Bsa A65 Lightning vs Yamaha FZS600

The Bsa A65 Lightning passes its MOT first time more often than the Yamaha FZS600: 89.4% vs 82.6%, a 6.8-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Bsa A65 Lightning	Yamaha FZS600
First-time pass rate	89.4%	82.6%
Outright fail rate	3.8%	10.6%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+8.1 pts	-0.8 pts
Engine size	650cc	599cc
Rank among all models	#1147 of 5428	#3052 of 5428
Median miles at test	5,794	21,612
MOT tests analysed	398	136,558
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	Yamaha FZS600
2011	78.1%	81.1%
2012	88.2%	80.2%
2013	93.9%	81.3%
2014	83.8%	81.2%
2015	85.7%	81.1%
2016	92.3%	82.2%
2017	97.0%	82.0%

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	Yamaha FZS600
0k-10k miles	90.3%	89.6%
10k-20k miles	86.2%	85.5%
20k-30k miles	93.5%	81.4%

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

BSA A65 LIGHTNING 89.4% pass · 398 tests YAMAHA FZS600 82.6% pass · 137k tests

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