Skip to content
My MOT CheckerSources

1,237 tests in 2025

Lotus Elan reliability and MOT pass rate

80.3% passed first time. The 19.7% fail rate is 2.9 points better than the all-car average, on a median example 34 years old with 73,890 miles.

MOT pass rates / Lotus

Pass rate

80.3%

22.6% of all cars failed; 19.7% of these did.

Fixed on the day

2.7%

Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.

Median at test

73,890 mi

34 years old.

Fail rate by age

Age at testTestsFail rate
3-5 years1—
6-9 years4—
10-13 years3—
14+ years1,22919.9%

What the Elan fails on

Share of failed tests with at least one fail item in each DVSA inspection section. A test can fail in several sections at once.

  1. Brakes35 dangerous59.4%
  2. Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment2 dangerous40.2%
  3. Noise, emissions and leaks23%
  4. Visibility18%
  5. Suspension5 dangerous13.5%
  6. Body, chassis, structure4 dangerous11.9%
  7. Steering1 dangerous4.1%
  8. Identification of the vehicle3.7%

Is the Elan getting worse?

The fail rate fell 0.9 points to 20.6% from 2022 to 2025 while the median one tested aged 3 years, which is about what ageing alone predicts (0 points). Read it as the fleet getting older rather than the model changing.

YearTestsMedian ageFail rate All cars
20221,3763121.5%22.5%
20231,2763222.4%22.8%
20241,0683321.3%23.2%
20251,1533420.6%22.6%

Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Elan at its test that year, and it is the number to watch: across the whole fleet each extra year of age adds roughly 1.9 points to the fail rate, so a model whose age and fail rate rise together is simply getting older.

The exact defects that fail it

Every failure item DVSA recorded against a Elan in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.

  1. 1Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements58 tests
  2. 2Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements36 tests
  3. 3Service brake imbalance: across an axle31 tests
  4. 4Service brake performance: excessively binding25 tests
  5. 5Rbt (sp): efficiency less than 50% of the required value23 tests
  6. 6Non catalyst emissions: emissions carbon monoxide content excessive21 tests
  7. 7Headlamp: not working on dipped beam18 tests
  8. 8Joints: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt18 tests

What wears out first

Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Elan collects 2.82 of them per test, and these are the ones that come up most. Treat it as the running-repairs list for the next year or two.

  1. 1Wheel bearings: has excessive play94 tests
  2. 2Engine oil leaks: leaking excessively from engine85 tests
  3. 3Coil spring: corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened76 tests
  4. 4Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded70 tests
  5. 5Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened54 tests
  6. 6Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure53 tests
  7. 7Non-component advisories: Play in steering rack inner joint(s)46 tests
  8. 8Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm40 tests

Questions

What is the Lotus Elan MOT pass rate?

80.3% of the 1,237 Lotus Elan first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 19.7% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 2.7% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.

What does a Lotus Elan usually fail on?

The single most common failure is "Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements", recorded on 58 failed tests, followed by "Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements" and "Service brake imbalance: across an axle". By section, brakes appears in 59.4% of failures, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment appears in 40.2% of failures, noise, emissions and leaks appears in 23% of failures.

Does age change the odds?

Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 0%; at 14+ years it was 19.9%. The median Lotus Elan tested in 2025 was 34 years old with 73,890 miles.

Is the Lotus Elan getting less reliable?

The fail rate fell 0.9 points to 20.6% from 2022 to 2025 while the median one tested aged 3 years, which is about what ageing alone predicts (0 points). Read it as the fleet getting older rather than the model changing.

First-attempt class 4 tests, 2025, from DVSA’s anonymised MOT data (OGL v3, retrieved 2026-09-12). DVSA records newer cars trim by trim; this page adds every Elan trim together. Year-on-year figures come from the same DVSA extracts for 2026 and earlier years. Full method on the pass rates hub.

Other Lotus models

Checking a particular Elan?

The odds above are the model. The car in front of you has its own record: every test, every advisory, the mileage at each one.

Due a test? Find an approved MOT station near you.