Nissan Note: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Nissan Note fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 4.6 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 153,413 individual Nissan Note tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 72.1% first-time pass rate means roughly 28 in every 100 Nissan Notes 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 Nissan Note tested had covered 76,220 miles and was built around 2011.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Nissan Note sits 4.6 points below the national average, ranked 1,704 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 Nissan Note 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 the median recorded closing bid for a damaged Nissan Note: £600 at UK salvage auction, from 24 ended listings, not independently confirmed sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Nissan Note

1. A wheel bearing excessively rough, 1.2% of tests (4x the national rate for this defect)
2. An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction, 1.3% of tests (3.09x the national rate for this defect)
3. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 14.8% of tests (2.94x the national rate for this defect)
4. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 3.4% of tests (2.47x the national rate for this defect)
5. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 5.2% of tests (2.22x the national rate for this defect)
6. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 4.7% of tests (2.06x the national rate for this defect)
7. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 4.6% of tests (2.05x the national rate for this defect)
8. A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps, 1.7% of tests (1.92x the national rate for this defect)
9. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 3% of tests (1.57x the national rate for this defect)
10. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 1.4% of tests (1.36x the national rate for this defect)

From 153,291 DVSA-tracked Nissan Note tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 4.22% of these flagged Nissan Note defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Nissan Note

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 Nissan Note before it actually fails on it.

1. Product on the lens or light source which obviously reduces light intensity or changes emitted colour to other than white or yellow, 3.7% of tests (3.37x the national rate for this advisory)
2. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 11.7% of tests (2.48x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
3. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 31.6% of tests (2.36x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
4. A brake hose ferrule excessively corroded, 2.2% of tests (1.71x the national rate for this advisory)
5. Number plate inscription missing or illegible, 3.3% of tests (1.25x the national rate for this advisory)
6. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 3.8% of tests (1.2x the national rate for this advisory)
7. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 3.3% of tests (1.17x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
8. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 25.7% of tests
9. A tyre seriously damaged, 17.7% of tests
10. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 11.4% of tests

From 153,291 DVSA-tracked Nissan Note tests, 2024.

Nissan Note pass rate by model year

From its 2006 to its 2017 model year, the Nissan Note's first-time pass rate has risen 26.8 points, from 61.6% to 88.4%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Nissan Note year:

• 2006 Nissan Note - 61.6% first-time pass, 8,593 tests
• 2007 Nissan Note - 62.9% first-time pass, 11,696 tests
• 2008 Nissan Note - 64.5% first-time pass, 15,024 tests
• 2009 Nissan Note - 66% first-time pass, 14,842 tests
• 2010 Nissan Note - 66.1% first-time pass, 14,104 tests
• 2011 Nissan Note - 67.9% first-time pass, 11,945 tests
• 2012 Nissan Note - 68.6% first-time pass, 11,718 tests
• 2013 Nissan Note - 73% first-time pass, 11,804 tests
• 2014 Nissan Note - 80.4% first-time pass, 21,871 tests
• 2015 Nissan Note - 84.9% first-time pass, 14,969 tests
• 2016 Nissan Note - 87.4% first-time pass, 10,811 tests
• 2017 Nissan Note - 88.4% first-time pass, 5,192 tests

Nissan Note by fuel type

The Nissan Note's two most-tested fuel types split by 4.9 points: petrol passes first time 73.1% of the time (131,574 tests) against 68.2% for diesel (20,996 tests).

• Petrol Nissan Note - 73.1% first-time pass, 131,574 tests
• Diesel Nissan Note - 68.2% first-time pass, 20,996 tests

Other Nissan models

• Nissan Qashqai - 72.7%
• Nissan Juke - 71.8%
• Nissan Micra - 71.7%
• Nissan X-Trail - 73.5%
• Nissan Navara - 72.9%
• Nissan Leaf - 83.1%
• Nissan Nv200 - 65.1%
• Nissan Pulsar - 76%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mazda Bongo Friendee - 72.3%
• Ford Mondeo - 72.2%
• Ford Ka - 72.2%
• Ford Transit Connect - 72%
• Lexus Is200 - 72%
• Vauxhall Astra - 71.9%

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?

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate