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MG ZS, Buying guide, MOT record, UK numbers and recalls

140,811 MG ZS cars are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 82.1% of initial MOT tests, 9.8 points above the 72.3% UK average.

Looking at a specific ZS? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.

MG ZS at the MOT

82.1% of 63,767 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the ZS 169th of 575 models. MG ZS cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 83% of MOT tests in 2025; for examples aged 11 years and over that fell to 59.2%.

First-time pass rate, 2025

Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.

  • MG ZS82.1%
  • All MG modelsThe ZS is 1.2 pts ahead80.9%
  • All cars72.3%

Pass rate by age at test

MG ZS tests in 2025.

  • 3 to 5 years38,394 tests83%
  • 6 to 10 years8,194 tests74.2%
  • 11 years and over1,064 tests59.2%

Where ZS cars fail

Share of all failure items recorded on MG ZS tests in 2025.

  • Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment24.6%
  • Brakes23.9%
  • Tyres22.4%
  • Suspension10.9%
  • Visibility8.1%

The items testers recorded most often were tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (8.2%), brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick (6.3%) and headlamp not working on dipped beam (5.9%).

The MOT page lists every common ZS MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.

Full MG ZS MOT record

What to look at on a viewing

The ZS's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.

  1. 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.24.6% of ZS failure items

  2. 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.23.9% of ZS failure items

  3. Tyres

    Check tread depth across the full width of every tyre (the legal minimum is 1.6mm), and look for cuts, bulges and uneven wear.22.4% of ZS failure items

MG ZS cars in the UK

140,811 were licensed at the end of June 2026, more than any other MG. The number licensed has grown 235% since the end of 2021.

Change since 2021
+235%from 41,992 licensed
Typical year of first use
2023half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 2023 or earlier
First registered in 2025
26,012
Declared off the road
3,2082.2% of those registered, under SORN

Licensed MG ZS cars since 2014

Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.

Show the figures
DateLicensed
End of 20149,966
End of 20158,070
End of 20166,138
End of 20174,920
End of 20188,932
End of 201916,386
End of 202027,941
End of 202141,992
End of 202258,796
End of 202381,861
End of 2024104,872
End of 2025127,559
End of June 2026140,811

How old they are

Licensed MG ZS cars by year of first use.

  • Licensed at the end of 2025
  • First registered that year

A further 1,145 were first used before 2018.

Show the figures
First usedLicensed, end 2025First registered that year
202524,04326,012
202421,90423,883
202323,90424,817
202217,08118,369
202114,38415,252
202011,79112,484
20198,2678,772
20185,0185,329

ZS engines and fuel

1.5 litre engines made up 41% of MG ZS MOT tests in 2025, followed by 1.0 litre at 27%. Petrol accounts for 54% of licensed ZS cars and hybrid electric for 25%. Electric examples were 30.5% of tests.

Engine size at MOT, 2025

Share of 63,767 initial MOT tests in 2025.

  • 1.5 litre40.8%
  • 1.0 litre26.9%

Fuel type, licensed ZS cars

DfT licensing statistics, June 2026.

FuelLicensedShare
Petrol76,16654%
Diesel59<0.1%
Battery electric29,24721%
Hybrid electric35,33625%
Gas3<0.1%

MG ZS recalls

1 DVSA safety recall launched from 1992 to October 2026 names the MG ZS. Each covers vehicles built in a set period, so a recall does not mean every ZS is affected.

  1. Nov 2025 R/2025/481

    Emissions do not meet regulatory requirements

    ZS cars built Nov 2020 to Feb 2024 · 31,387 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Remedy
    A revised calibration will be provided to correct the NOx emissions to ensure they fall within legal limits.
How to check a specific ZS for recalls

Other MG models

The most-tested MG models in 2025, against the ZS's 82.1% MOT pass rate.

All 12 MG models

MG ZS FAQs

How many MG ZS cars are there in the UK?

140,811 MG ZS cars were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 3,208 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.

Is the MG ZS 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 an 82.1% first-time pass rate for the MG ZS across 63,767 tests in 2025, above the 72.3% average for all cars.

Has the MG ZS had any recalls?

1 DVSA safety recall launched from 1992 to October 2026 names the MG ZS. The most recent was published in November 2025. A recall applies to vehicles built in a set period, so check a specific car on the GOV.UK vehicle recall checker.

What should I check before buying a used MG ZS?

On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment, brakes and tyres. 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 MG ZS'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 ZS?

Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.

Across the 1,548 vehicles of every make Carpeep has checked since November 2025, 19% had outstanding finance recorded and 13% an insurance write-off. More on the MG history check. To confirm a car's identity, see the MG VIN 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). Recalls are from the DVSA vehicle recalls data, with recalls launched up to October 2026. 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.