Triumph Thunderbird Sport vs Harley-Davidson XLH 883

The Harley-Davidson XLH 883 passes its MOT first time more often than the Triumph Thunderbird Sport: 87.4% vs 85.7%, a 1.7-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Triumph Thunderbird Sport	Harley-Davidson XLH 883
First-time pass rate	85.7%	87.4%
Outright fail rate	6.9%	5.9%
Median miles at test	14,622	10,350
MOT tests analysed	607	41,267
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.

TRIUMPH THUNDERBIRD SPORT 85.7% pass · 607 tests HARLEY-DAVIDSON XLH 883 87.4% pass · 41.3k tests

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