Nissan Pulsar: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Nissan Pulsar fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 0.7 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 21,251 individual Nissan Pulsar tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 76% first-time pass rate means roughly 24 in every 100 Nissan Pulsars 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 Pulsar tested had covered 57,988 miles and was built around 2016.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. The Nissan Pulsar sits 0.7 points below the national average, ranked 1,591 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 Pulsar 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 Pulsar: £225 at UK salvage auction, from 7 ended listings, not independently confirmed sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Nissan Pulsar

1. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 4% of tests (3.04x the national rate for this defect)
2. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 4.2% of tests (1.84x the national rate for this defect)
3. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 8.5% of tests (1.69x the national rate for this defect)
4. a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, 3.4% of tests (1.6x the national rate for this defect)
5. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 1.6% of tests (1.5x the national rate for this defect)
6. Parking brake inoperative on one side, 0.9% of tests (1.43x the national rate for this defect)
7. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 3.8% of tests (1.2x the national rate for this defect)
8. A tyre seriously damaged, 2.3% of tests
9. A tyre cords visible or damaged, 1.6% of tests
10. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 1.5% of tests

From 21,230 DVSA-tracked Nissan Pulsar tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 6.98% of these flagged Nissan Pulsar defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 5.11% nationally.

Most common MOT advisories on a Nissan Pulsar

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 Pulsar before it actually fails on it.

1. a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, 17.1% of tests (1.83x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
2. A brake hose ferrule excessively corroded, 2% of tests (1.59x the national rate for this advisory)
3. A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, 2% of tests (1.5x the national rate for this advisory), also fails
4. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 28.1% of tests, also fails
5. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 15.3% of tests, also fails
6. A tyre seriously damaged, 14.4% of tests, also fails
7. Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured, 10.5% of tests
8. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 5.6% of tests, also fails
9. Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users, 3% of tests
10. Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn, 2.6% of tests

From 21,230 DVSA-tracked Nissan Pulsar tests, 2024.

Nissan Pulsar pass rate by model year

From its 2014 to its 2018 model year, the Nissan Pulsar's first-time pass rate has risen 21.5 points, from 65.9% to 87.4%, the usual pattern: a newer model year is a younger car today, so it fails less. First-time pass rate for each Nissan Pulsar year:

• 2014 Nissan Pulsar - 65.9% first-time pass, 1,307 tests
• 2015 Nissan Pulsar - 71.1% first-time pass, 7,507 tests
• 2016 Nissan Pulsar - 77.2% first-time pass, 6,161 tests
• 2017 Nissan Pulsar - 82.5% first-time pass, 4,097 tests
• 2018 Nissan Pulsar - 87.4% first-time pass, 2,008 tests

Nissan Pulsar by fuel type

The Nissan Pulsar's two most-tested fuel types split by 14.4 points: petrol passes first time 80.8% of the time (14,664 tests) against 66.4% for diesel (6,488 tests).

• Petrol Nissan Pulsar - 80.8% first-time pass, 14,664 tests
• Diesel Nissan Pulsar - 66.4% first-time pass, 6,488 tests

Other Nissan models

• Nissan Qashqai - 72.7%
• Nissan Juke - 71.8%
• Nissan Micra - 71.7%
• Nissan Note - 72.1%
• Nissan X-Trail - 73.5%
• Nissan Navara - 72.9%
• Nissan Leaf - 83.1%
• Nissan Nv200 - 65.1%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Renault Koleos - 76.1%
• Smart Fortwo Pulse Mhd Auto - 76.1%
• Mercedes-Benz 190 - 76.1%
• Renault Unclassified - 76%
• Smart Fortwo Passion Mhd Auto - 75.9%
• MINI Cooper D - 75.8%

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