73.5%
Nissan 350Z
Nissan 350Z MOT pass rate and common problems
The Nissan 350Z passed 73.5% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 1.2 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was position lamp not working.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the 350Z compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
67.8%
Nissan average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The 350Z runs 5.7 points ahead of the Nissan average. It is 7th of the 25 Nissan models in the data. The average 350Z arrived at its test 18.6 years old with 85,398 miles recorded.
A pass rate records whether cars met the roadworthiness standard on test day. It is not a reliability score, and part of any gap reflects how old the tested cars were.
350Z MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Nissan 350Z cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 90.5% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 72.2%, a drop of 18.2 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years (small sample) | 23 | 82.6% | 10.3 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 314 | 90.5% | 18.2 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 4,521 | 72.2% | In line |
That is a steep decline with age, so the headline rate flatters older examples. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where 350Z failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Nissan 350Z cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and noise, emissions and leaks together account for 40.5% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common 350Z MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Nissan 350Z cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 37.2% of everything testers recorded against failed Nissan 350Z cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a 350Z
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Noise, emissions and leaks
Recorded most often: catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits, malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction and catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits. 11.1% of failure items.
2
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: position lamp not working and headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect. 8.9% of failure items.
3
Suspension
Recorded most often: pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn and component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength. 6.9% of failure items.
4
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm. 3.6% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific 350Z has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Nissan 350Z buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Nissan 350Z MOT FAQs
What is the Nissan 350Z MOT pass rate?
73.5% of Nissan 350Z cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 4,858 tests. That is 1.2 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 288th of 575 models.
What does a Nissan 350Z most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Nissan 350Z cars failing their 2025 MOT was position lamp not working, on 4.7% of failure items. Next were catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (4.4%) and headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect (4.2%).
Which area causes the most Nissan 350Z MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 21.2%, followed by noise, emissions and leaks at 19.3%.
Do older Nissan 350Z cars fail their MOT more often?
Nissan 350Z cars aged 6 to 10 years passed 90.5% of MOT tests in 2025, against 72.2% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Nissan 350Z has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Nissan 350Z that failed in 2025. They show where the model most often needs attention, not the condition of any individual car.
How do I see a specific Nissan 350Z's MOT history?
Enter its registration on the free Carpeep MOT history check to see that car's own test results, failures, advisories and recorded mileages.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025: class 4 initial tests, retests excluded, with failure items from failed tests (advisories and minor defects excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.