High-mileage EVs are less likely to fail an MOT than petrol cars

A study of 47.4 million MOT tests has revealed that high-mileage electric vehicles are less likely to fail an MOT than petrol cars of the same age and mileage.

Analysis shows that once cars reach around 60,000 miles, EV MOT failure rates level off, while those for petrol and diesel cars continue to rise.

Commissioned by the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association (BVRLA) and carried out by the independent transport research organisation New AutoMotive, the study analysed official DVSA MOT data. It found relatively little difference in MOT failure rates below 60,000 miles, after which the rates for electric and petrol cars began to diverge.

The study shows that among cars aged three to eight years with between 90,000 and 120,000 miles on the clock, electric cars were around 25% less likely to fail an MOT than petrol cars.

When the vehicle goes over the 120,000-mile marker, the gap in MOT pass rates grows further, with a 16% failure rate for EVs compared with 23.5% for petrol.

Although the research found that there was no evidence that heavier electric cars suffer greater suspension problems, they do record more tyre defects.

At lower mileages, between 20,000 and 40,000 miles, 12% of battery-electric vehicles failed their MOTs, compared with 11.7% of petrol cars.

Toby Poston, Chief Executive of the BVRLA, said: “Mileage has always been one of the first things people look at when buying a used car, and passing 60,000 or 70,000 miles can have a big impact on how a vehicle is perceived.

“This research suggests we need to think differently when it comes to electric vehicles.

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Researchers also investigated whether older electric cars are leaving Britain’s roads sooner than their petrol-powered counterparts.

By analysing whether vehicles returned for another MOT within 30 months, the study found that 94.6% of 15-year-old electric cars were still on the road, compared with 88.1% of petrol cars.

This suggests a road-exit rate of 5.4% for electric vehicles versus 11.9% for petrol models.

However, leaving the MOT dataset does not necessarily mean a vehicle has been scrapped. It could also have been exported, declared SORN, or otherwise removed from regular road use.

The findings also challenge the idea that ageing EVs are mainly being kept as low-mileage second cars.

Across every vehicle age examined, from four to 16 years, electric cars recorded higher median annual mileages than petrol cars.