Fiat
7,812 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where Qubos pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 5.3 points below the UK fleet average across our 1,984 tracked models — buyers should expect more first-time fails than the typical UK car.
Pass
72.2%
Pass-after-fix
3.8%
Fail
23.4%
Avg miles
69,498
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Some examples of this model are borderline — a small number of diesels were certified Euro 6 before September 2015. Check your registration on the government's ULEZ checker to be certain. Daily charges if driven in the zone: London £12.50 · Birmingham £8.00 · Bristol £9.00 .
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 7,811 tests
Pass rate climbs 10.7 points across the cohorts — newer Qubo examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
71.8%
Fail
23.7%
PRS
3.8%
Avg mileage at test
71,192 mi
Pass
82.5%
Fail
13.9%
PRS
3.6%
Avg mileage at test
25,325 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 5,854 MOT tests, the Qubo returns 72.3% first-time pass — below the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a broken or weak spring. A worn shock-absorber bush and windscreen damage round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 64,975, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.
ABI Insurance Group
A low-group car — among the cheapest to insure in the UK. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.
Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →
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A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
328 occurrences · 4.2% of tests
A shock absorber bush excessively worn
296 occurrences · 3.8% of tests
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
285 occurrences · 3.6% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
209 occurrences · 2.7% of tests
A tyre cords visible or damaged
179 occurrences · 2.3% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
178 occurrences · 2.3% of tests
Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective
168 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated
126 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen
103 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
Wiper blade defective
98 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.
Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures
£148–£370
If every one of this Qubo's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →
Try the calculator
Build your own retest budget.
Year-band analysis
First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 10.7-point gap between bands means the year you buy Fiat Qubo has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.
Best band to buy
82.5%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 82.5% — a 10.7-point improvement. Tests in this band average 25,325 miles — roughly 46K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: has an excessively worn bush, fractured or broken — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. The stricter post-2018 MOT test rules meant manufacturers had to tighten up emissions and electrical checks, but this band still shows far fewer major failures on suspension and bodywork than the older fleet.
Band to be cautious about
71.8%
Pre-2018 registration
On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 71.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 82.5% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: fractured or broken, has an excessively worn bush, and damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view. Average mileage on test for this band is 71,192 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (82.5% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (71.8% pass). That's a 10.7-point spread across 7,531 older tests and 280 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.
Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.
Item 01 · Amazon UK
H7 / W21W bulb pack
A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.
Search Amazon UK
Item 02 · Amazon UK
Digital tyre-tread depth gauge
Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.
Search Amazon UK
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Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.
If you own a Qubo and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.
