Pass rate
95.0%
Above average — 21.7 pts ahead of the 73.3% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 140 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £42–£143
2001 TVR Chimaera MOT pass rate
- 2001
- typical 47,658 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Emissions & leaks
29.7% of faults · 5.5% nationally
Which year to buy
- Best 2002 95.5% pass
- Avoid 2000 89.5% pass
Across the 3 years on record, a spread of 6 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 94.9%
- Typical mileage
- 48k mi
The 2001 TVR Chimaera MOT pass rate is 95.0% of its MOT tests — 21.7 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Emissions & leaks is the biggest single reason it fails, at 29.7% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 5.4× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 29.7% of everything recorded on the 2001 TVR Chimaera, against 5.5% nationally — 24.2 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 73.3% and this one manages 95.0% — 21.7 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 7% 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 TVR Chimaera? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2001 TVR Chimaera compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.3%, so this figure is 21.7 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 94.9%. The median 2001 TVR Chimaera in this dataset had covered 47,658 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 97.7% of the time, April–September 93.8%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 2.14% of tests.
- 140 recorded tests behind this page.
- 95.0% overall pass rate, 94.9% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the TVR Chimaera, the average is 91.1% — best year 2002 (95.5%), worst 2000 (89.5%).
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
- 140
- Typical mileage (median)
- 47,658 mi
- Make and model
- TVR Chimaera
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Ball Joint
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Chimaera MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 85% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the Chimaera
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 49 | 98.0% |
| North West | 25 | 92.0% |
| East of England | 24 | 87.5% |
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 2001 Chimaera
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 Chimaera
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 suspension joints 2.1% 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 exhaust and emissions 0.7% of tests
“catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds manufacturer's 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 0.7% of tests
“headlamp aim too high”
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 2001 Chimaera through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £42–£143 — and 7% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £42–£143
- Cheapest common item: individual direction indicators incorrect…
- £3–£12
- 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
- 7%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 140 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 Chimaera, side by side
3 model years on record, from 2000 to 2002. Across them the pass rate runs from 89.5% to 95.5% — a spread of 6 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 89.5% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2001 95.0%ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2002 95.5% windscreen damaged but not…
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 TVR Chimaera 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
- Porsche 911 86.3%
- Jaguar XK8 80.6%
- Porsche Boxster 80.5%
- Mercedes-Benz Slk 80.3%
- BMW Z3 79.5%
- Subaru Impreza 79.3%
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 TVR Chimaera 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 9 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 64 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 | 19 | 29.70% | 5.52% | +24.18 |
| Suspension | 13 | 20.30% | 20.98% | −0.68 |
| Tyres | 8 | 12.50% | 19.76% | −7.26 |
| Brakes | 7 | 10.90% | 20.89% | −9.99 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 5 | 7.80% | 5.57% | +2.23 |
| Visibility | 4 | 6.20% | 4.97% | +1.23 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 3 | 4.70% | 12.21% | −7.51 |
| Steering | 3 | 4.70% | 2.57% | +2.13 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 2 | 3.10% | 1.76% | +1.34 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.1% | £18–45 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 2.1% | £80–250 |
| Bonnet cannot be secured in the closed position Visibility | Major | 0.71% | £20–80 |
| Bonnet primary retaining device ineffective Visibility | Major | 0.71% | £20–80 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 0.71% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions hydrocarbon content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 0.71% | £60–250 |
| Emissions not tested unable to be completed Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 0.71% | £60–250 |
| Hand lever has insufficient reserve travel Brakes | Major | 0.71% | £45–110 |
| Headlamp aim too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 0.71% | £30–80 |
| Individual direction indicators incorrect colour Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 0.71% | £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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 9.3% | £200–700 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 4.3% | £45–95 |
| Attachment bracket and mounting attachment bracket/mounting damaged and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 1.4% | £40–150 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 1.4% | £25–65 |
| Flexible brake hoses ferrule excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 1.4% | £25–70 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 1.4% | £40–150 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 10 | 100.0% | 21,702 mi |
| 30-60k | 98 | 94.9% | 45,440 mi |
| 60-90k | 32 | 93.8% | 70,630 mi |
Source: 140 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 Chimaera MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2001 TVR Chimaera?
95.0% of the 140 2001 TVR Chimaera tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.3% for cars first used in 2001. First-attempt pass rate: 94.9%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2001 TVR Chimaera?
The three most recorded items are ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (2.14%), joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (2.14%), bonnet cannot be secured in the closed position (0.71%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2001 TVR Chimaera MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 93.8% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2001 TVR Chimaera in this dataset had covered 47,658 mi.
Does the season affect the 2001 TVR Chimaera MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 97.7% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 93.8%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.