Honda CR-Z — MOT statistics 2024
The Honda CR-Z failed 23.56% of 3,791 first MOT attempts in 2024 ("first-time", excluding retests). Adjusted for the age of the fleet, its initial-failure ratio is 62.5 (100 = expected for its age profile). This car fails its MOT about 37% less often than expected for its age. Small sample — treat with care.
Age-adjusted peer: Audi Q2 (index 62.4) — the two published results are 0.1 index points apart.
Honda CR-Z common problems: what actually fails the MOT
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment are well below the reference at 7.0 per 100 tests, against 19.1 per 100 tests across UK vehicles of the same ages.
higher bar = fails more oftenrate per 100 tests
family vs national — matched to UK vehicles of the same ages — top component groups, per 100 tests. Legend: This family · National avg. Combined labels: family / national average. A gap here reflects how these vehicles are driven, used and maintained as well as how they were built — an MOT defect is a test outcome, not a breakdown.
Component-group comparison table
Each ratio carries a 95% interval. With 6 groups compared here, roughly one apparent difference in twenty is chance alone, and 1 of these is already inside an interval that includes 1.00×.
| Group | This family | Cases behind it | UK, same ages | Family / national |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 13.9 | 3,244 | 17.9 | 0.77×0.75–0.80 |
| Brakes | 12.7 | 2,976 | 12.3 | 1.03×1.00–1.07 · not distinguishable |
| Visibility | 7.0 | 1,647 | 8.0 | 0.87×0.84–0.92 |
| Lamps & electrical | 7.0 | 1,645 | 19.1 | 0.37×0.35–0.39 |
| Tyres | 6.7 | 1,568 | 9.9 | 0.68×0.65–0.71 |
| Steering | 6.2 | 1,446 | 3.1 | 1.97×1.87–2.07 |
| What failed | per 100 tests (this family) | per 100 tests (UK average) | ratio family / UK | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension joint dust cover severely deterioratedA suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated | 7.12 | 1.90 | 3.74× | Listen for knocks over bumps — worn joints show up on the test |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover…Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated | 5.28 | 0.76 | 6.97× | Ask the seller about: Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or det |
| Suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer…A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 3.57 | 1.78 | 2.00× | Listen for knocks over bumps — worn joints show up on the test |
| Significant brake effort recorded with no brake…Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake | 2.51 | 1.03 | 2.44× | Feel for brake judder and pulling on the test drive |
| Brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mma brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | 2.77 | 2.15 | 1.29× | Feel for brake judder and pulling on the test drive |
| Tyre seriously damagedA tyre seriously damaged | 2.94 | 2.54 | 1.16× | Check tyre tread depth across the full width |
| Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the…Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen | 2.22 | 2.22 | 1.00× | Check wipers, washers and windscreen chips in the driver's view |
| Windscreen or window damaged or seriously…Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view | 2.05 | 2.36 | 0.87× | Check wipers, washers and windscreen chips in the driver's view |
| Rear registration plate lamp or light source…A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources | 2.45 | 2.83 | 0.87× | Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure |
| Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the…Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements | 2.39 | 3.59 | 0.67× | Check tyre tread depth across the full width |
Named defects ranked by how much more often they appear than the national average — not by raw rate.
Honda CR-Z MOT advisories: what gets flagged
Brakes are highest at 39.3 per 100 tests; Road Wheels are lowest at 1.3 per 100 tests — the gap is 38.0 per 100 tests.
higher bar = flagged more oftenadvisory items per 100 initial tests
Advisory rates table
| Group | Advisories per 100 |
|---|---|
| Brakes | 39.3 |
| Tyres | 38 |
| Suspension | 16.2 |
| Body & structure | 3.8 |
| Non-component advisories | 3.8 |
| Road Wheels | 1.3 |
Advisories are wear the tester noted but didn't fail — what will need money soon.
Tyres, brakes and suspension: Honda CR-Z against cars of the same age
| Age | Part | Honda CR-Z | Same age, petrol and diesel | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 years | Tyres | 4.11 | 5.95 | -1.84 |
| 7 years | Brakes | 4.37 | 4.55 | -0.18 |
| 7 years | Suspension | 3.94 | 5.68 | -1.74 |
| 8 years | Tyres | 4.93 | 6.31 | -1.38 |
| 8 years | Brakes | 6.15 | 5.38 | 0.77 |
| 8 years | Suspension | 5.04 | 7.78 | -2.74 |
Failing items per 100 initial tests, 2019-2024. The comparison group is every petrol or diesel car tested at the same age, so weight and drivetrain show up rather than fleet age.
If a car like this fails, does it fail again?
A failure rate does not say whether a failure is a one-off or the start of something. This follows the same vehicles into their next ordinary MOT a year later — retests after a repair are excluded, because they follow a failure by definition. 2019-2024.
| After this year's test | Fails next year | Vehicles followed |
|---|---|---|
| It failed | 21.9% | 998 |
| It passed | 19.5% | 14,569 |
A failed test does not clearly change next year's odds here (21.9% against 19.5%): the difference is within the margin of error. The failure most likely to come back is lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment — 29.8% of those vehicles fail again next year. Some of this is the vehicle and some is the owner: a car that was let go once tends to be let go again. One caveat: a car that fails may be sold or scrapped rather than tested again, so these figures describe the vehicles that came back.
Adjusted for how much these are actually driven
The headline index adjusts for the fleet's age. Wear, though, follows mileage: a three-year-old taxi and a three-year-old garage queen sit in the same age band. These two rows compare every car with vehicles of the same age, and then with vehicles of the same age and the same annual mileage, 2019-2024, on 23,323 tests. Both stand on the six-year corpus so they are measured on identical data — compare them with each other, not with the headline index above, which is measured on 2024 alone.
| Standardised for | Index | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Age only | 61.5 | fails less often than expected |
| Age and annual mileage | 62.3 | fails less often than vehicles driven as much |
| Share doing under 3,000 miles a year | 4.8% | a normal spread of use |
Mileage changes little here (+0.8 points): this fleet is driven about as much as the vehicles it is compared with. One limit to keep in mind: mileage is partly a result of how often a car breaks down — one that spends weeks in the workshop covers fewer miles — so the mileage-matched figure can understate a real weakness. Tests with no usable odometer reading are left out of it.
How the Honda CR-Z compares with cars of its own age and size
Not against the whole fleet — against cars of the same size class tested at the same age, 2019-2024.
| Age | Honda CR-Z | Same class, same age | Difference | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | 10.78% | 17.41% | -6.63 pp | 204 |
| 6 years | 12.08% | 20.75% | -8.67 pp | 505 |
| 7 years | 16.36% | 24.32% | -7.96 pp | 1,143 |
| 8 years | 18.53% | 28.15% | -9.63 pp | 2,618 |
| 9 years | 18.69% | 32.04% | -13.35 pp | 3,960 |
| 10 years | 19.93% | 35.61% | -15.67 pp | 3,818 |
| 11 years | 22.45% | 38.66% | -16.21 pp | 3,710 |
| 12 years | 23.41% | 41.26% | -17.85 pp | 3,366 |
| 13 years | 24.29% | 43.3% | -19.01 pp | 2,693 |
| 14 years | 26.03% | 45.04% | -19.02 pp | 1,291 |
Raw first-time failure rates within each age, so fleet age cannot flatter either side. A positive difference means this model fails more often than its own class at that age.
How does the Honda CR-Z perform as it gets older?
The CR-Z at age 10 is well below the reference at 10.8%, against 30.1% for all vehicles of the same age.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
Chart axes: car age, years · failure-rate scale 0–45%.
Takeaway: solid line: this family; dashed: all cars.
Data table
| Age | Honda CR-Z | All vehicles | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 10.8% | 30.1% | -19.3 pp |
| 11 | 22.6% | 33.2% | -10.6 pp |
| 12 | 22.8% | 35.7% | -12.9 pp |
| 13 | 23.7% | 38.2% | -14.5 pp |
| 14 | 26.1% | 40.4% | -14.4 pp |
Is a Honda CR-Z ULEZ compliant?
The share of classifiable 2024 Honda CR-Z MOT tests likely ULEZ compliant by first-registration date is 99.8%.
Based on 3,193 classifiable initial MOT tests. This describes the tested fleet, not a specific car. MOT data do not record Euro class, so likely compliance is inferred from fuel and first-registration date. For the only authoritative answer, check the registration with TfL's official ULEZ checker.
higher = larger share likely compliantinferred from fuel and first-registration date; not a recorded Euro class
| Vehicle age at test | Likely ULEZ-compliant share | Tests |
|---|---|---|
| Under 3 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 1 |
| 3–5 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 5 |
| 6–7 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 1 |
| 8 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 0 |
| 9 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 23 |
| 10–14 years | 99.8% Check a registration with TfL | n = 3,162 |
| 15–17 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 1 |
| 18 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 0 |
| 19 years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 0 |
| 20+ years | Suppressed — sample below publication threshold Check a registration with TfL | n = 0 |
How dangerous are Honda CR-Z MOT failures?
Major defects are well below the reference at 27.1 per 100 tests, against 52.8 per 100 tests nationally.
higher bar = fails more oftenrate per 100 tests
Severity table
| Severity | This family /100 | National /100 | Family / national |
|---|---|---|---|
| Minor | 20.96 | 14.22 | 1.47× |
| Major | 27.06 | 52.75 | 0.51× |
| Dangerous | 8.86 | 11.15 | 0.79× |
Chart values: Minor 21.0 · Major 27.1 · Dangerous 8.9.
Per 100 tests on this family. National average: Minor 14.2 · Major 52.8 · Dangerous 11.2 per 100.
Does the month of a Honda CR-Z MOT matter?
Apr is highest at 22.7%; Sep is lowest at 19.4% — the gap is 3.3 percentage points.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
Chart scale: 18%–33%.
bars: Honda CR-Z · dashed: all class-4 cars
Month-by-month table
| Month | Honda CR-Z | All vehicles | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 21.04% | 31.12% | -10.1 pp |
| Feb | 21.08% | 29.99% | -8.9 pp |
| Mar | 19.69% | 28.26% | -8.6 pp |
| Apr | 22.67% | 29.78% | -7.1 pp |
| May | 21.56% | 28.79% | -7.2 pp |
| Jun | 21.65% | 28.15% | -6.5 pp |
| Jul | 20.37% | 29.33% | -9.0 pp |
| Aug | 19.87% | 29.2% | -9.3 pp |
| Sep | 19.42% | 28.19% | -8.8 pp |
| Oct | 21.31% | 30.34% | -9.0 pp |
| Nov | 21.42% | 30.58% | -9.2 pp |
| Dec | 22.18% | 29.33% | -7.1 pp |
Takeaway: the spread between best and worst month is 3.3 percentage points — noticeable seasonality. Seasonality partly reflects registration-date clustering, not weather.
Before reading the shape: most of it is not about cars. Britain changes its registration plates twice a year, and 18.9% of these cars were first registered in March with another17.1% in September — 36% in two months against the 17% an even spread would give. An MOT falls due three years after first registration, so the buying calendar becomes the testing calendar. That shapes how many cars are tested each month — not how often they fail: the busiest months here are not the worst ones, so read the failure line on its own and the volume behind it separately.
Honda CR-Z average mileage by age
At age 12, the middle half of CR-Z models runs from 57,937 miles to 102,647 miles, against 78,841 miles as the median.
further right = more milesmedian is the typical car; band is p25–p75
Chart axes: car age, years · odometer scale 0–128k mi.
Does high mileage mean more Honda CR-Z MOT failures at the same age?
Within the same age group, split by odometer (2024 MOTs), so this separates wear from age: at ages 10–14, 13.1% of those with under 40,000 miles failed first time versus 29.7% of those with over 140,000 miles.Inside this age group, higher mileage goes with more failures.
| Age | Odometer | % failing | 95% interval | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10–14 | <40k miles | 13.1% | 9.5–17.8% | 252 (rough estimate) |
| 10–14 | 40-70k miles | 18.8% | 16.3–21.5% | 862 |
| 10–14 | 70-100k miles | 23.3% | 21–25.7% | 1,236 |
| 10–14 | 100-140k miles | 28.6% | 26–31.4% | 1,065 |
| 10–14 | 140k+ miles | 29.7% | 25–34.8% | 327 (rough estimate) |
line: median · band: middle half of the fleet (p25–p75)
Mileage by age (p25 / median / p75)
| Age | p25 | Median | p75 | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 39,696 | 59,408 | 79,329 | 167 |
| 11 | 48,921 | 69,123 | 91,209 | 301 |
| 12 | 57,937 | 78,841 | 102,647 | 613 |
| 13 | 70,390 | 90,485 | 113,862 | 1,383 |
| 14 | 74,366 | 96,795 | 121,920 | 1,290 |
A typical 12-year-old CR-Z has ~78,841 miles on the clock. Much more — ask why; much less — check for gaps in the MOT history.
Where in Britain the Honda CR-Z fails its MOT most
Kirkcaldy area is highest at 38.6%; St Albans area is lowest at 13.3% — the gap is 25.3 percentage points.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
| Toughest areas | % failing | vs model overall |
|---|---|---|
| Kirkcaldy (KY) | 38.57% | +17.7 pp |
| Dundee (DD) | 35.78% | +14.9 pp |
| Aberdeen (AB) | 32.52% | +11.6 pp |
| Watford (WD) | 30.82% | +9.9 pp |
| Torquay (TQ) | 28.75% | +7.9 pp |
| Easiest areas | % failing | vs model overall |
|---|---|---|
| St Albans (AL) | 13.28% | -7.6 pp |
| Cambridge (CB) | 13.3% | -7.6 pp |
| Milton Keynes (MK) | 14.7% | -6.2 pp |
| Leicester (LE) | 15.22% | -5.7 pp |
| Hemel Hempstead (HP) | 15.77% | -5.1 pp |
Every dot is a postcode area — size = how many were tested there, colour = share failing. These figures are not age-adjusted: coastal and rural areas often run older fleets and salted roads, so higher raw fail rates do not automatically mean a worse local stock of this model.
Map labels: Scotland · N. England · Wales · London · S. West. Colour scale: 15%–26% failing.
Honda CR-Z survival: which cars are still on the road
By age 14 is close to the reference at 100.0%, against 100.0% at the ages 4–6 reference level.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
Chart axes: car age, years · survival vs ages 4–6 · scale 0–105%.
Survival vs fail rate by age
| Age | Tests | Survival vs ages 4–6 | Fail % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 204 | 40.4% | 10.78% |
| 6 | 505 | 100% | 12.08% |
| 7 | 1,143 | 100% | 16.36% |
| 8 | 2,618 | 100% | 18.53% |
| 9 | 3,960 | 100% | 18.69% |
| 10 | 3,818 | 100% | 19.93% |
| 11 | 3,710 | 100% | 22.45% |
| 12 | 3,366 | 100% | 23.41% |
| 13 | 2,693 | 100% | 24.29% |
| 14 | 1,291 | 100% | 26.03% |
By age 14, at least as many cars of this family present for MOT as at ages 4–6 (reference n≈505): the older fleet has not thinned out here, so there is no survivor selection to allow for.
How many miles does a Honda CR-Z last?
100,000+ miles is highest at 22.0%; 150,000+ miles is lowest at 2.6% — the gap is 19.4 percentage points.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
| Odometer | Tests ≥ threshold | Share of sample |
|---|---|---|
| 100,000+ miles | 5,135 | 22.01% |
| 150,000+ miles | 614 | 2.63% |
Of 23,332 tests of this family with a usable odometer in 2024, 22.0% had reached 100k miles, 2.6% had reached 150k miles. This is a cross-section of cars still presenting for MOT, not a full birth cohort.
How many years is a Honda CR-Z likely to last?
Bought at age 8 is highest at 6.5 years; Bought at age 12 is lowest at 2.5 years — the gap is 4.0 years.
bigger number = longer remaining lifeyears on the observed survival curve
| Age now | Typical mileage (p50) | Expected years left |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | — | at least 6.5 |
| 10 | — | at least 4.5 |
| 12 | — | at least 2.5 |
estimateEstimate only — not a warranty: a typical 10-year-old example of this family has at least 4.5 expected years of further MOT-present life. The curve is observed only until age 14, so the true figure is likely higher.
Honda CR-Z faults that come together
Body & structure + Emissions & leaks stand out at 28.38×, against 1.00× if the faults were independent.
above 1.0× = more than expectedbelow 1.0× = less
| Group A | Group B | Together | Lift |
|---|---|---|---|
| Body, chassis, structure | Noise, emissions and leaks | 47 | 28.38× (rough estimate) |
| Steering | Suspension | 521 | 5.94× |
| Brakes | Noise, emissions and leaks | 39 | 5.27× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 99 | 4.59× (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Noise, emissions and leaks | 25 | 4.48× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Brakes | 125 | 4.37× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Visibility | 72 | 3.21× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Tyres | 55 | 2.93× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Tyres | 245 | 2.92× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Suspension | 105 | 2.92× (rough estimate) |
| Tyres | Visibility | 183 | 2.79× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 264 | 2.74× (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Visibility | 207 | 2.74× (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Tyres | 167 | 2.64× (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Steering | 41 | 2.62× (rough estimate) |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | Suspension | 24 | 2.59× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Visibility | 246 | 2.46× (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Steering | 128 | 2.43× (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Suspension | 280 | 2.31× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Suspension | 357 | 2.23× (rough estimate) |
| Suspension | Tyres | 222 | 2.11× (rough estimate) |
| Steering | Visibility | 110 | 2.01× (rough estimate) |
| Suspension | Visibility | 243 | 1.94× (rough estimate) |
| Steering | Tyres | 87 | 1.9× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Steering | 112 | 1.6× (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Identification of the vehicle | 19 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Identification of the vehicle | Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 18 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | Tyres | 18 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Road Wheels | 17 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Road Wheels | Tyres | 14 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Road Wheels | Visibility | 14 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Road Wheels | Suspension | 14 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Identification of the vehicle | Suspension | 14 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 13 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Brakes | Road Wheels | 13 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 12 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | Visibility | 12 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Identification of the vehicle | Visibility | 10 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Visibility | 9 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Tyres | 8 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Suspension | 8 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 7 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Steering | 6 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Identification of the vehicle | Steering | 6 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Identification of the vehicle | Tyres | 6 | too few (rough estimate) |
| Body, chassis, structure | Road Wheels | 5 | too few (rough estimate) |
Defects in «Steering» and «Suspension» appear together 5.94× more often than chance (521 co-occurrences in the same test; lift≥1.3, n≥500).
Lift = how many times more often both groups appear on the same test than if independent. A pair is listed from 5 tests with both faults; the lift is shown from 20, and called above chance only when its 95% interval excludes 1 (see rough estimates).
Is low mileage better for a Honda CR-Z?
Cars driven under 5,000 miles a year is well below the reference at 15.3%, against 24.2% for cars driven 8,000–12,000 miles a year.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
| Band | Fail % | Tests |
|---|---|---|
| <5k miles/year | 15.29% | 4,043 |
| 8–12k miles/year | 24.22% | 6,511 |
| Gap (low − normal) | -8.94 pp | — |
By fuel and age
Petrol
| Age | Low-use fail % | n | Normal fail % | n | Gap pp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | 13.08 | 130 | 23.47 | 294 | -10.39 pp |
| 9 | 11.91 | 235 | 21.37 | 510 | -9.46 pp |
| 10 | 12.39 | 234 | 23.04 | 460 | -10.65 pp |
| 11 | 14.84 | 256 | 25.3 | 419 | -10.45 pp |
| 12 | 20.78 | 255 | 27.44 | 390 | -6.65 pp |
| 13 | 19.33 | 238 | 28.31 | 332 | -8.99 pp |
| 14 | 22.13 | 122 | 30.18 | 169 | -8.05 pp |
At matched ages 5–14, cars averaging under 5k miles/year fail at 15.3% vs 24.2% for 8–12k miles/year — 8.9 pp lower (n_low=4,043, n_normal=6,511). In this family low annual use is associated with fewer MOT fails, not more — the ‘garage queen’ penalty is not visible in overall fail rates.
Best year for a Honda CR-Z, and the years to avoid
Build year 2011 is highest at 103.1; Build year 2014 is lowest at 75.1 — the gap is 28.0 points.
below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age
build year vs the same model at the same age · 100 = as expected
Every build year with its confidence interval
| Build year | vs own age norm | 95% CI | Raw fail % | Tests | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 75.1 | 60–90.3 | 14.03% | 670 | better |
| 2013 | 90.6 | 79.6–101.6 | 17.62% | 1,476 | no different |
| 2012 | 95.2 | 88.3–102.1 | 19.33% | 3,771 | no different |
| 2011 | 103.1 | 98.5–107.7 | 22.11% | 8,719 | no different |
| 2010 | 99.5 | 94.8–104.1 | 22.43% | 7,887 | no different |
The best build year here is 2014 and the weakest is 2014. Comparing build years sounds simple and is not: within a single year of testing, a car's build year and its age are the same number, so a naive comparison of years is a comparison of ages wearing a disguise. Each year below is measured against the same model at the same age in other cohorts, across six years of testing — 1 of 5 years come out distinguishable from their own model's age norm.
Two limits worth knowing before you act on this. Age, test year and build year are locked together by arithmetic, so the test-year effect is taken from the observed national failure level of each year rather than estimated — it is an adjustment, not a solution.
Honda CR-Z MOT repair costs
The MOT-failure repair budget per test runs from £59.90 to £113.81, against £54.85 for the test itself.
bigger number = costs morepounds per test, MOT-failing faults only
| Component | Fails per 100 tests | Typical repair | Its price | Contribution |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 13.9 (nat. 15.36) | Suspension coil spring (single corner) | £180 | £25.02 |
| Brakes | 12.7 (nat. 11.25) | Front brake pads (parts + labour, typical hatchback) | £150 | £19.05 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 7.0 (nat. 18.09) | Battery replacement (standard 12V lead-acid) | £140 | £9.80 |
| Tyres | 6.7 (nat. 8.7) | Tyre (single mid-range 16" fitted) | £90 | £6.03 |
Multiply how often each component fails on this model by what that repair usually costs, and you get the amount an owner should expect to budget per test for MOT-failing faults only — roughly £60 to £114, on top of the test fee itself. It is a budgeting figure, not a quote: the spread between a set of pads and a set of discs is most of the range.
Prices are modal quotes from a hand-kept catalogue of published UK garage guides — we do not scrape the booking sites, their terms forbid it, so this list is short and updated by hand with a source and date against each line. Each line prices one typical repair in that group, not a full remedy, and only groups our catalogue actually covers are counted. The contrast worth noticing is the second card: the legal maximum for the test has been £54.85 since 2010, while the repairs it uncovers have followed inflation the whole time.
For scale from a different direction: Warrantywise, which sees used-car warranty claims rather than test failures, puts the average claim at £2,052 across the ten highest-claim models it ranks and £539 for Honda, the lowest-claim make in its index (Warrantywise index 2026, 1.6 million claims, cars aged 3–15). Those sit an order of magnitude above the figures in this table, and the gap is the point: a warranty claim is a gearbox or an engine, which almost never fails an MOT, while the faults that do fail one are corrosion, lamps and tyres, which no warranty pays for. The two numbers answer different questions and neither replaces the other.
Honda CR-Z running costs for a fleet
Failure rate and typical odometer by age
| Age | Fails | Median odometer | Tests | Gap vs age 5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 10.78% | 59,408 | 167 | — |
| 11 | 22.59% | 69,123 | 301 | — |
| 12 | 22.84% | 78,841 | 613 | — |
| 13 | 23.72% | 90,485 | 1,383 | — |
| 14 | 26.05% | 96,795 | 1,290 | — |
No single year stands out as the point where this model starts costing more: the year-to-year steps in its failure rate are too small or rest on too few tests to name one (D1 rule: a step is named only with at least 2,000 tests on both sides and a jump above 3 percentage points).
Repair spend uses the same modal prices as the section above, so it inherits the same limits: one typical repair per component group, not a full remedy. Downtime is the gap between the failed test and the passed re-test, which is the window a vehicle is legally off the road.
Honda CR-Z rust problems: where they corrode
Age-standardised corrosion susceptibility is well below the reference at 0.21×, against 1.00× for the national age-standardised rate.
above 1.0× = rusts more than averagebelow 1.0× = rusts less
This Honda CR-Z fails on corrosion much less often than average once age is held constant, and its owners live in areas that are about typical for the models we publish. Both point the same way and reinforce each other: it resists corrosion even though its owners live in saltier areas than most.
Corrosion is the one failure mode that is as much about geography as about the car. We keep the two apart on purpose: a model can look rusty simply because it is popular in Scotland, and a model can look clean simply because it is bought in Surrey. Blending them into a single score would hide which of the two is doing the work.
Exposure is this model's tests weighted by an area corrosion index built from frost days, salt load and distance to the coast — the composite validated at r = 0.42 against corrosion defects we actually record. It is published as a rank, not a raw score, because every mainstream model skews towards low-corrosion areas for the simple reason that most of Britain's cars are in the south. Susceptibility is standardised to the national age profile, so an old fleet does not get labelled a rusty model.
Does a Honda CR-Z advisory become a failure?
Suspension is highest at 14.9%; Non-component advisories are lowest at 0.0% — the gap is 14.9 percentage points.
higher = more likelypercentage is the observed transition probability
chance the same component fails at the next MOT, given an advisory now
| Component | Fails next time | Typical lead time | Miles of warning | Advisories tracked |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 14.9% | 12 months | 5,243 | 1,622 |
| Brakes | 11.2% | 12 months | 5,598 | 4,395 |
| Tyres | 7.7% | 12 months | 5,201 | 4,251 |
| Non-component advisories | 0.0% | — | — | 658 |
This is the question an advisory note actually raises, and it needs six years of test history to answer. We followed the same vehicles from one MOT to the next across 2019–2024 and measured how often a component that was merely advised came back as a genuine failure at the next test.
Read it as a budgeting horizon, not a prophecy: the most likely component above turns into a failure for about 15 in 100 cars, and the median gap is 12 months and roughly 5,243 miles. The rest were repaired, sold, scrapped, or simply held. Rows with fewer than 500 tracked advisories are not shown.
What will fail next on a Honda CR-Z?
Suspension after a failure at age 12-14 is highest at 17.7%; Tyres after a passed at age 3-5 are lowest at 1.7% — the gap is 16.0 percentage points.
higher = more likelypercentage is the observed transition probability
| Age | Last test | Most likely next failures | Cars tracked |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-5 | passed | Suspension 3.7% · Brakes 2.5% · Tyres 1.7% | 353 (rough estimate) |
| 3-5 | advisory | Tyres 6.8% · Visibility 4.7% · Brakes 4.0% | 148 (rough estimate) |
| 3-5 | failure | Tyres 8.2% | 61 (rough estimate) |
| 6-8 | passed | Suspension 6.3% · Visibility 4.7% · Brakes 4.5% | 3,317 |
| 6-8 | advisory | Brakes 9.0% · Visibility 7.4% · Suspension 7.3% | 1,771 |
| 6-8 | failure | Brakes 8.8% · Suspension 8.2% · Tyres 6.5% | 1,085 |
| 9-11 | passed | Suspension 9.7% · Brakes 6.1% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 5.3% | 4,731 |
| 9-11 | advisory | Suspension 11.7% · Brakes 9.7% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 7.0% | 3,230 |
| 9-11 | failure | Suspension 14.5% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 10.4% · Brakes 10.3% | 2,152 |
| 12-14 | passed | Suspension 11.5% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 8.1% · Steering 7.0% | 1,054 |
| 12-14 | advisory | Suspension 16.2% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 11.7% · Brakes 10.9% | 788 |
| 12-14 | failure | Suspension 17.7% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 12.3% · Brakes 11.7% | 668 |
The same chains, cut differently: given a car's age and how its last test went, which component most often causes trouble at the following one.
The pattern that repeats across every family: a failure at one test roughly doubles the chance of a failure on the same component at the next one, and an advisory sits about half-way between a clean pass and a failure. Age bands in years; probabilities are per car, not per defect item.
Honda CR-Z ownership: what six years of MOTs show
The ten-day re-test pass rate is highest at 53.4%; The later re-test pass rate is lowest at 3.0% — the gap is 50.4 percentage points.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
Failing is usually a same-week event, not a disaster. Of 3,660 failures followed through to their re-test, 43.58% were repaired and passed the same day and 53.39% within ten days; the median gap is 1 day. 7,522 defect items were cleared in the process.
Per mile driven, not per year. Dividing failures by the miles that actually went onto the odometers between consecutive tests gives 0.363 failures per 10,000 miles, on a median of 4,814 miles a year across 3,990 chains. This is the number to compare between models — an annual rate quietly rewards cars that barely leave the drive.
Two populations hide inside one model. 44.96% of these cars strung together three or more tests with nothing recorded at all, while 30.85% carried the same advisory three times or more — the same fault, noted, ignored, noted again. When you buy used you are buying one of those two histories, and the MOT record shows which.
Odometer anomalies: 1.202% of 3,995 chains show a reading lower than the previous test, with a median drop of 18,645 miles. We call this an anomaly and not fraud on purpose — instrument swaps, imports, unit mix-ups and keying errors all land in the same bucket. Obvious typos (drops under 100 miles or over 90% of the reading) are already excluded.
Honda CR-Z safety recalls and how to check yours
DVSA recall campaigns stand out at 1.
bigger number = more recorded casescompare like-for-like scope, not sample size alone
| Reference | Launched | Vehicles | Concern |
|---|---|---|---|
R/2011/126 | 05/10/2011 | 3,045 | UNEXPECTED VEHICLE BEHAVIOUR IF ENGINE STALLS |
DVSA lists 1 safety recall campaigns for the Honda CR-Z, covering roughly 3,045 vehicles in total. A recall is the manufacturer fixing a fault for free, so an open recall on your car costs nothing to clear.
Counter-intuitive, and measured on our own data: across the 25 families published here, more recalls go with a lower MOT Risk Index (r = −0.52). Heavily recalled models are not worse cars in the test bay — an active manufacturer removes the fault before it becomes an MOT failure.
Check whether a specific car has an outstanding recall — free, by registration — at DVSA's recall service. Source: DVSA vehicle safety recalls (check-vehicle-recalls.service.gov.uk), OGL.
Honda CR-Z technical service bulletins: what dealers are told
US market, Honda CR-Z, model years 2015–2016 only. A count of bulletins, not a UK failure rate.
NHTSA manufacturer communications are 36.
bigger number = more recorded dealer communicationsnot affected vehicles or confirmed faults
These are the issues the manufacturer fixes quietly: service communications sent to dealers without a public recall campaign. They show what the service network has been told even when the issue never became news.
United States · NHTSA manufacturer communications
| Communication year | Bulletins | Leading subjects across all years |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | 1 |
|
| 2016 | 23 | |
| 2017 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 1 | |
| 2020 | 2 | |
| 2021 | 5 | |
| 2022 | 1 | |
| 2026 | 1 |
Caveat worth stating plainly: this is NHTSA data about US-specification cars. British cars sold under the same name often use different gearboxes, engines and equipment, so a bulletin may describe a component that was never fitted here. The file counts dealer communications, not affected vehicles or confirmed failures, and it cannot tell you whether an individual UK car has the issue. A communication can carry more than one subject tag, so topic counts do not have to add up to the total. Source: NHTSA Manufacturer Communications API (US-market vehicles; queried model years 2015-2022). Licence: U.S. Government work / public domain · retrieved 2026-09-25.
Honda CR-Z owner complaints: what goes wrong
US market, Honda CR-Z, model years 2015–2016 only. A count of owner complaints, not a UK failure rate; NHTSA has no UK denominator.
Body & structure are highest at 2; Lamps & electrical are lowest at 1 — the gap is 1.
bigger number = more recorded casescompare like-for-like scope, not sample size alone
| Component | Complaints | Share | MOT fail items per 100 | MOT rank | Agreement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restraints | 2 | 28.6% | not in top 6 | — | complained about, rarely an MOT failure |
| Body & structure | 2 | 28.6% | not in top 6 | — | complained about, rarely an MOT failure |
| Lamps & electrical | 1 | 14.3% | 7.0 | #4 | complained about, fails occasionally |
| Tyres | 1 | 14.3% | 6.7 | #5 | complained about, fails occasionally |
| Transmission (not MOT-tested) | 1 | 14.3% | not in top 6 | — | complained about, rarely an MOT failure |
| Engine (not MOT-tested) | 1 | 14.3% | not in top 6 | — | complained about, rarely an MOT failure |
Two different populations answering two different questions: the MOT records what an inspector can measure once a year, the complaint file records what annoyed or frightened an owner on the road. A component high in one column and absent from the other is the interesting case — driver-assistance and electronics dominate complaints while almost never appearing as an MOT failure item.
What the reports actually say
In 2010 to 2016 Honda CR-Zs the exterior door handles will fail without any symptoms. Leaving the driver unable to unlatch the door without being inside. The problem has not been addressed by Honda, but many owners have reported it being a common problem. The door handle latch tends to break under hot or cold environments and under light to heavy stress when attempting to open the door
2015 HONDA CR-Z. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO UNSATISFACTORY CUSTOMER SERVICE AT DEALERSHIP, NO REPLACEMENT PARTS TO REPAIR RECALL NOTICE OR RENTAL VEHICLE AVAILABLE TO CONSUMER. *SMD
US owners have filed 7 complaints about the equivalent Honda CR-Z to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, including 1 that mention a crash, 0 a fire and 1 an injury. These are owner reports, not verified findings — but they are the only large public record of what drivers themselves notice, and they cover the years between MOT tests.
Caveat worth stating plainly: US-specification cars, self-selected reporters, no denominator — complaint counts scale with how many cars were sold there and how motivated owners are to file. The mechanical gap matters as much as the statistical one: American cars of the same name often carry different gearboxes, engines and equipment — automatics where Britain buys manuals — so a drivetrain complaint filed in Ohio may describe a part that was never fitted here. Read the ranking inside a model, not between models, and treat drivetrain entries with particular caution. Source: NHTSA ODI consumer complaints (US market, public domain) — US-spec vehicles, indicative only.
Honda CR-Z inspection results in other countries
Netherlands APK is well below the reference at 47.1%, against 50.8% nationally.
higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points
| Country | Test | This model fails | National average | Position | Sample |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | MOT (class 4) | 23.56% | 26.01% | -2.5 pp | 3,791 |
| Netherlands | APK | 47.1% | 50.8% | -3.7 pp | 552 |
In at least one country the difference from the national average is within the margin of error (95% interval), so these rows do not settle the model's position; each is evidence from one rulebook.
| Code | Fault | Recorded | Type |
|---|---|---|---|
210 | Tyre pressure not at the correct value | 146 | failure |
516 | Dipped headlight incorrectly aimed | 56 | failure |
AC1 | Tyre down to 1.6–2.5 mm of tread | 44 | advisory |
205 | Tyre with insufficient tread | 44 | failure |
250 | Steering gaiter split, no longer sealing | 40 | failure |
497 | Number-plate light not working or missing | 25 | failure |
AC5 | Mechanical brake parts showing wear | 24 | advisory |
391 | Wipers leave insufficient visibility | 22 | failure |
Worth dwelling on how mundane the top of that list is: tyre pressure, tread depth, headlight aim. The Dutch APK records 1.047 defects per inspection against a much higher national failure rate than Britain's, and the reason is not that Dutch cars are worse — it is that the two regimes draw the line between "note it" and "fail it" in different places. Codes are the RDW's own; the English wording here is our translation of the Dutch original.
Britain is not the only country that inspects every car every year, and the Honda CR-Z is on the road in all of them. Each national regime writes its own rules, so the pass rates below are not comparable to each other — what does travel across a border is whether a model sits above or below its own country's average.
Rows with fewer than 500 inspections are not published. Sources: RDW open data — Meldingen Keuringsinstantie + Geconstateerde Gebreken + Gekentekende voertuigen (2024), CC0. Not an RDW endorsement.. Adapted; licences and full notice.
Honda CR-Z MOT: quick answers
Honda CR-Z MOT Risk Index is well below the reference at 62.5, against 100 for a car with the same age profile.
below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age
- What is the Honda CR-Z first-time MOT pass rate?
- 76.44% of first attempts passed in 2024 (3,791 tests). This is the first-time figure: retests after repair are excluded. Basis: first-time, excluding retests.
- Why does this number differ from other sites?
- Other sites often report a pass rate that includes retests or counts all attempts. Our 23.56% figure is the first-time initial failure rate, using 3,791 primary tests as the denominator (first-time, excluding retests). The age-adjusted MOT initial-failure ratio 62.5 is shown separately because raw rates compare fleet age as well as cars.
Compare the Honda CR-Z with other cars
Honda CR-Z is highest at 62.5; Audi Q2 is lowest at 62.4 — the gap is 0.1 points.
below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age
Same brand
All Honda MOT statisticsHonda HR-V MOT statsHonda Fit MOT stats
Similar risk
Audi Q2 (index 62.4)Audi Q8 (index 62.4)Volkswagen T-Roc (index 62.4)
Same size class
how Alfa Romeo Stelvio compareshow BMW M2 compareshow Audi R8 compares
By build year
Honda CR-Z 2010Honda CR-Z 2011Honda CR-Z 2012Honda CR-Z 2013Honda CR-Z 2014
By area
Honda CR-Z MOT failure rate by postcode area
By failure group
Honda CR-Z body, chassis and structure failuresHonda CR-Z brakes failuresHonda CR-Z vehicle identification failuresHonda CR-Z lamps, reflectors and electrics failuresHonda CR-Z noise, emissions and leaks failuresHonda CR-Z road wheels failuresHonda CR-Z seat belts and airbags failuresHonda CR-Z steering failuresHonda CR-Z suspension failuresHonda CR-Z tyres failuresHonda CR-Z visibility failures
Inspections abroad
Data details & how to cite
Scope: class-4 vehicles (cars), initial tests only, outcomes pass / fail / fixed-on-the-spot at the station (PRS counts towards the failure rate — the defect was present at arrival). Index = observed initial failures ÷ failures expected for this fleet's exact age profile, ×100; margin of error is a 95% confidence interval. Covers ALL generations together — a 3-year-old and a 15-year-old are very different cars; a generation split is on the roadmap. Dataset release dataset_release_id=dvsa-2024-v2, frozen baseline; headline claim_id=family-stats:honda-cr-z:dvsa-2024-v2. Full method: methodology.
Cite: MOT Risk Index (2026). Honda CR-Z MOT statistics 2024 (data release dvsa-2024-v2; downloadable dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, doi:10.5281/zenodo.22975051). https://motriskindex.co.uk/cars/honda-cr-z/ · Published 2026-07-30.