Does the season affect the 2013 MINI Mini MOT pass rate?

Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 84.9% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 85.0%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.