1,984 cars · 3,353 MOT tests · 2024 and 2025
Mitsubishi Pajero MOT statistics
What every MOT test on a Mitsubishi Pajero in Great Britain in 2024 and 2025 found: how often they fail, what testers flag, which faults owners leave, and how many never came back after failing.
The UK name was Shogun, so a Pajero on a UK record is almost always an import.
32%
failed their first MOT test
14% lower than the UK average for their age
21.5 yrs
median age at the MOT
All cars: 9.7 years
65%
of tests had at least one advisory
All cars: 52%
42%
of tests mention corrosion
All cars: 12%
Failure rate by age
Share of initial tests that failed, by the car’s age at the test, against all UK cars of the same age.
- 0–4 years47 tests26%vs 13%
- 5–9 years153 tests20%vs 22%
- 10–14 years93 tests30%vs 35%
- 15–19 years801 tests32%vs 43%
- 20–24 years1,139 tests33%vs 42%
- 25–29 years746 tests30%vs 35%
- 30+ years374 tests36%vs 26%
Most common advisories on a Mitsubishi Pajero
Things the tester noticed that weren’t bad enough to fail. Share of initial tests, against all UK cars.
- Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive22%vs 4.9%
- Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material22%vs 3.8%
- Wheel bearings: has slight play8.7%
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened8.1%vs 8.9%
- Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases7.9%vs 2.0%
- Condition: slightly damaged or cracking or perishing7.8%vs 8.8%
- Brake pads (brake linings and pads): wearing thin6.9%vs 7.6%
- Chassis condition: is corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced6.8%
- Non-component advisories: Fuel Pipe or s corroded6.3%
- Integral vehicle structure condition: is corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced5.8%
Most common MOT failures on a Mitsubishi Pajero
Share of initial tests that failed on each item, including faults fixed during the test.
- Rear fog lamp: not working4.9%
- Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases3.6%
- Chassis condition: or chassis has excessive corrosion, seriously affecting its strength within 30cm of a body mounting3.5%
- Prescribed areas (seat belts): prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced2.9%
- Component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength2.7%
- Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded2.6%
- Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively2.5%vs 2.0%
- Joints (drive shafts): constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt2.3%vs 1.4%
- Position lamp: not working2.2%vs 2.5%
- Stop lamp: not working2.1%vs 1.9%
By part of the car
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment15%vs 11%
- Body, chassis, structure12%vs 3.4%
- Brakes9.8%vs 6.5%
- Suspension9.3%vs 8.8%
- Visibility5.1%vs 4.5%
- Steering4.9%vs 2.0%
- Noise, emissions and leaks4.4%vs 3.1%
- Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems3.5%vs 1.0%
Advisories left unfixed
Of 1,873 advisories on a Mitsubishi Pajero that we could follow to the next annual MOT, 41% were flagged again and 4.8% had turned into a failure (all cars: 29% and 5.1%). The items most often still there:
- Engine oil leaks215 advisories67%
- Rigid brake pipes224 advisories61%
- Integral vehicle structure condition49 advisories55%
- Chassis condition89 advisories55%
- Registration plates30 advisories53%
- Pins and bushes (suspension arms)42 advisories52%
- Exhaust system96 advisories52%
- Wheel bearings88 advisories50%
Cars that disappeared from the MOT record
Of the 1,405 cars tested before October 2024, 27.0% had no MOT for over a year after their last one (imports overall: 10.4%; all cars: 7.2%). 31 of them (2.2%) had failed that last test. MOT records don’t say why: most of these cars were scrapped, but some were exported, laid up or declared off the road.
What they failed on last
- Rear fog lamp: not working29%
- Integral vehicle structure condition: corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is significantly reduced26%
- Chassis condition: or chassis has excessive corrosion, seriously affecting its strength within 30cm of a body mounting26%
- Service brake performance (rbt): excessively binding26%
- Prescribed areas (seat belts): prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced19%
- Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded19%
- Brake pads (brake linings and pads): less than 1.5 mm thick16%
Most popular colours
Share of cars, against all UK cars.
- Silver25%vs 14%
- Blue23%vs 16%
- White15%vs 19%
- Green13%vs 1.7%
- Grey7.8%vs 17%
- Black5.2%vs 19%
Checking a Mitsubishi Pajero?
Our free check reads its full MOT history and flags mileage that doesn’t add up, advisories that keep coming back, and recalls filed in Japan.
Buying guide: Mitsubishi Pajero (V46W)
Questions
- How often does a Mitsubishi Pajero fail its MOT?
- 32% of first MOT tests on a Mitsubishi Pajero failed in 2024 and 2025, from 3,353 tests. That’s 14% lower than the UK average for cars of the same age.
- What is the most common MOT advisory on a Mitsubishi Pajero?
- Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive, on 22% of tests.
- What does a Mitsubishi Pajero most often fail its MOT on?
- Rear fog lamp: not working, on 4.9% of tests.
More MOT statistics
How we worked these out
- Every car MOT in Great Britain in 2024 and 2025, from DVSA’s anonymised MOT tests and results. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The analysis and any errors are ours, not DVSA’s.
- MOT records give the make, model name and engine size, not the chassis code, so models are grouped by name. A model page says when that grouping is looser than its title.
- Failure rates count initial tests only, and include faults fixed during the test (DVSA’s definition). Advisories are counted once per test.
- Ages run from the first-use date on the MOT record. For many imports that’s the date the car was first registered in the UK, not in Japan, so imports can look younger than they are, and the age comparison flatters them less than it should.
- An advisory counts as unfixed if the same part of the car is flagged again, or fails, at the next annual MOT (300 to 500 days later).
- A car “disappeared” if it had no MOT between 31 October 2024 and 30 December 2025, over a year after its last test. It’s an estimate of cars scrapped or taken off the road: some were exported, laid up, or made exempt at 40 years old.
- The figures for all cars and all Japanese-brand cars come from a random one-in-20 sample of vehicles; the model figures use every car.