Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 11,376 tests

Pass rate climbs 9.9 points across the cohorts — newer Tivoli examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 8,395

Pass

75.2%

Fail

18.5%

PRS

5.8%

Avg mileage at test

55,126 mi

2018–2020 cohort 2,733

Pass

79.6%

Fail

14.3%

PRS

5.8%

Avg mileage at test

38,088 mi

2021+ cohort 248

Pass

85.1%

Fail

8.1%

PRS

6.8%

Avg mileage at test

24,606 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

The picture

Tivoli: middle-of-the-pack on first-time pass

Across 7,705 MOT tests, the Tivoli returns 76.7% first-time pass — roughly in line with the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a number-plate lamp out. Brake pads worn below 1.5 mm and rear registration plate lamp round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 43,842, 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.

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

880 occurrences · 7.7% of tests
02

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps

323 occurrences · 2.8% of tests
03

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

298 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
04

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

237 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
05

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

199 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
06

Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

172 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
07

A tyre seriously damaged

169 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
08

Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen

139 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
09

A tyre cords visible or damaged

132 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
10

A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED

129 occurrences · 1.1% 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

£156–£325

If every one of this Tivoli'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

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 9.9-point gap between bands means the year you buy Ssangyong Tivoli has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

85.1%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 85.1% — a 9.9-point improvement. Tests in this band average 24,606 miles — roughly 31K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: less than 1.5 mm thick, inoperative in the case of multiple lamps… — 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

75.2%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 75.2% pass rate against a fleet average of 85.1% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: inoperative in the case of multiple lamps…, inoperative in the case of a single…, and less than 1.5 mm thick. Average mileage on test for this band is 55,126 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (85.1% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (75.2% pass). That's a 9.9-point spread across 8,395 older tests and 248 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

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

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

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Denso

Denso W14E Spark Plug (Single)

£1.09

View at My Motor World →

Denso

Denso W16EX-U Spark Plug (Single)

£1.09

View at My Motor World →

Denso

Denso W16FSR Spark Plug (Single)

£1.09

View at My Motor World →

Denso

Denso W9LM-US Spark Plug (Single)

£1.09

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

Get a quote →

Recall history

4 UK recalls on record.

The Tivoli has 4 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping a Tivoli?

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 Tivoli 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.