Nissan
2,146 MOT tests analysed. sits above the UK fleet average — here's where Qashqai N Tec Dig T S As pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 13.5 points above the UK fleet average across our 1,984 tracked models — a confident result.
Pass
91.0%
Pass-after-fix
2.2%
Fail
6.6%
Avg miles
27,662
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Petrol cars first registered from January 2006 meet Euro 4 — compliant in London ULEZ, Birmingham CAZ, Bristol CAZ, and Glasgow LEZ.
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 2,146 tests
Pass rate climbs 2.8 points across the cohorts — newer Qashqai N Tec Dig T S A examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
90.8%
Fail
6.7%
PRS
2.3%
Avg mileage at test
27,852 mi
Pass
93.6%
Fail
5.8%
PRS
0.6%
Avg mileage at test
25,249 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 1,346 MOT tests, the Qashqai N-Tec Dig-T S-A returns 90.4% first-time pass — comfortably ahead of the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a defective wiper blade. A seriously damaged tyre and a tyre with the cords showing round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 21,018, 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
Around the UK fleet average for insurance cost. 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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Wiper blade defective
61 occurrences · 2.8% of tests
Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen
28 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
A tyre seriously damaged
27 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
22 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
A tyre cords visible or damaged
20 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
15 occurrences · 0.7% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
14 occurrences · 0.7% of tests
A front or rear fog lamp not securely attached
9 occurrences · 0.4% of tests
Excessive fluctuation in brake effort through each wheel revolution.
6 occurrences · 0.3% of tests
A direction indicator lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning
6 occurrences · 0.3% 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 4 failures
£180–£345
If every one of this Qashqai N Tec Dig T S A'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 →
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Build your own retest budget.
Year-band analysis
First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 2.8-point gap between bands is modest — the year you buy Nissan Qashqai N Tec Dig T S A makes a small but real difference to MOT outcomes.
Best band to buy
93.6%
2021+ registration
the 2021-on band climbs to 93.6% — a 2.8-point improvement. Failures here are mostly wear items: blade defective, has a cut in excess of the… — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.
Band to be cautious about
90.8%
2018–2020 registration
On the 2018–2020 band, the data shows a 90.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 93.6% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: blade defective, does not clear the windscreen effectively, and has a cut in excess of the…. Average mileage on test for this band is 27,852 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2021+ (93.6% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: 2018-2020 (90.8% pass). That's a 2.8-point spread across 1,990 older tests and 156 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
Bosch Aerotwin wiper blades
Cheap wipers fail the test on smear streaks. Bosch Aerotwins last a winter and clear a screen properly.
Search Amazon UK
Item 02 · Amazon UK
Brake pad measurement gauge
Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.
Search Amazon UK
Item 03 · 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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Owner reports · Honest John
Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.
Where it falls short
Owner reports (49 entries) flag recurring issues with DSG/gearbox, electrical faults, air conditioning.
3rd service of 2014/64 Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T showed oil loss of 1.5 litres over 12 months (owner evidently did not check oil between services). Car now at 37,500 miles, still under warranty until February 2018. Owner told to bring it back for checks after 3,000 miles.
Electrical glitches reported with 2014 Nissan Qashqai bought used from a Nissan dealer in August 2017. Front warning sensor sometimes goes of when driving, has been rectified once, but has now happened again. Sometimes when stopped and on taking the key out of the ignition the doors will not open and the alarm goes off, on putting the key back in and turning on the electrics the alarm stops and owner can open the door.
Battery failure reported on 2016 Nissan Qashqai.
Report of 2014 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T Acenta Premium suffering excessive oil consumption and loss of power. Owner eventually told engine needs replacing due to piston ring slotting failure spotted from a compression test. Car went out of warranty Feb 2017 and Nissan has refused any liability. Owner advised to sue on the basis of a "fundamental fault" using the evidence of other reported failures.
Report of 2015 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T Tekna needing a new engine.
Report of 2015/65 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T Tekna on 19-inch 45 profile tyres needing new front tyres at 14,000 miles. (The 215/60 R17 tyres on 17-inch wheels last around 30,000 miles.) Also having used 3 litres of oil in 14,000 miles.
Report of 2017 Nissan Qashqai burning out its clutch and damaging its flywheel after 3,000 miles. Owner blames the electromechanical parking brake 'auto-release' not releasing quickly enough.
Problems with 2016/65 reg Nissan Qashqai 1.6 dCi 130 have included; corrosion under the lacquer of the diamond cut alloy wheels which saw two alloy wheels being replaced at just over 1 year old. The battery failed in summer 2017. In October it had the Mass Airflow Sensor replaced as it had started dropping power, and the air conditioning required regassing (R1234YF) at a cost of £150 as there was no gas left in the system, yet supposedly no leaks in the system either. Now the lacquer has stated to bubble on one of the two wheels not replaced last spring. In addition the air filter housing is held together with self tapping screws! These screws were fitted by the dealer in an apparently crude attempt to stop the air filter housing from vibrating and buzzing, something. The original plastic clips have now been fretted away to dust, and so the housing now needs replacing too.
Report of engine of 2016 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T cutting out completely at 60mph on two occasions. Dealer "re-booted" the ECU after the first time. Is now checking it a 2nd time. See: 11-3-2017 and 4-6-2017.
Report of "smudgy blue line" appearing on the satnav screen of a 2015 Qashqai 1.5 dci Ntec.
Report of 2014 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.2 DIG-T in for service found to have excessively noisy engine and high oil consumption. Dealer asked for it back next week for checks and may fit new engine.
Report of burning smell and orange (engine shaped) warning light coming on in 2016 Nissan Qashqai J11 1.6 DIG-T at 3,000 miles. RAC tjought it was a problem with an exhaust lambda sensor. Nissan dealer thinks it might be the clutch, which would not be covered under warranty. Wants owner to guarantee to pay £800 to replace the clutch. Owner thinks the problem might be the electromechanical parking brake sticking on and causing excess clutch wear.
Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 30 reports indexed, top 12 shown
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 Qashqai N Tec Dig T S A 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.
