Kawasaki ZX 1400 HJF vs Yamaha XJR1300

The Kawasaki ZX 1400 HJF passes its MOT first time more often than the Yamaha XJR1300: 96.2% vs 87.4%, a 8.8-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Kawasaki ZX 1400 HJF	Yamaha XJR1300
First-time pass rate	96.2%	87.4%
Outright fail rate	2.4%	5.6%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+8.5 pts	+2.8 pts
Engine size	1,441cc	1,250cc
Rank among all models	#19 of 5428	#1787 of 5428
Median miles at test	8,693	16,186
MOT tests analysed	211	95,093
Most common failure	brakes	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	Kawasaki ZX 1400 HJF	Yamaha XJR1300
2021	91.4%	88.3%
2022	100.0%	89.1%
2023	98.1%	89.6%
2024	95.0%	90.1%
2025	96.8%	90.5%

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	Kawasaki ZX 1400 HJF	Yamaha XJR1300
0k-10k miles	96.9%	90.8%
10k-20k miles	96.4%	87.9%

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

KAWASAKI ZX 1400 HJF 96.2% pass · 211 tests YAMAHA XJR1300 87.4% pass · 95.1k tests

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