Harley-Davidson FLD: MOT pass rate by registration year

Which FLD years pass first time, and which fall short of the model's 92.4% average, from 602 DVSA tests.

2014

highest-passing year · 96.7%

2015

lowest-passing year · 89.6%

7.1pp

spread across 4 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: 2014 (96.7% of 122 tests). Lowest: 2015 (89.6% of 222). Years more than two points below the model average: 2015, 2016.

Registered	Tests	First-time pass	vs model (92.4%)
2012	55	96.4%	+4.0 pp
2014	122	96.7%	+4.3 pp
2015	222	89.6%	-2.8 pp
2016	96	89.6%	-2.8 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 · 2017–2025

Questions

Which FLD years have the lowest MOT pass rate?: 2015, 2016 registered examples pass first time less often than the Harley-Davidson FLD overall (92.4%); the 2015 cohort is lowest at 89.6% from 222 tests.
Which FLD year has the highest MOT pass rate?: 2014, at 96.7% of 122 first tests (2005–2025). Years more than two points above the model average: 2012, 2014.
How much does the FLD pass rate vary by year?: 7.1 percentage points between the highest (2014, 96.7%) and lowest (2015, 89.6%) 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: Harley-Davidson FLD reliability, failures and mileage · ranked #405 of 5428 models· other Harley-Davidson models: XLH 883, Flstf, Flstc, XL, XL1200C, XL883