Austin Mini, Buying guide, MOT record and UK numbers
8,927 Austin Minis are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 72.8% of initial MOT tests, 0.5 points above the 72.3% UK average.
Looking at a specific Mini? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.
Austin Mini at the MOT
72.8% of 2,785 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the Mini 294th of 575 models.
First-time pass rate, 2025
Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.
Where Minis fail
Share of all failure items recorded on Austin Mini tests in 2025.
The items testers recorded most often were non catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content excessive (6.4%), position lamp not working (4.3%) and service brake imbalance across an axle (3.6%).
The MOT page lists every common Mini MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.
What to look at on a viewing
The Mini's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.
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Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Walk round with every light on: headlights, brake lights, indicators, fog lights and the number plate lamp. Check no warning lights stay on after starting.31.8% of Mini failure items
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Brakes
Make sure the pedal feels firm, the car stops in a straight line, the handbrake holds on a slope and no brake warning light is showing.15.4% of Mini failure items
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Suspension
Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters.14.9% of Mini failure items
Austin Minis in the UK
8,927 were licensed at the end of June 2026. The number licensed has grown 5.5% since the end of 2014.
- Change since 2014
- +5.5%from 8,458 licensed
- Typical year of first use
- 1974half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 1974 or earlier
- Declared off the road
- 18,70068% of those registered, under SORN
Licensed Austin Minis since 2014
Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.
Show the figures
| Date | Licensed |
|---|---|
| End of 2014 | 8,458 |
| End of 2015 | 8,138 |
| End of 2016 | 7,933 |
| End of 2017 | 7,532 |
| End of 2018 | 7,803 |
| End of 2019 | 7,805 |
| End of 2020 | 7,606 |
| End of 2021 | 7,732 |
| End of 2022 | 7,708 |
| End of 2023 | 7,666 |
| End of 2024 | 7,927 |
| End of 2025 | 8,171 |
| End of June 2026 | 8,927 |
How old they are
Licensed Austin Minis by year of first use.
A further 2,762 were first used before 1971.
Show the figures
| First used | Licensed, end 2025 |
|---|---|
| 1990 | 31 |
| 1989 | 686 |
| 1988 | 430 |
| 1987 | 307 |
| 1986 | 285 |
| 1985 | 306 |
| 1984 | 516 |
| 1983 | 475 |
| 1982 | 301 |
| 1981 | 23 |
| 1980 | 14 |
| 1979 | 12 |
| 1978 | 2 |
| 1977 | 1 |
| 1976 | 35 |
| 1975 | 196 |
| 1974 | 159 |
| 1973 | 192 |
| 1972 | 322 |
| 1971 | 329 |
Mini engine sizes
1.0 litre engines made up 84% of Austin Mini MOT tests in 2025, followed by 1.3 litre at 11%. Petrol accounts for 100% of licensed Minis.
Engine size at MOT, 2025
Share of 2,779 initial MOT tests in 2025.
Austin Mini FAQs
How many Austin Minis are there in the UK?
8,927 Austin Minis were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 18,700 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.
Is the Austin Mini reliable?
MOT data does not measure reliability. It records whether a car met the roadworthiness standard on the day of its test. What it does show is a 72.8% first-time pass rate for the Austin Mini across 2,785 tests in 2025, above the 72.3% average for all cars.
What should I check before buying a used Austin Mini?
On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment, brakes and suspension. Then check the individual car's own records. Outstanding finance, insurance write-offs and police stolen markers are not part of the MOT record, so they take a history check.
How do I check an Austin Mini's history?
Enter the registration of the specific car. A Carpeep car history check reports outstanding finance, write-off category, stolen markers, mileage history, previous keepers, MOT and tax status, import and export markers and scrapped status in one £15 report.
Already found a Mini?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Across the 1,389 vehicles of every make Carpeep has checked since November 2025, 19% had outstanding finance recorded and 13% an insurance write-off. More on the car history check.
- Outstanding finance
- Write-off records
- Stolen markers
- Mileage history
- Previous keepers
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), which also gives the engine sizes. Licensed, SORN, fuel and registration figures are from the Department for Transport vehicle licensing statistics (VEH0120, VEH0124, VEH0160). Government data is used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability. History-check findings are anonymous counts from reports bought on Carpeep, each vehicle counted once, and are published only where at least 100 vehicles returned an answer.