Pass rate
74.8%
Below average — 1.5 pts ahead of the 73.3% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 2,314 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £66–£187
2001 Rover 25 MOT pass rate
- 2001
- typical 62,309 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Brakes
20.2% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2003 75.7% pass
- Avoid 2006 71.3% pass
Across the 7 years on record, a spread of 4.4 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 68.1%
- Typical mileage
- 62k mi
The 2001 Rover 25 MOT pass rate is 74.8% of its MOT tests — 1.5 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 20.2% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Body & chassis: 2.8× the national share
Body & chassis accounts for 15.8% of everything recorded on the 2001 Rover 25, against 5.6% nationally — 10.2 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 20.2%, but at 20.9% nationally that one is ordinary. Look underneath for corrosion near the jacking points and suspension mounts; surface rust is normal, flaking metal is not.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 22% 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 Rover 25? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2001 Rover 25 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.3%, so this figure is 1.5 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 68.1%. The median 2001 Rover 25 in this dataset had covered 62,309 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Petrol — 94% of tests, with a 74.9% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 74.8% of the time, April–September 74.8%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated", noted on 8.30% of tests.
- 2,314 recorded tests behind this page.
- 74.8% overall pass rate, 68.1% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Rover 25, the average is 75.2% — best year 2003 (75.7%), worst 2006 (71.3%).
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
- 2,314
- Typical mileage (median)
- 62,309 mi
- Make and model
- Rover 25
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Body Panel Repair
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the 25 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 60% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Petrol is the most common here (94% of tests).
Where the Rover 25 is most common
Across all 25 model years on record (2000–2006): 4,862 Rover 25 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 12,238 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 361 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Birmingham (B) | 361 | 79.5% |
| 2 | Coventry (CV) | 120 | 76.5% |
| 3 | Bristol (BS) | 115 | 74.4% |
| 4 | Exeter (EX) | 108 | 66.6% |
| 5 | Oxford (OX) | 106 | 75.2% |
| 6 | Peterborough (PE) | 98 | 75.6% |
| 7 | Stourbridge (DY) | 96 | 77.2% |
| 8 | Newton Abbot (TQ) | 94 | 70.8% |
| 9 | Ashford (TN) | 92 | 74.3% |
| 10 | Portsmouth (PO) | 90 | 72.3% |
| 11 | Leicester (LE) | 86 | 77.8% |
| 12 | Sheffield (S) | 85 | 79.2% |
| 13 | Gloucester (GL) | 84 | 67.8% |
| 14 | Plymouth (PL) | 77 | 74.5% |
| 15 | Derby (DE) | 76 | 78.8% |
| 16 | Brighton (BN) | 76 | 74.9% |
| 17 | Preston (PR) | 72 | 77.5% |
| 18 | Nottingham (NG) | 71 | 71.9% |
| 19 | Norwich (NR) | 70 | 72.4% |
| 20 | Yeovil (BA) | 69 | 66.7% |
The twenty areas with the most Rover 25 cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the 25
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 605 | 75.2% |
| South West | 410 | 72.2% |
| West Midlands | 354 | 78.0% |
| North West | 243 | 75.3% |
| East of England | 219 | 73.1% |
| East Midlands | 147 | 76.2% |
| Yorkshire | 118 | 71.2% |
| Wales | 76 | 69.7% |
| London | 66 | 87.9% |
| North East | 45 | 73.3% |
| Scotland | 31 | 67.7% |
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 2001 25
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 2001 25
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 4.5% 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 corrosion 4.1% of tests
“component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength”
Look under the sills, around the jacking points and where the suspension mounts meet the body. Flaking, holed or crumbly metal fails; a brown stain on sound metal does not.
-
Check the exhaust and emissions 2.7% of tests
“exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases”
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.
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 2001 25 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £66–£187 — and 22% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £66–£187
- Cheapest common item: stop lamp not working
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: component mounting prescribed areas…
- £180–£450
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 50%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 22%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 2,314 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 25, side by side
7 model years on record, from 2000 to 2006. Across them the pass rate runs from 71.3% to 75.7% — a spread of 4.4 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 75.6% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2001 74.8%joints constant velocity boot…
- 2002 75.7% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2003 75.7% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2004 75.0% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2005 74.8% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2006 71.3% 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 2001 Rover 25 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 2001 cars with a similar record
- Land Rover Discovery 74.8%
- Nissan Almera 74.7%
- Land Rover Defender 75.0%
- Audi A4 74.5%
- Toyota Rav-4 75.1%
- Toyota Celica 74.3%
Closest pass rates among 2001 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 2001 Rover 25 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 5,208 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 | 1,090 | 20.20% | 20.89% | −0.69 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 850 | 15.80% | 5.57% | +10.23 |
| Suspension | 766 | 14.20% | 20.98% | −6.78 |
| Tyres | 695 | 12.90% | 19.76% | −6.86 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 569 | 10.60% | 12.21% | −1.61 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 425 | 7.90% | 5.52% | +2.38 |
| Steering | 259 | 4.80% | 2.57% | +2.23 |
| Visibility | 223 | 4.10% | 4.97% | −0.87 |
| Non-component advisories | 183 | 3.40% | 4.18% | −0.78 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 148 | 2.70% | 1.76% | +0.94 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 8.3% | £80–250 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 6.9% | £80–250 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 4.5% | £5–20 |
| Component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength Suspension | Major | 4.1% | £180–450 |
| Service brake imbalance across an axle Brakes | Major | 3.2% | £45–110 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 2.7% | £45–120 |
| Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.3% | £60–140 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 2.1% | £8–22 |
| Service brake performance efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 1.9% | £60–150 |
| Stop lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 1.9% | £3–12 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 16.1% | £45–95 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 12.8% | £80–180 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 11.2% | £200–700 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 9.0% | £45–95 |
| Component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength Suspension | Advisory | 7.5% | £180–450 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 7.2% | £45–120 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 212 | 79.2% | 23,121 mi |
| 30-60k | 878 | 76.2% | 45,893 mi |
| 60-90k | 697 | 75.5% | 73,974 mi |
| 90-120k | 368 | 70.4% | 102,903 mi |
| 120k+ | 153 | 68.6% | 147,276 mi |
Source: 2,314 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.
2001 25 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2001 Rover 25?
74.8% of the 2,314 2001 Rover 25 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.3% for cars first used in 2001. First-attempt pass rate: 68.1%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2001 Rover 25?
The three most recorded items are joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (8.30%), joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (6.87%), registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.54%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2001 Rover 25 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 79.2% of the time, falling to 68.6% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2001 Rover 25 in this dataset had covered 62,309 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2001 Rover 25?
Petrol: 74.9% pass rate across 2,176 tests. Diesel: 73.9% pass rate across 138 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2001 Rover 25 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 74.8% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 74.8%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.