Nissan Silvia MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Nissan Silvia MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Nissan Silvia passed on its first attempt in 89.8%, and its overall record sits +9.4 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Nissan Silvia in the 2023–2025 data: 723 tests across 8 model years (2000–2019). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.

Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.

Most Common Nissan Silvia MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Nissan Silvia, the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.

Shares are over the Nissan Silvia's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Nissan Silvia DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Nissan Silvia, each with how many of the model's 723 tests it was noted on.

• "Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits" (Major) — noted on about 14 Nissan Silvia tests, 1.9% of the model's MOT record.
• "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated" (Minor) — noted on about 12 Nissan Silvia tests, 1.7% of the model's MOT record.
• "Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier" (Minor) — noted on about 9 Nissan Silvia tests, 1.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Rear fog lamp not working" (Rectified) — noted on about 8 Nissan Silvia tests, 1.1% of the model's MOT record.
• "Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits" (Major) — noted on about 8 Nissan Silvia tests, 1.1% of the model's MOT record.
• "Track rod end ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated, but preventing the ingress of dirt" (Minor) — noted on about 6 Nissan Silvia tests, 0.8% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Nissan Silvia Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Nissan Silvia model year on record is 2017 (96.7% across 90 tests), and the weakest is 2002 (87.4%). The gap between them is 9.3 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Nissan Silvia reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.1 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.

Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for Nissan Silvia Owners

These checks follow this Nissan Silvia's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Nissan Silvia.

• the exhaust and emissions — “catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits”

  Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.

• the suspension joints — “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.

• the battery — “battery(ies) insecure”

  Check the battery is secure and its terminals are clean and tight — a loose battery is a fail on its own, and a weak one shows up as slow cranking on a cold morning.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Nissan Silvia. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Frequently Asked Questions: Nissan Silvia MOT & Reliability