Fiat Panda 2003: MOT failure rate for its age

48.8% of 598 MOT tests of the Fiat Panda first registered in 2003 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 101.0 (95% CI 89.4–112.6; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2003 build year is no different from other years of the same model at the same age. This is a rough estimate from a smaller sample.

Fiat Panda built in 2003 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	48.8	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	598
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 89.4–112.6)	101.0	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	598
Rank among this model's 18 build years	10	of 18	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	598
Tested in 2024	68	tests	median 80,930 miles	2024	68

Built 2003 against Fiat Panda normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 16: 49.4% vs 50.6%; age 17: 48.6% vs 47.6%; age 18: 51.9% vs 47.2%; age 19: 44.8% vs 47%; age 20: 48.8% vs 48.4%; age 21: 48.5% vs n/a%. Axis from 0% to 60%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2003 Fiat Panda by registration · All Fiat Panda MOT statistics · Download the build-year table (CSV)

Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · full dataset (v5).

How does the 2003 Fiat Panda fail at each age?

Cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21 between 2019 and 2024. Each row compares their first-time failure share with what this model normally shows at that age, after allowing for the overall failure level of each test year.

Fiat Panda built 2003: first-time MOT failure by age, against the model's normal rate at that age (2019–2024)
Age	Tests	Failed, %	95% interval	Normal for this model at that age, %	Index (100 = normal)
16	164 (rough estimate)	49.4	41.8–57	50.6	97.6
17	144 (rough estimate)	48.6	40.6–56.7	47.6	102.2
18	108 (rough estimate)	51.9	42.5–61	47.2	109.8
19	96 (rough estimate)	44.8	35.2–54.7	47	95.4
20	86 (rough estimate)	48.8	38.6–59.2	48.4	100.9
21	68 (rough estimate)	48.5	37.1–60.2	not available	not available

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 666 (initial tests) · Method: normal rate = this model's first-time failure share at that age across its build years (cells of 400+ tests), adjusted for each test year's overall level; cells of 30+ tests, under 500 marked rough · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

What fails most on the 2003 Fiat Panda?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2003 is brakes: 36.9 items per 100 first tests, against 13.5 across all build years of the Fiat Panda. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Fiat Panda built 2003 against the Fiat Panda in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2003, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Brakes	36.9	13.5	246
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	35.1	14.5	234
Suspension	34.8	27.6	232
Tyres	16.7	10.6	111
Visibility	14.3	9.7	95

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 666 (initial tests of this build year) · Method: failure items grouped by DVSA's top-level defect groups, per 100 initial tests; groups with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How does 2003 compare with the years around it?

Among the 18 published build years of the Fiat Panda, 2003 ranks 10 (1 = fails least for its age). 2004: index 102.2.

Fiat Panda build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
2003	101.0	89.4–112.6	no different (rough estimate)	598
2004	102.2	100.3–104.0	worse	23,352
2005	100.1	98.3–101.9	no different	25,918
2006	102.0	100.4–103.7	worse	32,040
2007	102.5	101.0–104.0	worse	39,111
2008	101.8	100.1–103.4	worse	34,936
2009	101.2	100.0–102.4	no different	66,346
2010	105.3	104.0–106.7	worse	57,129
2011	104.9	103.1–106.7	worse	33,964
2012	93.4	91.7–95.1	better	39,476
2013	94.2	92.6–95.8	better	45,934
2014	95.7	94.0–97.4	better	48,262
2015	97.2	95.4–99.1	better	47,752
2016	101.9	99.3–104.5	no different	29,413
2017	94.5	91.1–97.9	better	18,310
2018	90.0	85.5–94.5	better	10,718
2019	87.7	82.1–93.3	better	7,757
2020	75.3	66.9–83.7	better (rough estimate)	3,535

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 564,551 (initial tests) · Method: observed failures against those expected for the same model at the same ages, test-year level adjusted; verdict follows the printed one-decimal bound · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How to cite this page

MOT Risk Index (2026). Fiat Panda 2003 MOT statistics (data release dvsa-2024-v2; full dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22975051), updated 30 September 2026. motriskindex.co.uk/cars/fiat-panda/2003/

How every figure is calculated: methodology. Age, test year and build year are tied together (age = test year − build year), so the test-year level is taken as observed, not estimated.

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