Pass rate
93.8%
Above average — 21.6 pts ahead of the 72.2% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 97 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £63–£225
2004 Porsche Carrera MOT pass rate
- 2004
- 3 trims combined
- typical 48,333 mi
Only 97 tests of this exact model and year are in the DVSA data, below the 100 we ask for before a page goes in the index. The figures are still shown, because they are the only ones there are.
Most common fault
Emissions & leaks
29.3% of faults · 5.5% nationally
Which year to buy
- Best 2009 96.8% pass
- Avoid 2003 79.7% pass
Across the 10 years on record, a spread of 17.1 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 93.5%
- Typical mileage
- 48k mi
The 2004 Porsche Carrera MOT pass rate is 93.8% of its MOT tests — 21.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Emissions & leaks is the biggest single reason it fails, at 29.3% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Porsche Carrera does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 5.3× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 29.3% of everything recorded on the 2004 Porsche Carrera, against 5.5% nationally — 23.8 points above. A smoky diesel or a leaking joint fails on emissions more often than on wear, so ask for a recent emissions printout.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 72.2% and this one manages 93.8% — 21.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 0% 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 Porsche Carrera? Get an email when these numbers change .
Every Porsche Carrera 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 Porsche Carrera compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.2%, so this figure is 21.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 93.5%. The median 2004 Porsche Carrera in this dataset had covered 48,333 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 97.8% of the time, April–September 90.4%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits", noted on 3.09% of tests.
- 97 recorded tests behind this page.
- 93.8% overall pass rate, 93.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Porsche Carrera, the average is 87.8% — best year 2009 (96.8%), worst 2003 (79.7%).
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
- 97
- Typical mileage (median)
- 48,333 mi
- Make and model
- Porsche Carrera
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Emissions Repair
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the Carrera MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 73% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the Carrera
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 45 | 93.3% |
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 2004 Carrera
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 Carrera
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 exhaust and emissions 3.1% of tests
“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.
-
Check the lights 1.0% of tests
“headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect”
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.
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 Carrera through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £63–£225 — and 0% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £63–£225
- Cheapest common item: headlamp aim projected beam image is…
- £30–£80
- Dearest common item: catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd…
- £60–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 0%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 0%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 97 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 Carrera, side by side
10 model years on record, from 2000 to 2010. Across them the pass rate runs from 79.7% to 96.8% — a spread of 17.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 88.4% mirrors slightly damaged
- 2001 80.6% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2002 89.3% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2003 79.7% rigid brake pipes excessively…
- 2004 93.8%catalyst emissions lambda reading…
- 2005 91.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2006 87.4% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2007 92.8% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2009 96.8% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2010 85.1% joints constant velocity boot…
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 Porsche Carrera 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
- Bentley Continental 89.2%
- BMW M3 88.2%
- Mercedes-Benz Sl 86.7%
- Honda S2000 86.7%
- Mercedes-Benz S-Class 83.1%
- Subaru Impreza 82.2%
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 Porsche Carrera 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 41 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 12 | 29.30% | 5.52% | +23.78 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 9 | 22.00% | 5.57% | +16.43 |
| Suspension | 4 | 9.80% | 20.98% | −11.18 |
| Brakes | 4 | 9.80% | 20.89% | −11.09 |
| Tyres | 4 | 9.80% | 19.76% | −9.96 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 4 | 9.80% | 12.21% | −2.41 |
| Visibility | 1 | 2.40% | 4.97% | −2.57 |
| Non-component advisories | 1 | 2.40% | 4.18% | −1.78 |
| Steering | 1 | 2.40% | 2.57% | −0.17 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 1 | 2.40% | 1.76% | +0.64 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 3.1% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 2.1% | £60–250 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 2.1% | £80–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.0% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions emissions likely to be affected by an exhaust leak Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.0% | £60–250 |
| Door condition cannot be opened from outside the vehicle Body, chassis, structure | Major | 1.0% | £80–250 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 1.0% | £45–120 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.0% | £30–80 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 1.0% | £80–250 |
| Malfunctioning Steering | Major | 1.0% | £60–200 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exhaust system noise is clearly in excess of that emitted by a similar vehicle fitted with a standard silencer in… Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 4.1% | £45–120 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 3.1% | £200–700 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 3.1% | £80–180 |
| Macpherson strut corroded and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 2.1% | £180–450 |
| Other leaks leak harmful to the environment or a risk to other road users Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 2.1% | £60–250 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 2.1% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 44 | 97.7% | 13,673 mi |
| 30-60k | 15 | 100.0% | 50,764 mi |
| 60-90k | 20 | 90.0% | 78,273 mi |
| 90-120k | 16 | 81.3% | 99,183 mi |
| 120k+ | 2 | 100.0% | 164,467 mi |
Source: 97 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 Carrera MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2004 Porsche Carrera?
93.8% of the 97 2004 Porsche Carrera tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.2% for cars first used in 2004. First-attempt pass rate: 93.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2004 Porsche Carrera?
The three most recorded items are catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (3.09%), catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits (2.06%), joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (2.06%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2004 Porsche Carrera MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 97.7% of the time, falling to 100.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2004 Porsche Carrera in this dataset had covered 48,333 mi.
Does the season affect the 2004 Porsche Carrera MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 97.8% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 90.4%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.