Renault
229,843 MOT tests analysed. runs below the UK fleet average — here's where Trafics pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 9.3 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
68.2%
Pass-after-fix
4.6%
Fail
26.3%
Avg miles
119,008
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 229,769 tests
Pass rate climbs 8.6 points across the cohorts — newer Trafic examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
67.3%
Fail
27.2%
PRS
4.7%
Avg mileage at test
124,550 mi
Pass
75.9%
Fail
18.9%
PRS
4.3%
Avg mileage at test
75,042 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
Generations on file · 3
Renault Trafic · UK market
1980–2001
2001–2014
2014–now
Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.
The picture
The Renault Trafic is a light commercial van produced by the French automaker Renault since 1980. It has also been marketed as the Fiat Talento, the Nissan NV300, the Nissan Primastar and the Mitsubishi Express.
MOT data from 157,258 tests puts this van on a 67.0% first-time pass rate, well below the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 113,573 miles. The most common fail item is steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, followed by cracked or discoloured windscreen.
The Trafic's pass rate warrants caution in the used market. Factor in likely first-test remedial work on the common failure items and get a pre-purchase inspection that covers the specific items this van trips on most.
ABI Insurance Group
Above average — worth comparing quotes before buying. 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 →
22–30
out of 50
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A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play
15,790 occurrences · 6.9% of tests
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
12,555 occurrences · 5.5% of tests
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
7,600 occurrences · 3.3% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
7,038 occurrences · 3.1% of tests
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
6,937 occurrences · 3.0% of tests
A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
5,791 occurrences · 2.5% of tests
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
5,572 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement
5,091 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
4,809 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
4,350 occurrences · 1.9% 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
£248–£755
If every one of this Trafic'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 8.7-point gap between bands means the year you buy Renault Trafic has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.
Best band to buy
75.9%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 75.9% — a 8.7-point improvement. Tests in this band average 75,042 miles — roughly 50K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, ball joint has excessive play — 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
67.3%
Pre-2018 registration
On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 67.3% pass rate against a fleet average of 75.9% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: ball joint has excessive play, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, and ball joint excessively worn. Average mileage on test for this band is 124,550 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (75.9% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (67.3% pass). That's a 8.7-point spread across 204,259 older tests and 25,510 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.
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Recall history
The Trafic has 36 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.
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 Trafic 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.
