Land Rover 88: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Land Rover 88 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 1.9 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 1,334 individual Land Rover 88 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 74.8% first-time pass rate means roughly 25 in every 100 Land Rover 88s 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 Land Rover 88 tested had covered 53,666 miles and was built around 1980.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Land Rover 88 sits 1.9 points below the national average, ranked 1,626 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 Land Rover 88 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 Land Rover 88s at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Land Rover 88

1. Stop lamps all missing or inoperative, 2.7% of tests (32.87x the national rate for this defect)
2. 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 (6.34x the national rate for this defect)
3. A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 4.1% of tests (6.21x the national rate for this defect)
4. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 2.3% of tests (5.47x the national rate for this defect)
5. Emissions levels exceed default limits, 1.8% of tests (5.11x the national rate for this defect)
6. 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, 4.8% of tests (5.1x the national rate for this defect)
7. 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, 1.7% of tests (3.94x the national rate for this defect)
8. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 6.1% of tests (3.62x the national rate for this defect)
9. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 3.7% of tests (3.01x the national rate for this defect)
10. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 2.6% of tests (2.47x the national rate for this defect)

From 1,328 DVSA-tracked Land Rover 88 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 5.75% of these flagged Land Rover 88 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Land Rover 88

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 Land Rover 88 before it actually fails on it.

1. A transmission joint, belt or chain excessively worn, 3% of tests (39.13x the national rate for this advisory)
2. A shock absorber bush excessively worn, 6.1% of tests (12.79x the national rate for this advisory)
3. A wheel bearing with excessive play, 8.2% of tests (12.65x the national rate for this advisory)
4. Body, cab or chassis excessively corroded at a mounting point, 2.1% of tests (7.26x the national rate for this advisory)
5. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 36.4% of tests (6.54x the national rate for this advisory)
6. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 5.3% of tests (4.24x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
7. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 4.7% of tests (1.67x the national rate for this advisory)
8. 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, 2.2% of tests (1.44x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
9. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 1.7% of tests (1.3x the national rate for this advisory)
10. A tyre seriously damaged, 12.6% of tests

From 1,328 DVSA-tracked Land Rover 88 tests, 2024.

Land Rover 88 by fuel type

The Land Rover 88's two most-tested fuel types split by 3.7 points: petrol passes first time 74.3% of the time (849 tests) against 78% for diesel (460 tests).

• Petrol Land Rover 88 - 74.3% first-time pass, 849 tests
• Diesel Land Rover 88 - 78% first-time pass, 460 tests

Other Land Rover models

• Land Rover Discovery - 75.6%
• Land Rover Range Rover Evoque - 84%
• Land Rover Freelander - 70.6%
• Land Rover Range Rover Sport - 82%
• Land Rover Defender - 73%
• Land Rover Discovery Sport - 84.8%
• Land Rover Range Rover - 79.9%
• Land Rover Range Rover Velar - 86.7%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mercedes-Benz 220 - 74.9%
• Ford C-Max - 74.8%
• BMW 630 - 74.8%
• Smart (Mcc) Roadster - 74.8%
• Volkswagen Passat - 74.7%
• Peugeot 3008 - 74.7%

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?

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate