71.1%
Smart Roadster
Smart Roadster MOT pass rate and common problems
The Smart Roadster passed 71.1% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 1.2 percentage points below 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 Roadster compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
71.3%
Smart average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The Roadster is level with the Smart average. It is 3rd of the 4 Smart models in the data. The average Roadster arrived at its test 20.5 years old with 78,324 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.
Roadster MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 years and over | 2,261 | 71.1% | 1.2 pts below |
Every Smart Roadster tested in 2025 was aged 11 years and over, so there is no other age group to compare with. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where Roadster failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Smart Roadster cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and brakes together account for 58.7% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common Roadster MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Smart Roadster 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 Smart Roadster cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a Roadster
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: position lamp not working, rear fog lamp not working, horn not working, headlamp not working on dipped beam, individual direction indicators incorrect colour, stop lamp not working and registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps. 27.1% of failure items.
2
Brakes
Recorded most often: rigid brake pipes excessively corroded. 4.2% of failure items.
3
Visibility
Recorded most often: wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively. 3.2% of failure items.
4
Suspension
Recorded most often: ball joint excessively worn. 2.6% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific Roadster has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Smart Roadster buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Smart Roadster MOT FAQs
What is the Smart Roadster MOT pass rate?
71.1% of Smart Roadster cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 2,261 tests. That is 1.2 percentage points below the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 336th of 575 models.
What does a Smart Roadster most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Smart Roadster cars failing their 2025 MOT was position lamp not working, on 6.3% of failure items. Next were rigid brake pipes excessively corroded (4.2%) and rear fog lamp not working (4.2%).
Which area causes the most Smart Roadster MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 40%, followed by brakes at 18.8%.
Does this mean every Smart Roadster has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Smart Roadster 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 Smart Roadster'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.