Alfa Romeo 159: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Alfa Romeo 159 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 16.6 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 3,450 individual Alfa Romeo 159 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 60.1% first-time pass rate means roughly 40 in every 100 Alfa Romeo 159s presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Alfa Romeo 159 tested had covered 119,775 miles and was built around 2009.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Alfa Romeo 159 bought as a repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Alfa Romeo 159 rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged Alfa Romeo 159s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Alfa Romeo 159

1. Smoke opacity levels exceed the manufacturer's specified limit, 2.3% of tests (11.4x the national rate for this defect)
2. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 6.9% of tests (7.08x the national rate for this defect)
3. A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded, 1.8% of tests (6.82x the national rate for this defect)
4. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 5.3% of tests (6.37x the national rate for this defect)
5. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 1.7% of tests (4.75x the national rate for this defect)
6. Lamp emitted colour, position or intensity not in accordance with the requirements, 2% of tests (4.69x the national rate for this defect)
7. A tyre cords visible or damaged, 4.2% of tests (3.48x the national rate for this defect)
8. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 5.7% of tests (3.43x the national rate for this defect)
9. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 2.2% of tests (2.81x the national rate for this defect)
10. Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction, 2.3% of tests (2.47x the national rate for this defect)

From 5,672 DVSA-tracked Alfa Romeo 159 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 5.62% of these flagged Alfa Romeo 159 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Alfa Romeo 159 pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Alfa Romeo 159 year:

• 2006 Alfa Romeo 159 - 59.7% first-time pass, 206 tests
• 2007 Alfa Romeo 159 - 58.6% first-time pass, 637 tests
• 2008 Alfa Romeo 159 - 60.5% first-time pass, 646 tests
• 2009 Alfa Romeo 159 - 61.3% first-time pass, 706 tests
• 2010 Alfa Romeo 159 - 59.4% first-time pass, 665 tests
• 2011 Alfa Romeo 159 - 63.5% first-time pass, 457 tests

Alfa Romeo 159 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel Alfa Romeo 159 - 60.1% first-time pass, 2,616 tests
• Petrol Alfa Romeo 159 - 63.2% first-time pass, 793 tests

Other Alfa Romeo models

• Alfa Romeo Giulietta - 71.9%
• Alfa Romeo Mito - 66.8%
• Alfa Romeo Giulia - 86.9%
• Alfa Romeo Spider - 72.9%
• Alfa Romeo Stelvio - 89%
• Alfa Romeo 147 - 61.7%
• Alfa Romeo Brera - 68.8%
• Alfa Romeo GT - 60.5%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Citroen Ds3 - 60.4%
• Volvo V50 - 60.4%
• Ldv Maxus - 60.4%
• Chrysler Pt Cruiser - 60.1%
• Chrysler-Jeep Grand Voyager - 60.1%
• Volkswagen Fox - 60%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate