Honda XLR 125: MOT pass rate by registration year

Which XLR 125 years pass first time, and which fall short of the model's 65.8% average, from 2,485 DVSA tests.

2000

highest-passing year · 71.3%

2002

lowest-passing year · 59.9%

11.4pp

spread across 6 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: 2000 (71.3% of 331 tests). Lowest: 2002 (59.9% of 257). Years more than two points below the model average: 1999, 2002.

Registered	Tests	First-time pass	vs model (65.8%)
1997	85	64.7%	-1.1 pp
1998	667	67.2%	+1.4 pp
1999	510	62.7%	-3.1 pp
2000	331	71.3%	+5.5 pp
2001	574	66.0%	+0.2 pp
2002	257	59.9%	-5.9 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 XLR 125 years have the lowest MOT pass rate?: 1999, 2002 registered examples pass first time less often than the Honda XLR 125 overall (65.8%); the 2002 cohort is lowest at 59.9% from 257 tests.
Which XLR 125 year has the highest MOT pass rate?: 2000, at 71.3% of 331 first tests (2005–2025).
How much does the XLR 125 pass rate vary by year?: 11.4 percentage points between the highest (2000, 71.3%) and lowest (2002, 59.9%) 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 XLR 125 reliability, failures and mileage · ranked #4979 of 5428 models· other Honda models: CBR600F, CBR900RR, CBR1100XX, CB500, C90, VFR800 Fi