Renault R5: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Renault R5 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 2.7 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 578 individual Renault R5 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 74% first-time pass rate means roughly 26 in every 100 Renault R5s 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 Renault R5 tested had covered 80,483 miles and was built around 1990.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Renault R5 bought as a 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 Renault R5 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 what damaged Renault R5s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Renault R5

1. A wheel bearing with excessive play, 1.2% of tests (8.59x 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., 3.2% of tests (8.06x the national rate for this defect)
3. Emissions levels exceed default limits, 2.3% of tests (7.9x the national rate for this defect)
4. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 1.6% of tests (6.96x 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, 2.8% of tests (4.99x the national rate for this defect)
6. A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 2.4% of tests (4.85x 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, 3.7% of tests (4.4x the national rate for this defect)
8. 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, 1.3% of tests (3.8x the national rate for this defect)
9. Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, 2.6% of tests (2.13x the national rate for this defect)
10. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 2.1% of tests (2.1x the national rate for this defect)

From 1,560 DVSA-tracked Renault R5 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 2.87% of these flagged Renault R5 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Other Renault models

• Renault Clio - 61.6%
• Renault Captur - 79.7%
• Renault Megane - 61.1%
• Renault Trafic - 61.6%
• Renault Kadjar - 81.7%
• Renault Kangoo - 61.1%
• Renault Scenic - 62.3%
• Renault Twingo - 66.3%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mazda 6 - 74%
• Suzuki Alto - 74%
• Fiat Motorhome - 74%
• SEAT Toledo - 73.9%
• Lexus Rx350 - 73.9%
• Ford Grand C-Max - 73.8%

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

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate