Pass rate
76.8%
Around average — 14.4 pts behind the 91.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 1,882 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £17–£50
2021 Nissan Elgrand MOT pass rate
- 2021
- typical 81,426 mi
Most common fault
Brakes
22.5% 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 →
Which year to buy
- Best 2012 83.6% pass
- Avoid 2000 65.2% pass
Across the 22 years on record, a spread of 18.4 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 71.2%
- Typical mileage
- 81k mi
The 2021 Nissan Elgrand MOT pass rate is 76.8% of its MOT tests — 14.4 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 22.5% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Nissan Elgrand does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Lamps & electrics: 1.5× the national share
Lamps & electrics make up 17.8% of everything recorded on the 2021 Nissan Elgrand, against 12.2% nationally — 5.6 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 22.5%, but at 20.9% nationally that one is ordinary. Walk round the car with the lights on before the test: bulbs, indicators and number-plate lamps are the cheapest failures to prevent and among the most common.
- Falls short of its own age and mileage. Like-for-like, cars this age and mileage expect about 91.2%; this one manages 76.8% — 14.4 points below. Age is a fair excuse; this is not age.
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 Nissan Elgrand? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2021 Nissan Elgrand compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 91.2%, so this figure is 14.4 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 71.2%. The median 2021 Nissan Elgrand in this dataset had covered 81,426 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 77.9% of the time, April–September 75.9%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 5.47% of tests.
- 1,882 recorded tests behind this page.
- 76.8% overall pass rate, 71.2% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Nissan Elgrand, the average is 77.4% — best year 2012 (83.6%), worst 2000 (65.2%).
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
- 1,882
- Typical mileage (median)
- 81,426 mi
- Make and model
- Nissan Elgrand
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Ball Joint
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Elgrand MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 65% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the Elgrand
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 509 | 77.8% |
| Scotland | 244 | 71.7% |
| South West | 235 | 68.1% |
| North West | 154 | 79.2% |
| West Midlands | 130 | 79.2% |
| East of England | 127 | 81.9% |
| Yorkshire | 120 | 75.8% |
| North East | 118 | 80.5% |
| Wales | 96 | 77.1% |
| London | 83 | 88.0% |
| East Midlands | 66 | 80.3% |
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 Elgrand
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 Elgrand
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 5.5% of tests
“ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”
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 lights 3.1% of tests
“headlamp lens slightly defective”
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 brakes 2.2% 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.
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 Elgrand through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £17–£50 — and 45% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £17–£50
- Cheapest common item: rear fog lamp does not emit a steady red light
- £3–£15
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 90%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 45%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 1,882 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 Elgrand, side by side
22 model years on record, from 2000 to 2021. Across them the pass rate runs from 65.2% to 83.6% — a spread of 18.4 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 65.2% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2001 71.0% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2002 73.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2003 72.7% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2004 75.7% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2005 76.9% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2006 78.4% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2007 79.3% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2008 80.2% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2009 81.3% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2010 81.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2011 82.3% component mounting prescribed…
- 2012 83.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2013 78.5% rear fog lamp not working
- 2014 77.1% rear fog lamp not working
- 2015 73.0% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2016 71.0% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2017 72.9% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2018 73.5% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2019 76.2% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2020 76.0% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2021 76.8%ball joint dust cover severely…
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 Nissan Elgrand 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
- Mercedes-Benz Citan 82.9%
- Vauxhall Combo 84.0%
- Ford Galaxy 84.1%
- Citroen C4 Sense + 84.8%
- Mercedes-Benz Vito 85.2%
- Tesla Model 3 Performance 85.3%
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 Nissan Elgrand 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 3,343 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 | 759 | 22.50% | 20.89% | +1.61 |
| Suspension | 721 | 21.40% | 20.98% | +0.42 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 599 | 17.80% | 12.21% | +5.59 |
| Tyres | 598 | 17.70% | 19.76% | −2.06 |
| Non-component advisories | 159 | 4.70% | 4.18% | +0.52 |
| Visibility | 135 | 4.00% | 4.97% | −0.97 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 120 | 3.60% | 5.57% | −1.97 |
| Steering | 117 | 3.50% | 2.57% | +0.93 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 114 | 3.40% | 5.52% | −2.12 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 21 | 0.60% | 0.82% | −0.22 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 5.5% | £18–45 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Suspension | Major | 3.4% | £18–45 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 3.1% | £5–25 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.8% | £5–20 |
| Rear fog lamp does not emit a steady red light Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.6% | £3–15 |
| Rear fog lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.6% | £3–15 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.5% | £18–45 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 2.3% | £80–250 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Major | 2.2% | £18–45 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.2% | £5–25 |
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 | 17.5% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 15.1% | £18–45 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 10.6% | £45–110 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 7.7% | £40–150 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 6.1% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Play in steering rack inner joint(s) Non-component advisories | Advisory | 3.6% | £120–300 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 12 | 91.7% | 26,661 mi |
| 30-60k | 303 | 81.5% | 50,617 mi |
| 60-90k | 865 | 77.3% | 75,245 mi |
| 90-120k | 476 | 74.4% | 102,640 mi |
| 120k+ | 226 | 73.0% | 143,519 mi |
Source: 1,882 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 Elgrand MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2021 Nissan Elgrand?
76.8% of the 1,882 2021 Nissan Elgrand tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 91.2% for cars first used in 2021. First-attempt pass rate: 71.2%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2021 Nissan Elgrand?
The three most recorded items are ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (5.47%), linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (3.40%), headlamp lens slightly defective (3.08%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2021 Nissan Elgrand MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 91.7% of the time, falling to 73.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2021 Nissan Elgrand in this dataset had covered 81,426 mi.
Does the season affect the 2021 Nissan Elgrand MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 77.9% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 75.9%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.