Pass rate
71.0%
Below average — 3.0 pts behind the 74.0% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 231 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £27–£75
2009 Proton Gen-2 MOT pass rate
- 2009
- typical 64,170 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Brakes
23.8% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2010 71.9% pass
- Avoid 2012 66.0% pass
Across the 8 years on record, a spread of 5.9 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 63.3%
- Typical mileage
- 64k mi
The 2009 Proton Gen-2 MOT pass rate is 71.0% of its MOT tests — 3.0 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 23.8% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 1.9× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 10.7% of everything recorded on the 2009 Proton Gen-2, against 5.5% nationally — 5.2 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 23.8%, but at 20.9% nationally that one is ordinary. A smoky diesel or a leaking joint fails on emissions more often than on wear, so ask for a recent emissions printout.
- Falls short of its own age and mileage. Like-for-like, cars this age and mileage expect about 74.0%; this one manages 71.0% — 3.0 points below. Age is a fair excuse; this is not age.
- Based on a small sample. 231 tests back this page. That is enough to publish and to index, not enough to treat the decimal places as precise — read the pattern, not the second digit.
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 Proton Gen-2? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2009 Proton Gen-2 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 74.0%, so this figure is 3.0 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 63.3%. The median 2009 Proton Gen-2 in this dataset had covered 64,170 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Petrol — 84% of tests, with a 72.7% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 73.2% of the time, April–September 68.3%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements", noted on 8.23% of tests.
- 231 recorded tests behind this page.
- 71.0% overall pass rate, 63.3% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Proton Gen-2, the average is 68.6% — best year 2010 (71.9%), worst 2012 (66.0%).
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
- 231
- Typical mileage (median)
- 64,170 mi
- Make and model
- Proton Gen-2
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Brake Discs and Pads Set
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Gen-2 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 53% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Petrol is the most common here (84% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Gen-2
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| West Midlands | 41 | 78.0% |
| East of England | 39 | 76.9% |
| North West | 28 | 71.4% |
| South East | 28 | 64.3% |
| South West | 26 | 73.1% |
| Yorkshire | 23 | 69.6% |
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 2009 Gen-2
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 2009 Gen-2
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 6.9% 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 suspension joints 6.5% 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 horn 5.2% of tests
“horn not working”
Press it. That is the whole check, and a surprising number of cars fail on it.
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 2009 Gen-2 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £27–£75 — and 48% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £27–£75
- Cheapest common item: registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the…
- £5–£20
- Dearest common item: door condition cannot be opened from outside…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 70%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 48%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 231 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 Gen-2, side by side
8 model years on record, from 2005 to 2012. Across them the pass rate runs from 66.0% to 71.9% — a spread of 5.9 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2005 67.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2006 66.2% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 67.6% ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2008 67.0% battery(ies) insecure but not…
- 2009 71.0%rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2010 71.9% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2011 70.4% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2012 66.0% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
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 2009 Proton Gen-2 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 2009 cars with a similar record
- Alfa Romeo Mito 71.0%
- Kia Ceed 71.1%
- Mercedes-Benz Clc 71.1%
- Kia Sportage 71.1%
- Citroen Nemo 71.1%
- Peugeot Bipper 71.1%
Closest pass rates among 2009 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 2009 Proton Gen-2 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 759 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 | 183 | 23.80% | 20.89% | +2.91 |
| Suspension | 144 | 18.80% | 20.98% | −2.18 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 114 | 14.80% | 12.21% | +2.59 |
| Tyres | 96 | 12.50% | 19.76% | −7.26 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 82 | 10.70% | 5.52% | +5.18 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 60 | 7.80% | 5.57% | +2.23 |
| Visibility | 35 | 4.60% | 4.97% | −0.37 |
| Steering | 21 | 2.70% | 2.57% | +0.13 |
| Non-component advisories | 13 | 1.70% | 4.18% | −2.48 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 11 | 1.40% | 1.76% | −0.36 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 8.2% | £45–110 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 6.9% | £5–20 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 6.5% | £18–45 |
| Horn not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 5.2% | £8–25 |
| Door condition cannot be opened from outside the vehicle Body, chassis, structure | Major | 4.8% | £80–250 |
| Parking brake performance inoperative on one side Brakes | Major | 4.8% | £60–150 |
| Position lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 4.8% | £5–25 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 4.3% | £5–25 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 4.3% | £8–22 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.9% | £30–80 |
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 | 29.4% | £200–700 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 20.8% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 15.6% | £45–110 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 14.3% | £45–95 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 12.1% | £80–180 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 8.2% | £18–45 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 13 | 84.6% | 22,723 mi |
| 30-60k | 73 | 75.3% | 45,500 mi |
| 60-90k | 87 | 70.1% | 70,843 mi |
| 90-120k | 31 | 67.7% | 101,473 mi |
| 120k+ | 26 | 61.5% | 142,300 mi |
Source: 231 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.
2009 Gen-2 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2009 Proton Gen-2?
71.0% of the 231 2009 Proton Gen-2 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 74.0% for cars first used in 2009. First-attempt pass rate: 63.3%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2009 Proton Gen-2?
The three most recorded items are rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements (8.23%), registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (6.93%), ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (6.49%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2009 Proton Gen-2 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 84.6% of the time, falling to 61.5% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2009 Proton Gen-2 in this dataset had covered 64,170 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2009 Proton Gen-2?
Petrol: 72.7% pass rate across 194 tests. LPG: 62.2% pass rate across 37 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2009 Proton Gen-2 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 73.2% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 68.3%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.