Harley-Davidson XR 1200 X Sportster 11 vs Triumph Bonneville

The Harley-Davidson XR 1200 X Sportster 11 passes its MOT first time more often than the Triumph Bonneville: 94.4% vs 89.0%, a 5.4-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Harley-Davidson XR 1200 X Sportster 11	Triumph Bonneville
First-time pass rate	94.4%	89.0%
Outright fail rate	2.2%	5.0%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+6.6 pts	+1.6 pts
Engine size	1,202cc	865cc
Rank among all models	#126 of 5428	#1269 of 5428
Median miles at test	7,320	7,619
MOT tests analysed	232	195,256
Most common failure	structure and attachments	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 mileage

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

Mileage	Harley-Davidson XR 1200 X Sportster 11	Triumph Bonneville
0k-10k miles	94.2%	90.6%
10k-20k miles	94.8%	86.8%

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

HARLEY-DAVIDSON XR 1200 X SPORTSTER 11 94.4% pass · 232 tests TRIUMPH BONNEVILLE 89.0% pass · 195k tests

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