Does the Lotus Elise fail the MOT on noise, emissions and leaks more than it should?
The Lotus Elise records 7.90 noise, emissions and leaks failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 8.37 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (−0.47, 95% interval −0.80 to −0.14). It ranks 367 of 678 models on noise, emissions and leaks (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on noise, emissions and leaks · check a Lotus Elise by registration
What exactly fails on noise, emissions and leaks?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Lotus Elise is “Emissions levels exceed default limits”, recorded 938 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Emissions levels exceed default limits | 938 | 3.11 |
| Lambda coefficient outside the default limits or the range specified by the manufacturer | 610 | 2.02 |
| Emissions levels exceed the manufacturer's specified limits | 453 | 1.50 |
| Emissions test unable to be completed | 170 | 0.56 |
| Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction | 129 | 0.43 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 30,192 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Lotus Elise 1998 · Lotus Elise 1999 · Lotus Elise 2000 · Lotus Elise 2001 · Lotus Elise 2002 · Lotus Elise 2003 · Lotus Elise 2004 · Lotus Elise 2005 · Lotus Elise by postcode area · Lotus Elise body, chassis and structure failures · Lotus Elise brakes failures · Lotus Elise vehicle identification failures · Lotus Elise lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Lotus Elise road wheels failures · Lotus Elise steering failures · Lotus Elise suspension failures · Lotus Elise tyres failures · Lotus Elise visibility failures