89.1%
Porsche 911
Porsche 911 MOT pass rate and common problems
The Porsche 911 passed 89.1% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 16.8 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was headlamp aim too high.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the 911 compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
87.6%
Porsche average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The 911 runs 1.6 points ahead of the Porsche average. It is 3rd of the 8 Porsche models in the data. The average 911 arrived at its test 17.1 years old with 56,860 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.
911 MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Porsche 911 cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 95.7% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 86.5%, a drop of 9.2 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years | 5,474 | 95.7% | 23.4 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 9,226 | 94.1% | 21.8 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 36,115 | 86.5% | 14.2 pts above |
That is a typical decline as cars age. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where 911 failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Porsche 911 cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and tyres together account for 45.6% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common 911 MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Porsche 911 cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 38.3% of everything testers recorded against failed Porsche 911 cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a 911
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: headlamp aim too high, position lamp not working and headlamp aim too low. 12.1% of failure items.
2
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, condition has ply or cords exposed and condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords. 10.6% of failure items.
3
Noise, emissions and leaks
Recorded most often: catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits. 4.7% of failure items.
4
Body, chassis, structure
Recorded most often: joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. 4.3% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific 911 has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Porsche 911 buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Porsche 911 MOT FAQs
What is the Porsche 911 MOT pass rate?
89.1% of Porsche 911 cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 52,600 tests. That is 16.8 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 49th of 575 models.
What does a Porsche 911 most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Porsche 911 cars failing their 2025 MOT was headlamp aim too high, on 5.2% of failure items. Next were catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (4.7%) and position lamp not working (4.4%).
Which area causes the most Porsche 911 MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 31.7%, followed by tyres at 14%.
Do older Porsche 911 cars fail their MOT more often?
Porsche 911 cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 95.7% of MOT tests in 2025, against 86.5% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Porsche 911 has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Porsche 911 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 Porsche 911'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.