Lotus Elan MOT failures and reliability

In 2023 the Lotus Elan took 1,381 MOT tests in Britain and passed 76% of them first time, above the national average of 71% for all cars. The figures below come from the DVSA's record of every test, so they show what testers actually found on these cars rather than what owners report.

MOT tests in 2023

1,381

First-time pass rate

76%

All cars

71%

What the Elan fails on

Share of tests with at least one failure in each area, against the figure for all cars.

• Brakes12.2% (all cars 6.8%)
• Lights and electrics10.4% (all cars 11.3%)
• Exhaust and emissions5.4% (all cars 3.1%)
• Visibility4.6% (all cars 4.8%)
• Suspension3.8% (all cars 9.0%)
• Body and structure2.9% (all cars 3.5%)
• Tyres0.9% (all cars 6.4%)
• Steering0.7% (all cars 1.8%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

1. Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements 5.3%
2. Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements 3.4%
3. Service brake imbalance: across an axle 2.8%
4. Non catalyst emissions: emissions carbon monoxide content excessive 2.2%
5. Headlamp: not working on dipped beam 2.1%
6. Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid 1.7%
7. Rbt (sp): efficiency less than 50% of the required value 1.7%
8. Joints: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt 1.7%

Most common advisories

1. Wheel bearings: has slight play 7.5%
2. Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 5.9%
3. Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material 5.6%
4. Coil spring: corroded 4.8%
5. Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 4.5%
6. Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 4.3%
7. Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 3.5%
8. Service brake performance: binding but not excessively 3.3%

Check a particular Elan

Model figures tell you what to look out for. To see one car's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration.

Other Lotus models

• Lotus Elise
• Lotus Exige

Source: Department for Transport, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023, cars and light vans, normal tests only. Pass rates are first-time passes; a pass after repair at the test station counts as a fail. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.