Pass rate
74.1%
Below average — 1.5 pts ahead of the 72.6% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 1,832 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £40–£115
2003 SEAT Arosa MOT pass rate
- 2003
- typical 76,873 mi
Most common fault
Suspension
23.8% of faults · 21.0% nationally
mostly worn arm bushes, split ball-joint boots and broken coil springs.
Which year to buy
- Best 2001 74.9% pass
- Avoid 2002 71.6% pass
Across the 6 years on record, a spread of 3.3 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 67.3%
- Typical mileage
- 77k mi
The 2003 SEAT Arosa MOT pass rate is 74.1% of its MOT tests — 1.5 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Suspension is the biggest single reason it fails, at 23.8% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how SEAT Arosa does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Body & chassis: 2.0× the national share
Body & chassis accounts for 11.3% of everything recorded on the 2003 SEAT Arosa, against 5.6% nationally — 5.7 points above. Suspension is still the single largest share at 23.8%, but at 21.0% 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 32% 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 SEAT Arosa? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2003 SEAT Arosa compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.6%, 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 67.3%. The median 2003 SEAT Arosa in this dataset had covered 76,873 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Petrol — 93% of tests, with a 73.7% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 73.8% of the time, April–September 74.4%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 6.00% of tests.
- 1,832 recorded tests behind this page.
- 74.1% overall pass rate, 67.3% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the SEAT Arosa, the average is 73.3% — best year 2001 (74.9%), worst 2002 (71.6%).
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
- 1,832
- Typical mileage (median)
- 76,873 mi
- Make and model
- SEAT Arosa
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Number Plate Lamp
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Arosa 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 (93% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Arosa
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South West | 398 | 68.3% |
| South East | 396 | 76.5% |
| East of England | 220 | 75.5% |
| East Midlands | 156 | 72.4% |
| North West | 147 | 75.5% |
| Yorkshire | 141 | 69.5% |
| West Midlands | 118 | 80.5% |
| Wales | 93 | 72.0% |
| Scotland | 60 | 75.0% |
| London | 52 | 92.3% |
| North East | 51 | 76.5% |
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 Arosa
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 Arosa
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 6.0% 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 windscreen 4.5% 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 4.2% 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.
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 Arosa through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £40–£115 — and 32% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £40–£115
- Cheapest common item: registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the…
- £5–£20
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 50%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 32%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 1,832 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 Arosa, side by side
6 model years on record, from 2000 to 2005. Across them the pass rate runs from 71.6% to 74.9% — a spread of 3.3 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 74.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2001 74.9% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2002 71.6% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2003 74.1%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2004 72.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2005 72.8% ball joint dust cover severely…
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 SEAT Arosa 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 cars with a similar record
- Audi A4 74.1%
- Vauxhall Agila 74.1%
- Volkswagen Lupo 74.1%
- Volvo S60 74.1%
- Toyota Hiace 74.1%
- Volkswagen Bora 74.0%
Closest pass rates among 2003 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 2003 SEAT Arosa 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 5,542 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 1,336 | 23.80% | 20.98% | +2.82 |
| Brakes | 1,023 | 18.30% | 20.89% | −2.59 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 756 | 13.50% | 12.21% | +1.29 |
| Tyres | 659 | 11.80% | 19.76% | −7.96 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 632 | 11.30% | 5.57% | +5.73 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 469 | 8.40% | 5.52% | +2.88 |
| Visibility | 258 | 4.60% | 4.97% | −0.37 |
| Steering | 156 | 2.80% | 2.57% | +0.23 |
| Non-component advisories | 132 | 2.40% | 4.18% | −1.78 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 121 | 2.20% | 1.76% | +0.44 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 6.0% | £5–20 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 5.1% | £80–250 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 4.5% | £80–200 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 4.2% | £18–45 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.0% | £45–120 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.0% | £5–25 |
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 2.8% | £80–250 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.6% | £5–25 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.6% | £30–80 |
| Service brake imbalance across an axle Brakes | Major | 2.6% | £45–110 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 14.8% | £40–150 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 14.7% | £45–95 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 14.0% | £45–120 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 13.7% | £45–95 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 13.0% | £25–65 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 12.7% | £80–180 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 84 | 85.7% | 20,990 mi |
| 30-60k | 481 | 79.4% | 47,364 mi |
| 60-90k | 627 | 73.8% | 75,025 mi |
| 90-120k | 417 | 68.3% | 102,622 mi |
| 120k+ | 204 | 71.1% | 145,751 mi |
Source: 1,832 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 Arosa MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2003 SEAT Arosa?
74.1% of the 1,832 2003 SEAT Arosa tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.6% for cars first used in 2003. First-attempt pass rate: 67.3%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2003 SEAT Arosa?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (6.00%), joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (5.13%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (4.53%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2003 SEAT Arosa MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 85.7% of the time, falling to 71.1% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2003 SEAT Arosa in this dataset had covered 76,873 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2003 SEAT Arosa?
Petrol: 73.7% pass rate across 1,706 tests. Diesel: 78.6% pass rate across 126 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2003 SEAT Arosa MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 73.8% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 74.4%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.