Pass rate
65.5%
Below average — 7.1 pts behind the 72.6% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 1,932 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £38–£105
2003 Nissan Primastar MOT pass rate
- 2003
- Van
- typical 148,506 mi
Most common fault
Brakes
22.7% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2022 85.1% pass
- Avoid 2003 65.5% pass · this year
Across the 14 years on record, a spread of 19.6 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 52.5%
- Typical mileage
- 149k mi
The 2003 Nissan Primastar MOT pass rate is 65.5% of its MOT tests — 7.1 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 22.7% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Nissan Primastar does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Fewer problems with tyres
Tyres are 8.1% of this car’s recorded faults, against 19.8% nationally — the mirror image of the usual story on a van of this age.
- Falls short of its own age and mileage. Like-for-like, vans this age and mileage expect about 72.6%; this one manages 65.5% — 7.1 points below. Age is a fair excuse; this is not age.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 24% 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 Nissan Primastar? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2003 Nissan Primastar compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.6%, so this figure is 7.1 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 52.5%. The median 2003 Nissan Primastar in this dataset had covered 148,506 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 65.3% of the time, April–September 65.7%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view", noted on 9.16% of tests.
- 1,932 recorded tests behind this page.
- 65.5% overall pass rate, 52.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Nissan Primastar, the average is 68.2% — best year 2022 (85.1%), worst 2003 (65.5%).
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
- 1,932
- Typical mileage (median)
- 148,506 mi
- Make and model
- Nissan Primastar
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Windscreen
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the Primastar MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 52% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the Primastar
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South West | 483 | 60.9% |
| South East | 399 | 70.2% |
| East of England | 221 | 66.1% |
| North West | 168 | 67.3% |
| Yorkshire | 163 | 67.5% |
| West Midlands | 158 | 67.7% |
| East Midlands | 125 | 61.6% |
| Wales | 113 | 62.8% |
| North East | 50 | 64.0% |
| Scotland | 42 | 66.7% |
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 2003 Primastar
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 2003 Primastar
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 windscreen 9.2% 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 suspension joints 7.7% 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 wipers and washers 4.7% of tests
“washers provides insufficient washer liquid”
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 2003 Primastar through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £38–£105 — and 24% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £38–£105
- Cheapest common item: washers provides insufficient washer liquid
- £5–£15
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 60%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 24%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 1,932 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 Primastar, side by side
14 model years on record, from 2002 to 2022. Across them the pass rate runs from 65.5% to 85.1% — a spread of 19.6 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2002 65.6% ball joint excessively worn
- 2003 65.5%windscreen damaged but not…
- 2004 67.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2005 67.5% ball joint excessively worn
- 2006 68.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2007 68.2% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2008 68.1% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2009 68.4% ball joint excessively worn
- 2010 66.2% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2011 67.5% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2012 68.0% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2013 67.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2014 70.3% track rod end ball joint has…
- 2022 85.1% 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 2003 Nissan Primastar 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 2003 vans with a similar record
- Vauxhall Vivaro 66.5%
- Fiat Doblo 66.6%
- Ford Transit Connect 67.1%
- Renault Trafic 67.2%
- Renault Kangoo 67.7%
- Citroen Dispatch 67.9%
Closest pass rates among 2003 vans with at least 1,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. Full rankings: best vans and worst vans for MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2003 Nissan Primastar 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 8,494 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 | 1,953 | 22.70% | 20.89% | +1.81 |
| Suspension | 1,827 | 21.20% | 20.98% | +0.22 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 1,173 | 13.60% | 12.21% | +1.39 |
| Tyres | 699 | 8.10% | 19.76% | −11.66 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 650 | 7.50% | 5.52% | +1.98 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 608 | 7.10% | 5.57% | +1.53 |
| Visibility | 519 | 6.00% | 4.97% | +1.03 |
| Steering | 452 | 5.20% | 2.57% | +2.63 |
| Non-component advisories | 422 | 4.90% | 4.18% | +0.72 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 191 | 2.20% | 1.76% | +0.44 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 9.2% | £80–200 |
| Ball joint excessively worn Suspension | Major | 7.7% | £18–45 |
| Track rod end ball joint has excessive play Steering | Major | 6.7% | £18–45 |
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 6.3% | £45–110 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 4.8% | £80–250 |
| Washers provides insufficient washer liquid Visibility | Major | 4.7% | £5–15 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 4.3% | £5–25 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 4.2% | £5–25 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 4.1% | £30–80 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.3% | £80–250 |
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 | 29.5% | £200–700 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 20.0% | £45–110 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 17.3% | £80–180 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 16.0% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Play in steering rack inner joint(s) Non-component advisories | Advisory | 15.9% | £120–300 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Advisory | 12.8% | £30–75 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 3 | 66.7% | 26,342 mi |
| 30-60k | 15 | 60.0% | 51,316 mi |
| 60-90k | 100 | 69.0% | 78,733 mi |
| 90-120k | 265 | 65.3% | 106,640 mi |
| 120k+ | 1,527 | 65.3% | 165,810 mi |
Source: 1,932 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.
2003 Primastar MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2003 Nissan Primastar?
65.5% of the 1,932 2003 Nissan Primastar tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.6% for cars first used in 2003. First-attempt pass rate: 52.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2003 Nissan Primastar?
The three most recorded items are windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (9.16%), ball joint excessively worn (7.71%), track rod end ball joint has excessive play (6.73%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2003 Nissan Primastar MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 66.7% of the time, falling to 65.3% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2003 Nissan Primastar in this dataset had covered 148,506 mi.
Does the season affect the 2003 Nissan Primastar MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 65.3% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 65.7%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.