Bsa SR500 vs Yamaha FZS600

The Bsa SR500 passes its MOT first time more often than the Yamaha FZS600: 93.5% vs 82.6%, a 10.9-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Bsa SR500	Yamaha FZS600
First-time pass rate	93.5%	82.6%
Outright fail rate	2.8%	10.6%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+5.0 pts	-0.8 pts
Engine size	499cc	599cc
Rank among all models	#234 of 5428	#3052 of 5428
Median miles at test	3,999	21,612
MOT tests analysed	325	136,558
Most common failure	steering and suspension	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 SR500	Yamaha FZS600
2006	91.9%	86.0%
2007	90.3%	84.1%
2008	96.7%	83.4%
2009	93.3%	81.2%

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 SR500	Yamaha FZS600
0k-10k miles	94.4%	89.6%
10k-20k miles	84.2%	85.5%
20k-30k miles	100.0%	81.4%

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

BSA SR500 93.5% pass · 325 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.