Austin MINI 1000 City E: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Austin MINI 1000 City E fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 2.2 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 690 individual Austin MINI 1000 City E tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 74.5% first-time pass rate means roughly 26 in every 100 Austin MINI 1000 City Es 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 Austin MINI 1000 City E tested had covered 50,780 miles and was built around 1987.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Austin MINI 1000 City E sits 2.2 points below the national average, ranked 1,635 of 2,005 models. On one bought as 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 Austin MINI 1000 City E 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 recorded closing bids for damaged Austin MINI 1000 City Es at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Austin MINI 1000 City E

1. Emissions levels exceed default limits, 9.4% of tests (26.62x the national rate for this defect)
2. A wheel bearing with excessive play, 2.5% of tests (14.28x the national rate for this defect)
3. Service brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 2.5% of tests (11.55x the national rate for this defect)
4. An obligatory rear fog lamp missing, or a front or rear fog lamp inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 3.9% of tests (8.9x the national rate for this defect)
5. Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 4.8% of tests (6.43x the national rate for this defect)
6. Brakes imbalance across an axle such that the braking effort from any wheel is less than 70% of the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle., 3.3% of tests (6.38x the national rate for this defect)
7. 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, 4.1% of tests (4.3x the national rate for this defect)
8. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 5.1% of tests (4.14x the national rate for this defect)
9. A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 2.5% of tests (3.76x the national rate for this defect)
10. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 4.2% of tests (2.74x the national rate for this defect)

From 690 DVSA-tracked Austin MINI 1000 City E tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3% of these flagged Austin MINI 1000 City E defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Austin MINI 1000 City E

An advisory doesn't fail the car - the tester flags it as worth watching, but it still passes. A different list from the failures above: what testers are noting on a Austin MINI 1000 City E before it actually fails on it.

1. A wheel bearing with excessive play, 8.7% of tests (13.4x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
2. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 4.8% of tests (3.84x the national rate for this advisory)
3. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 18.1% of tests (3.26x the national rate for this advisory)
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, 4.1% of tests (2.67x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
5. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 4.2% of tests (1.48x the national rate for this advisory)
6. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 19.1% of tests (1.43x the national rate for this advisory)
7. A tyre seriously damaged, 10.3% of tests
8. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 5.7% of tests
9. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 4.5% of tests
10. A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded, 3.8% of tests

From 690 DVSA-tracked Austin MINI 1000 City E tests, 2024.

Other Austin models

• Austin MINI Mayfair - 74.9%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Vauxhall Adam - 74.6%
• DS Ds3 - 74.6%
• Nissan Patrol - 74.6%
• Fiat Ducato Motorhome - 74.5%
• Ford Focus - 74.4%
• Kia Rio - 74.3%

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
• Do you need an HPI check on a car you know is a write-off?

Embed this data

Run a site about the Austin MINI 1000 City E? Embed the real DVSA pass-rate badge free, linked back to this page.

<a href="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/mot/austin-mini-1000-city-e"><img src="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/badge/austin-mini-1000-city-e.svg" width="340" height="92" alt="Austin MINI 1000 City E MOT Pass Rate: 74.5% - Salvage Prophet"></a>

Run a garage or parts site? Embed the Austin MINI 1000 City E's top real failure reason instead, linked back here.

<a href="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/mot/austin-mini-1000-city-e"><img src="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/badge/failure/austin-mini-1000-city-e.svg" width="340" height="106" alt="Austin MINI 1000 City E most common MOT failure: Emissions levels exceed default limits (9.4% of tests) - Salvage Prophet"></a>

All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate