Bsa A65 Lightning vs Honda VFR800 Fi

The Bsa A65 Lightning passes its MOT first time more often than the Honda VFR800 Fi: 89.4% vs 86.7%, a 2.7-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

first-time pass rate, outright fail rate and tests analysed · 2005–2025

Metric	Bsa A65 Lightning	Honda VFR800 Fi
First-time pass rate	89.4%	86.7%
Outright fail rate	3.8%	8.5%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+8.1 pts	+4.5 pts
Engine size	650cc	781cc
Rank among all models	#1147 of 5428	#1985 of 5428
Median miles at test	5,794	26,212
MOT tests analysed	398	89,421
Most common failure	lighting and signalling	brakes

First-time outcomes on normal tests, 2005–2025. "Most common failure" is the component group with the most recorded defects on failed tests. Read pass rates against test counts: a smaller sample is noisier. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT results.

"Vs comparable bikes" is the first-time pass rate minus the rate expected for each bike's own mix of age, mileage and test class, in percentage points: positive means better than comparable bikes. How this works.

Pass rate by test year

first-time MOT pass rate in each calendar year both bikes were tested

Test year	Bsa A65 Lightning	Honda VFR800 Fi
2011	78.1%	85.4%
2012	88.2%	85.5%
2013	93.9%	85.1%
2014	83.8%	85.0%
2015	85.7%	86.5%
2016	92.3%	86.9%
2017	97.0%	86.5%

Each year mixes bikes of different ages, so a fleet that is getting older tends to slip.

Pass rate by mileage

first-time MOT pass rate by miles on the clock at test

Mileage	Bsa A65 Lightning	Honda VFR800 Fi
0k-10k miles	90.3%	92.5%
10k-20k miles	86.2%	89.4%
20k-30k miles	93.5%	87.3%

Bands with fewer than 30 tests for either bike are left out.

BSA A65 LIGHTNING 89.4% pass · 398 tests HONDA VFR800 FI 86.7% pass · 89.4k tests

See each bike's full report (trend, mileage curve, failure breakdown and rivals) on its own page.