BIKERELIABILITY Reg check
League table/ HONDA/ CB TWO FIFTY/By year
Registration-year report · 2005–2025

Data as of: DVSA MOT results to 2025

Honda CB Two Fifty: MOT pass rate by registration year

Which CB Two Fifty years pass first time, and which fall short of the model's 77.8% average, from 5,844 DVSA tests.

1991
highest-passing year · 87.7%
1982
lowest-passing year · 66.7%
21.0pp
spread across 19 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: 1991 (87.7% of 57 tests). Lowest: 1982 (66.7% of 87). Years more than two points below the model average: 1980, 1982, 1997, 1999.

63%77%92%1971: 80.0% pass (80 tests)1978: 83.1% pass (65 tests)1979: 75.8% pass (124 tests)1980: 74.4% pass (316 tests)1981: 82.1% pass (263 tests)1982: 66.7% pass (87 tests)1991: 87.7% pass (57 tests)1992: 78.0% pass (386 tests)1993: 76.1% pass (535 tests)1994: 79.2% pass (414 tests)1995: 77.1% pass (450 tests)1996: 76.4% pass (615 tests)1997: 74.4% pass (574 tests)1998: 78.0% pass (386 tests)1999: 73.6% pass (337 tests)2000: 82.1% pass (357 tests)2001: 79.6% pass (314 tests)2002: 85.5% pass (193 tests)2003: 83.8% pass (179 tests)197119942003
RegisteredTestsFirst-time passvs model (77.8%)
1971 80 80.0% +2.2 pp
1978 65 83.1% +5.3 pp
1979 124 75.8% -2.0 pp
1980 316 74.4% -3.4 pp
1981 263 82.1% +4.3 pp
1982 87 66.7% -11.1 pp
1991 57 87.7% +9.9 pp
1992 386 78.0% +0.2 pp
1993 535 76.1% -1.7 pp
1994 414 79.2% +1.4 pp
1995 450 77.1% -0.7 pp
1996 615 76.4% -1.4 pp
1997 574 74.4% -3.4 pp
1998 386 78.0% +0.2 pp
1999 337 73.6% -4.2 pp
2000 357 82.1% +4.3 pp
2001 314 79.6% +1.8 pp
2002 193 85.5% +7.7 pp
2003 179 83.8% +6.0 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 · 2005–2020
72%79%86%2005: 74.8% pass (163 tests)2006: 76.8% pass (686 tests)2007: 76.1% pass (594 tests)2008: 76.5% pass (545 tests)2009: 75.5% pass (474 tests)2010: 76.7% pass (438 tests)2011: 74.6% pass (433 tests)2012: 77.4% pass (376 tests)2013: 77.4% pass (358 tests)2014: 80.6% pass (320 tests)2015: 83.6% pass (311 tests)2016: 81.0% pass (305 tests)2017: 80.6% pass (273 tests)2018: 82.2% pass (208 tests)2019: 78.5% pass (200 tests)2020: 82.7% pass (156 tests)20052020

Questions

Which CB Two Fifty years have the lowest MOT pass rate?
1980, 1982, 1997, 1999 registered examples pass first time less often than the Honda CB Two Fifty overall (77.8%); the 1982 cohort is lowest at 66.7% from 87 tests.
Which CB Two Fifty year has the highest MOT pass rate?
1991, at 87.7% of 57 first tests (2005–2025). Years more than two points above the model average: 1971, 1978, 1981, 1991, 2000, 2002, 2003.
How much does the CB Two Fifty pass rate vary by year?
21.0 percentage points between the highest (1991, 87.7%) and lowest (1982, 66.7%) 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: Honda CB Two Fifty reliability, failures and mileage · ranked #3940 of 5428 models· other Honda models: CBR600F, CBR900RR, CBR1100XX, CB500, C90, VFR800 Fi