SYM Fiddle Ii 125 vs Piaggio Vespa

The Piaggio Vespa passes its MOT first time more often than the SYM Fiddle Ii 125: 80.7% vs 76.4%, a 4.3-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	SYM Fiddle Ii 125	Piaggio Vespa
First-time pass rate	76.4%	80.7%
Outright fail rate	16.0%	12.2%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	+5.2 pts	+5.9 pts
Engine size	124cc	124cc
Rank among all models	#4137 of 5428	#3439 of 5428
Median miles at test	10,945	10,023
MOT tests analysed	499	287,482
Most common failure	brakes	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	SYM Fiddle Ii 125	Piaggio Vespa
2013	74.1%	76.4%
2014	73.1%	76.6%
2015	79.7%	78.4%
2016	85.9%	79.2%
2017	69.8%	81.0%
2018	62.5%	81.5%

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	SYM Fiddle Ii 125	Piaggio Vespa
0k-10k miles	87.9%	85.0%
10k-20k miles	64.7%	77.0%
20k-30k miles	71.6%	75.3%

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

SYM FIDDLE II 125 76.4% pass · 499 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.