Yamaha
2,097 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where MT 125 Abss pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 1.4 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
76.1%
Pass-after-fix
8.7%
Fail
14.8%
Avg miles
13,651
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 · 2,092 tests
Pass rate climbs 2.8 points across the cohorts — newer MT 125 Abs examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
74.6%
Fail
15.3%
PRS
9.6%
Avg mileage at test
15,192 mi
Pass
77.4%
Fail
14.4%
PRS
7.8%
Avg mileage at test
12,176 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 1,729 MOT tests, the Mt 125 Abs returns 77.4% first-time pass — roughly in line with the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is brake pads worn below 1.0 mm. Steering head bearings have excessive wear and transmission belt, chain round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 11,941, 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.
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Brake lining or pad worn below 1.0mm
44 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
Steering head bearings have excessive wear or play
39 occurrences · 1.9% of tests
A shock absorber not functioning or leaking severely
38 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
A stop lamp(s) remains on when the brakes are released
28 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
A transmission belt, chain, sprocket or pulley excessively loose or worn
27 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
26 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
A lens defective which has no effect on emitted light
21 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
Reflector missing or reflecting white to the rear
21 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
A footrest missing or insecure
19 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake
18 occurrences · 0.9% 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 3 failures
£178–£385
If every one of this MT 125 Abs'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 Yamaha MT 125 Abs makes a small but real difference to MOT outcomes.
Best band to buy
77.4%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 77.4% — a 2.8-point improvement. Failures here are mostly wear items: less than 1.0 mm thick, has a serious fluid leak — 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
74.6%
Pre-2018 registration
On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 74.6% pass rate against a fleet average of 77.4% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: has excessive wear or free play, has a serious fluid leak, and tread depth is below minimum requirements of 1.0mm. Average mileage on test for this band is 15,192 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (77.4% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (74.6% pass). That's a 2.8-point spread across 1,037 older tests and 1,055 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
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 02 · 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
My Motor World · affiliate
Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.
Click Mechanic · affiliate
Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.
Mobile mechanic · UK-wide
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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 an MT 125 Abs 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.
