Photo: AVMOTO, CC BY-SA 4.0
Yamaha
1,297 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where Yzf R125 Abss pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 3.6 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
73.9%
Pass-after-fix
8.5%
Fail
16.6%
Avg miles
14,718
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 · 1,297 tests
Pass rate climbs 2.0 points across the cohorts — newer Yzf R125 Abs examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
72.9%
Fail
17.9%
PRS
8.0%
Avg mileage at test
15,517 mi
Pass
74.9%
Fail
15.3%
PRS
9.0%
Avg mileage at test
13,844 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 998 MOT tests, the Yzf R125 Abs returns 77.7% 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. Tyre tread under the limit and a missing rear reflector round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 12,462, 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
31 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
A shock absorber not functioning or leaking severely
25 occurrences · 1.9% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
22 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
Steering head bearings have excessive wear or play
21 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
A transmission belt, chain, sprocket or pulley excessively loose or worn
19 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
A footrest missing or insecure
19 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps
17 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
Reflector missing or reflecting white to the rear
16 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements
14 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
A lamp missing or inoperative
13 occurrences · 1.0% 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
£230–£445
If every one of this Yzf R125 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 2.0-point gap between bands is modest — the year you buy Yamaha Yzf R125 Abs makes a small but real difference to MOT outcomes.
Best band to buy
74.9%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 74.9% — a 2.0-point improvement. Failures here are mostly wear items: has a serious fluid leak, less than 1.0 mm thick — 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
72.9%
Pre-2018 registration
On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 72.9% pass rate against a fleet average of 74.9% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: less than 1.0 mm thick, missing, and has a serious fluid leak. Average mileage on test for this band is 15,517 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (74.9% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (72.9% pass). That's a 2.0-point spread across 675 older tests and 622 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
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
Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.
Click Mechanic · affiliate
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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 a Yzf R125 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.
