Zongshen ZS 125-30 vs Honda CG125

The Honda CG125 passes its MOT first time more often than the Zongshen ZS 125-30: 72.2% vs 55.6%, a 16.6-point lead.

MOT reliability, side by side

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

Metric	Zongshen ZS 125-30	Honda CG125
First-time pass rate	55.6%	72.2%
Outright fail rate	29.8%	16.8%
Vs comparable bikes (age & mileage adjusted)	-18.0 pts	+0.7 pts
Engine size	125cc	124cc
Rank among all models	#5332 of 5428	#4568 of 5428
Median miles at test	7,002	17,460
MOT tests analysed	329	89,345
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	Zongshen ZS 125-30	Honda CG125
2011	55.6%	70.6%
2012	62.2%	70.6%
2013	56.1%	69.4%
2014	68.4%	69.3%
2015	35.3%	70.9%

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	Zongshen ZS 125-30	Honda CG125
0k-10k miles	58.8%	79.3%
10k-20k miles	51.8%	73.0%

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

ZONGSHEN ZS 125-30 55.6% pass · 329 tests HONDA CG125 72.2% pass · 89.3k tests

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