Kymco Cruiser vs Piaggio Vespa

The Piaggio Vespa passes its MOT first time more often than the Kymco Cruiser: 80.7% vs 62.5%, a 18.2-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Kymco Cruiser	Piaggio Vespa
First-time pass rate	62.5%	80.7%
Outright fail rate	25.2%	12.2%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	-9.3 pts	+5.9 pts
Engine size	124cc	124cc
Rank among all models	#5133 of 5428	#3439 of 5428
Median miles at test	11,620	10,023
MOT tests analysed	437	287,482
Most common failure	lighting and signalling	lighting and signalling

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	Kymco Cruiser	Piaggio Vespa
2008	67.4%	76.1%
2009	57.8%	76.6%
2010	72.2%	77.5%
2011	65.2%	76.1%
2012	71.8%	76.2%
2013	61.3%	76.4%
2014	51.5%	76.6%
2015	46.9%	78.4%

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	Kymco Cruiser	Piaggio Vespa
0k-10k miles	67.9%	85.0%
10k-20k miles	57.6%	77.0%
20k-30k miles	60.2%	75.3%
30k-40k miles	56.3%	75.4%

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

KYMCO CRUISER 62.5% pass · 437 tests PIAGGIO VESPA 80.7% pass · 287k tests

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