Rover 45: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Rover 45 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 14.6 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 2,021 individual Rover 45 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 62.1% first-time pass rate means roughly 38 in every 100 Rover 45s 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 Rover 45 tested had covered 78,561 miles and was built around 2003.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Rover 45 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 Rover 45 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 Rover 45s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Rover 45

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, 17.5% of tests (21.11x the national rate for this defect)
2. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 3.4% of tests (9.47x the national rate for this defect)
3. An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction, 2.5% of tests (7.94x the national rate for this defect)
4. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 7% of tests (6.21x the national rate for this defect)
5. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.7% of tests (4.77x the national rate for this defect)
6. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 3.5% of tests (4.67x the national rate for this defect)
7. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 2.7% of tests (3.32x the national rate for this defect)
8. Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 2.8% of tests (2.87x the national rate for this defect)
9. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 2.6% of tests (2.66x the national rate for this defect)
10. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 4.4% of tests (2.51x the national rate for this defect)

From 2,847 DVSA-tracked Rover 45 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.56% of these flagged Rover 45 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Rover 45 pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Rover 45 year:

• 2000 Rover 45 - 56.1% first-time pass, 228 tests
• 2001 Rover 45 - 61.8% first-time pass, 306 tests
• 2002 Rover 45 - 61.7% first-time pass, 368 tests
• 2003 Rover 45 - 65.1% first-time pass, 413 tests
• 2004 Rover 45 - 65.1% first-time pass, 447 tests
• 2005 Rover 45 - 61.4% first-time pass, 223 tests

Rover 45 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Petrol Rover 45 - 62.9% first-time pass, 1,713 tests
• Diesel Rover 45 - 60.7% first-time pass, 290 tests

Other Rover models

• Rover MINI - 73.7%
• Rover 75 - 62.6%
• Rover 25 - 69.2%
• Rover 216 - 70.7%
• Rover Metro - 70.4%
• Rover 214 - 67.9%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Audi A2 - 62.2%
• Hyundai Getz - 62.1%
• Fiat Grande Punto - 62.1%
• Kia Proceed - 62.1%
• Mercedes-Benz Clc - 62%
• Peugeot 106 - 62%

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