Pass rate
70.9%
Below average — 1.3 pts behind the 72.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 8,819 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £40–£113
2004 Mitsubishi L200 MOT pass rate
- 2004
- 3 trims combined
- typical 122,347 mi
Most common fault
Suspension
20.8% of faults · 21.0% nationally
mostly worn arm bushes, split ball-joint boots and broken coil springs.
Which year to buy
- Best 2021 90.5% pass
- Avoid 2009 70.2% pass
Across the 22 years on record, a spread of 20.3 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 62.5%
- Typical mileage
- 122k mi
The 2004 Mitsubishi L200 MOT pass rate is 70.9% of its MOT tests — 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Suspension is the biggest single reason it fails, at 20.8% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Mitsubishi L200 does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Body & chassis: 2.9× the national share
Body & chassis accounts for 15.9% of everything recorded on the 2004 Mitsubishi L200, against 5.6% nationally — 10.3 points above. Suspension is still the single largest share at 20.8%, but at 21.0% nationally that one is ordinary. Look underneath for corrosion near the jacking points and suspension mounts; surface rust is normal, flaking metal is not.
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 Mitsubishi L200? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Mitsubishi L200 first registered in 2004 is combined here — 3 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.
How does the 2004 Mitsubishi L200 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.2%, so this figure is 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 62.5%. The median 2004 Mitsubishi L200 in this dataset had covered 122,347 mi.
100% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 70.9% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 71.1% of the time, April–September 70.6%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 8.87% of tests.
- 8,819 recorded tests behind this page.
- 70.9% overall pass rate, 62.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Mitsubishi L200, the average is 79.0% — best year 2021 (90.5%), worst 2009 (70.2%).
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
- 8,819
- Typical mileage (median)
- 122,347 mi
- Make and model
- Mitsubishi L200
- 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 L200 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 61% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (100% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the L200
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 1,912 | 73.8% |
| South West | 1,889 | 65.0% |
| East of England | 1,138 | 73.9% |
| West Midlands | 1,006 | 74.2% |
| North West | 644 | 72.2% |
| Wales | 625 | 68.6% |
| Yorkshire | 546 | 69.4% |
| East Midlands | 505 | 70.5% |
| Scotland | 309 | 67.0% |
| North East | 179 | 75.4% |
| London | 66 | 84.8% |
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 2004 L200
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 2004 L200
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 8.9% 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 windscreen 5.2% 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 brake pipes 4.4% of tests
“rigid brake pipes excessively corroded”
Brake pipes run under the car, usually in front of the rear wheels. Flaking or crusty metal is what fails; a light dusting of surface rust does not. Worth asking a garage to look while it is on a ramp.
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 2004 L200 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £40–£113 — and 38% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £40–£113
- Cheapest common item: rear fog lamp not working
- £3–£15
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 50%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 38%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 8,819 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 L200, side by side
22 model years on record, from 2000 to 2021. Across them the pass rate runs from 70.2% to 90.5% — a spread of 20.3 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 71.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2001 71.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2002 70.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2003 71.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2004 70.9%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2005 71.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2006 70.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 70.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2008 70.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2009 70.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2010 71.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2011 72.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2012 74.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2013 76.4% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2014 77.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2015 81.1% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2016 85.4% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2017 86.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2018 87.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2019 88.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2020 89.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2021 90.5% windscreen damaged but not…
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 2004 Mitsubishi L200 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 2004 cars with a similar record
- Volvo XC90 70.9%
- Audi A3 70.7%
- Peugeot 206 71.2%
- Suzuki Carry 71.2%
- MINI Mini 70.6%
- Ford Focus 70.6%
Closest pass rates among 2004 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 2004 Mitsubishi L200 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 34,651 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 | 7,252 | 20.80% | 20.98% | −0.18 |
| Brakes | 5,944 | 17.00% | 20.89% | −3.89 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 5,560 | 15.90% | 5.57% | +10.33 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 5,439 | 15.60% | 12.21% | +3.39 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 3,716 | 10.60% | 5.52% | +5.08 |
| Steering | 2,169 | 6.20% | 2.57% | +3.63 |
| Tyres | 2,052 | 5.90% | 19.76% | −13.86 |
| Visibility | 1,327 | 3.80% | 4.97% | −1.17 |
| Non-component advisories | 632 | 1.80% | 4.18% | −2.38 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 560 | 1.60% | 1.76% | −0.16 |
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 | 8.9% | £5–20 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 5.7% | £80–250 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 5.7% | £5–25 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 5.2% | £80–200 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Major | 4.4% | £80–180 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.9% | £80–250 |
| Rear fog lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.3% | £3–15 |
| Track rod end ball joint has excessive play Steering | Major | 3.3% | £18–45 |
| Track rod end ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated, but preventing the ingress of dirt Steering | Minor | 3.0% | £18–45 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.0% | £45–120 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 32.3% | £200–700 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 31.1% | £80–180 |
| Wheel bearings has excessive play Suspension | Advisory | 14.5% | £20–55 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 11.1% | £45–95 |
| Chassis condition corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is significantly reduced Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 10.6% | £180–450 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 9.9% | £40–150 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 22 | 90.9% | 18,442 mi |
| 30-60k | 356 | 80.9% | 49,766 mi |
| 60-90k | 1,353 | 73.5% | 77,050 mi |
| 90-120k | 2,435 | 71.0% | 105,515 mi |
| 120k+ | 4,632 | 69.3% | 153,649 mi |
Source: 8,819 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.
2004 L200 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2004 Mitsubishi L200?
70.9% of the 8,819 2004 Mitsubishi L200 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.2% for cars first used in 2004. First-attempt pass rate: 62.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2004 Mitsubishi L200?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (8.87%), joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (5.68%), position lamp not working (5.65%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2004 Mitsubishi L200 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 90.9% of the time, falling to 69.3% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2004 Mitsubishi L200 in this dataset had covered 122,347 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2004 Mitsubishi L200?
Diesel: 70.9% pass rate across 8,793 tests. Petrol: 60.0% pass rate across 20 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2004 Mitsubishi L200 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 71.1% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 70.6%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.