Daihatsu Materia: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Daihatsu Materia fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 3.7 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 633 individual Daihatsu Materia tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 73% first-time pass rate means roughly 27 in every 100 Daihatsu Materias 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 Daihatsu Materia tested had covered 90,334 miles and was built around 2008.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Daihatsu Materia sits 3.7 points below the national average, ranked 1,679 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 Daihatsu Materia 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 Daihatsu Materias at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Daihatsu Materia

1. 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, 3.6% of tests (3.85x the national rate for this defect)
2. Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 2.5% of tests (3.4x the national rate for this defect)
3. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 3.5% of tests (3.26x the national rate for this defect)
4. A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage, 2.4% of tests (2.5x the national rate for this defect)
5. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 4.3% of tests (2.32x the national rate for this defect)
6. A tyre seriously damaged, 6.2% of tests (2.21x the national rate for this defect)
7. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 2.7% of tests (2.07x the national rate for this defect)
8. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 3% of tests (1.58x the national rate for this defect)
9. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 7.9% of tests (1.57x the national rate for this defect)
10. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 3.3% of tests (1.49x the national rate for this defect)

From 632 DVSA-tracked Daihatsu Materia tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.48% of these flagged Daihatsu Materia defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Daihatsu Materia

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 Daihatsu Materia before it actually fails on it.

1. A stub axle swivel pin and/or bush excessively worn, 4.4% of tests (6.91x the national rate for this advisory)
2. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 5.1% of tests (4.07x the national rate for this advisory)
3. 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, 6% of tests (3.96x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
4. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 24.2% of tests (3.91x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
5. A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded, 16.9% of tests (3.27x the national rate for this advisory)
6. A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage, 8.7% of tests (2.22x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
7. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 6.3% of tests (2.22x the national rate for this advisory)
8. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 26.1% of tests (1.95x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
9. A tyre seriously damaged, 20.9% of tests (1.35x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
10. Number plate inscription missing or illegible, 3.2% of tests (1.19x the national rate for this advisory)

From 632 DVSA-tracked Daihatsu Materia tests, 2024.

Other Daihatsu models

• Daihatsu Sirion - 66.8%
• Daihatsu Terios - 64.3%
• Daihatsu Fourtrak - 65.8%
• Daihatsu Copen - 73.6%
• Daihatsu Charade - 64.7%
• Daihatsu Hijet - 63.3%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Land Rover Defender - 73%
• Toyota Hilux - 73%
• Peugeot 5008 - 73%
• Nissan Navara - 72.9%
• Suzuki Jimny - 72.9%
• Alfa Romeo Spider - 72.9%

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 Daihatsu Materia? Embed the real DVSA pass-rate badge free, linked back to this page.

<a href="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/mot/daihatsu-materia"><img src="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/badge/daihatsu-materia.svg" width="340" height="92" alt="Daihatsu Materia MOT Pass Rate: 73% - Salvage Prophet"></a>

Run a garage or parts site? Embed the Daihatsu Materia's top real failure reason instead, linked back here.

<a href="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/mot/daihatsu-materia"><img src="https://www.salvageprophet.co.uk/badge/failure/daihatsu-materia.svg" width="340" height="106" alt="Daihatsu Materia most common MOT failure: 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 (3.6% of tests) - Salvage Prophet"></a>

All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate