Talbot Express: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Talbot Express fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 18.4 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 4,067 individual Talbot Express tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 58.3% first-time pass rate means roughly 42 in every 100 Talbot Express 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 Talbot Express tested had covered 82,714 miles and was built around 1991.

What this means at salvage auction

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

Most common MOT failures on a Talbot Express

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, 13.8% of tests (16.63x the national rate for this defect)
2. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 5.7% of tests (15.61x the national rate for this defect)
3. 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, 3.6% of tests (15.48x the national rate for this defect)
4. A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 6.9% of tests (14.03x the national rate for this defect)
5. 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., 3.6% of tests (9.06x the national rate for this defect)
6. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 7.6% of tests (8.51x the national rate for this defect)
7. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 7.9% of tests (7.01x the national rate for this defect)
8. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 5.1% of tests (6.77x the national rate for this defect)
9. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 11% of tests (6.27x the national rate for this defect)
10. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 4.1% of tests (5.41x the national rate for this defect)

From 10,270 DVSA-tracked Talbot Express tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 2.99% of these flagged Talbot Express defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Talbot Express 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 Talbot Express year:

• 1990 Talbot Express - 60.8% first-time pass, 543 tests
• 1991 Talbot Express - 58.7% first-time pass, 707 tests
• 1992 Talbot Express - 59.3% first-time pass, 732 tests
• 1993 Talbot Express - 57.7% first-time pass, 766 tests
• 1994 Talbot Express - 60.3% first-time pass, 537 tests

Talbot Express by fuel type

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

• Petrol Talbot Express - 58.4% first-time pass, 2,016 tests
• Diesel Talbot Express - 60.3% first-time pass, 1,958 tests

Models with a similar pass rate

• Renault G - 58.5%
• Fiat Scudo - 58.3%
• Chevrolet Captiva - 58.3%
• Chrysler Voyager - 58.2%
• Mazda Bongo - 58.1%
• Vauxhall Tigra - 58.1%

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