58.6%
Rover 45 pass rate
Used Rover 45 buying guide
In 2025, Rover 45 cars passed 58.6% of 1,520 initial MOT tests, 13.7 points below the 72.3% UK average. Here is where it fails and what to check before you buy.
Looking at a specific 45? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.
Rover 45 MOT record in brief
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded.
72.3%
UK average, all cars
−13.7
percentage points below average
Ranked on pass rate the 45 sits 503rd of 575 models in the data. Rover as a brand averaged 67.1%, so this model runs 8.5 points behind its own brand.
A pass rate is not a reliability score. The full Rover 45 MOT record has the pass rate by age, every common failure and how the 45 compares with similar cars.
45 fuel types
Petrol was the most common fuel among Rover 45 cars tested in 2025. Diesel still made up 12.4% of tests.
Where the 45 fails its MOT
Where Rover 45 cars that failed their 2025 MOT were marked down, as a share of all recorded failure items.
The specific items testers recorded most often were component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength (11.3%), joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (6.1%) and service brake performance excessively binding (3.8%). See every common 45 MOT failure.
These are DVSA failure records across every Rover 45 that failed, not a claim that every 45 has these problems.
What should you check when buying a used 45?
The areas above, most common first, and what an MOT tester looks at in each.
1
Suspension
Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters. 21% of 45 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. 17.7% of 45 failure items.
3
Body, chassis, structure
Look underneath and along the sills for corrosion, and check for damaged or poorly repaired panels. 17.7% of 45 failure items.
4
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. 17.3% of 45 failure items.
5
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. 7% of 45 failure items.
None of this replaces the car's own record. Run a free MOT history check on the registration to see every test, advisory and recorded mileage for that car.
What the MOT record doesn't tell you
Knowing Rover 45 failures cluster around suspension and brakes tells you what to inspect. It tells you nothing about whether the car is safe to buy. An MOT does not show money still owed on the car, a write-off, a theft record or a clocked odometer.
Check the exact 45 you are looking at. One £15 report, instant results, backed by a £30,000 data guarantee. More on the Rover history check.
- Outstanding finance
- Write-off records
- Stolen markers
- Mileage history
- Previous keepers
Other used Rover models
The most-tested Rover models in 2025, with how their MOT pass rate compares with the 45.
Used Rover 45 FAQs
Is the Rover 45 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 58.6% first-time pass rate for the Rover 45 across 1,520 tests in 2025, below the 72.3% average for all cars.
What should I check before buying a used Rover 45?
On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: suspension, brakes and body, chassis, structure. Then check the individual car's history: outstanding finance, insurance write-off records, stolen markers, mileage and previous keepers. None of these appear in the MOT record or on the V5C.
How do I check a Rover 45'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.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.