Piaggio VESPA 49cc MOT pass rate and common failures
Piaggio VESPA 49cc motorcycles pass the MOT 84.23% of the time, measured across 1,852 tests in the DVSA record. A further 5.45% passed only after a defect was put right at the test station.
Calculated from DVSA records for Piaggio VESPA, 48-50cc.
What to check before the MOT
Built from this model's own failure record, not general advice.
- Start with not working - it accounts for 36.6% of failed tests on this model.
- Then check has insufficient reserve travel and not working on dipped beam, the next two most common reasons.
- Age matters here: 90.63% of 3-5 year old examples pass, against 80.74% at 16+ years - a gap of 9.9 points.
- The most common advisory is tread not clearly visible (4.5% of all tests) - not a failure, but money you will spend sooner or later.
- Average recorded mileage at test is 9,941 miles, which is the number to compare any advert against.
Pass rate by age
A single pass rate hides the most useful thing in this data: how the same model behaves at three years old and at fifteen.
| Age at test | Pass rate | Tests | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 90.63% | 96 | |
| 6-10 years | 88.91% | 469 | |
| 11-15 years | 83.75% | 560 | |
| 16+ years | 80.74% | 727 |
Why the Piaggio VESPA 49cc fails
Share of failed tests on this model where the item was recorded. One test can fail on several items, so the column does not add up to 100%.
| # | Item | Of failures | Tests | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Not working | 36.6% | 70 | |
| 2 | Has insufficient reserve travel | 16.2% | 31 | |
| 3 | Not working on dipped beam | 14.1% | 27 | |
| 4 | Missing | 9.9% | 19 | |
| 5 | Insecure | 9.4% | 18 | |
| 6 | Tread depth is below minimum requirements of 1.0mm | 9.4% | 18 | |
| 7 | Too low | 8.9% | 17 | |
| 8 | Has negligible damping effect | 7.9% | 15 | |
| 9 | The less effective brake control does not achieve an efficiency of 25% | 7.9% | 15 | |
| 10 | Lens defective which has no effect on emitted light | 7.3% | 14 |
Most common advisories
Not a failure and not a legal requirement to fix - but an advisory that repeats year after year is money the next owner spends.
| # | Item | Of all tests | Tests | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tread not clearly visible | 4.5% | 83 | |
| 2 | Corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is significantly reduced | 4.3% | 80 | |
| 3 | Tread depth is below minimum requirements of 1.0mm | 3% | 56 | |
| 4 | Has excessive play | 2.6% | 48 | |
| 5 | Excessively stiff or notchy | 2.3% | 42 | |
| 6 | Inscription illegible | 1.9% | 36 | |
| 7 | Is bent and the brake cannot be readily applied | 1.9% | 36 | |
| 8 | Has negligible damping effect | 1.6% | 30 | |
| 9 | Excessively binding | 1.3% | 25 | |
| 10 | Corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened | 1.3% | 24 |
Piaggio VESPA 49cc for sale
No Piaggio VESPA 49cc in stock at the moment - 7 other Piaggio bikes are advertised.
Similar bikes compared
Models of comparable capacity, so the comparison means something.
| Model | Tests | Pass rate | Avg mileage | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Piaggio ZIP · 51cc | 1,179 | 76.34% | 9,489 | |
| Peugeot KISBEE · 54cc | 1,096 | 72.72% | 9,978 | |
| Honda NSC 49cc · 49-50cc | 1,005 | 82.29% | 12,610 | |
| Peugeot SPEEDFIGHT 49cc · 49-50cc | 781 | 70.17% | 11,804 | |
| Lexmoto ECHO 50 E4 · 50cc | 530 | 61.51% | 6,253 | |
| Lexmoto ECHO PLUS 50 LJ 50 QT-6L · 49cc | 459 | 70.15% | 5,779 |
Source: DVSA MOT testing data, 2025 · updated Aug 2026 · licence and method