Armstrong MT500: MOT pass rate by registration year

Which MT500 years pass first time, and which fall short of the model's 85.8% average, from 2,227 DVSA tests.

1997

highest-passing year · 89.3%

1985

lowest-passing year · 85.0%

4.3pp

spread across 5 years

Pass rate by registration year

first-time pass rate · cohorts with 50 or more tests · registration year from first use date

Highest pass rate: 1997 (89.3% of 112 tests). Lowest: 1985 (85.0% of 718).

Registered	Tests	First-time pass	vs model (85.8%)
1985	718	85.0%	-0.8 pp
1986	386	85.0%	-0.8 pp
1987	667	86.2%	+0.4 pp
1995	50	86.0%	+0.2 pp
1997	112	89.3%	+3.5 pp

Older cohorts are survivors: the worst examples have already left the road, which tends to lift the earliest years. A first-time MOT pass is a roadworthiness check, not a full mechanical inspection.

Pass rate over time

first-time pass rate by test year · 2005–2025

Questions

Which MT500 years have the lowest MOT pass rate?: none: no registration year of the Armstrong MT500 falls more than two points under the model's 85.8% overall pass rate.
Which MT500 year has the highest MOT pass rate?: 1997, at 89.3% of 112 first tests (2005–2025).
How much does the MT500 pass rate vary by year?: 4.3 percentage points between the highest (1997, 89.3%) and lowest (1985, 85.0%) cohorts with at least 50 tests. Older cohorts are survivors: the worst examples have already left the road, which tends to lift the earliest years.

Full report: Armstrong MT500 reliability, failures and mileage · ranked #2266 of 5428 models· other Armstrong models: 500, MT