Car statistics by year

1995 Mazda MX-5

Mazda MX-5 cars first registered in 1995: how they did at their 2025 MOT, what failed them, how far they have been driven and how many are still on the road. Compared with every car first registered in 1995, so like is set against like.

A year of the Mazda MX-5. “1995” is the year of first registration.

Last updated
Records analysed
770 MOT tests of 1995 Mazda MX-5 cars
Methodology
View methodology
  • MOT first-time pass rate, 2025 67.0% All 1995 cars 71.5%
  • Typical mileage at the MOT 94,300 miles; all 1995 cars 96,400
  • Left at the end of 2025 1,270 76.3% of the 1,664 at the end of 2014
  • Tests finding a dangerous defect 4.2% All 1995 cars 5.3%
  • Tests with an advisory 53.1% All 1995 cars 52.6%
  • MOT tests in 2025 770 normal tests in Great Britain

How do 1995 Mazda MX-5s do at their MOT?

In 2025, at about 30 years old, 67.0% of 1995 Mazda MX-5 MOT tests were passed first time, against 71.5% for all cars first registered in 1995. 1995 Mazda MX-5s did worse than average for their age, by 4.5 points. A year earlier the same cars passed 65.3% of the time (all 1995 cars 70.2%).

MOT pass rate by year of first registration: Mazda MX-5 vs all cars

Each pair of bars is one year of first registration, tested in 2025. Older cars pass less often, so compare each Mazda MX-5 bar with the all-cars bar beside it.

MOT first-time pass rate in 2025 by year of first registration, Mazda MX-5 compared with all cars
First registered Mazda MX-5All cars
’90 68.8%75.5%
’91 64.7%75.5%
’92 63.2%72.6%
’93 66.9%71.6%
’95 67.0%71.5%
’96 66.3%70.0%
’97 68.0%68.5%
’98 68.1%67.1%
’99 65.5%65.4%
’00 63.3%63.1%
’01 67.1%61.5%
’02 65.6%59.7%

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated

Most common MOT failures on the 1995 Mazda MX-5

Catalyst emissions: lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits was the most common single reason a 1995 Mazda MX-5 failed, on 13.4% of about 300 failed tests. By area of the car, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment failed most often (38.6% of failed tests; all 1995 cars 42.7%). 4.2% of tests found at least one dangerous defect, against 5.3% for all cars first registered in 1995. A failed test can have several defects, so shares add up to more than 100%.

Most common reasons for failure

Share of failed tests with each defect. The same fault on any wheel or side counts once.

Most common specific MOT defects on failed 1995 Mazda MX-5 tests, 2025
Defect Share of failed tests
Catalyst emissions: lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks 13.4%
Parking brake efficiency below requirements Brakes 10.2%
Coil spring: fractured or broken Suspension 9.1%
Seat belts: prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems 8.7%
Catalyst emissions: carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks 7.9%
Catalyst emissions: carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks 7.9%
Catalyst emissions: carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks 7.1%
Parking brake performance: inoperative on one side Brakes 7.1%
Headlamp aim: too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 6.7%
Position lamp: not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 6.7%

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated

Failure categories: Mazda MX-5 vs all 1995 cars

The marker shows the share for all cars first registered the same year.

Share of failed 1995 Mazda MX-5 MOT tests with a defect in each category, with all 1995 cars for comparison
Category Share of failed tests
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 38.6%
Noise, emissions and leaks 34.6%
Brakes 32.7%
Suspension 27.6%
Body, chassis, structure 18.9%
Visibility 13.4%
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems 11.0%
Tyres 7.9%

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated

Most common MOT advisories on the 1995 Mazda MX-5

An advisory is something the tester noticed that did not fail the test but may need work soon. 53.1% of 1995 Mazda MX-5 tests had at least one (all 1995 cars 52.6%). These are the things to check on one you are thinking of buying.

Most common advisories

Most common MOT advisories on 1995 Mazda MX-5 tests, 2025
Advisory Share of tests
Engine oil leak, but not excessive Noise, emissions and leaks 21.8%
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material Brakes 9.4%
Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened Suspension 8.6%
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit or worn on edge Tyres 7.3%
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened Brakes 7.1%
Suspension arm: corroded but not seriously weakened Suspension 6.2%
Coil spring: corroded Suspension 6.1%
Tyres: slightly damaged or cracking or perishing Tyres 6.0%
Brake pads: wearing thin Brakes 5.5%
Integral vehicle structure condition: corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced Body, chassis, structure 4.8%

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated

What mileage is normal for a 1995 Mazda MX-5?

Half of the 1995 Mazda MX-5s tested in 2025 had covered fewer than 94,300 miles. A quarter had covered fewer than 71,700 and a quarter more than 118,100. For all cars first registered in 1995, the middle figure was 96,400 miles, so 1995 Mazda MX-5s have been driven about as far as average.

Mileage at the 2025 MOT

Odometer readings at each car’s latest MOT of the year. The bar covers the middle half of cars; the line the middle 80%.

Odometer readings at the 2025 MOT, 1995 Mazda MX-5 and all 1995 cars, by percentile
10% 25% Median 75% 90% Cars
1995 Mazda MX-5 50,700 71,700 94,300 118,100 142,300 721
All 1995 cars 40,600 65,000 96,400 133,700 171,700 13,873
miles

Half of the 1995 Mazda MX-5s tested in 2025 had covered fewer than 94,300 miles.

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated

How many 1995 Mazda MX-5s are left?

At the end of 2014, 1,664 1995 Mazda MX-5s were on the DVLA record in the United Kingdom (these counts start in 2014). By the end of 2025, 1,270 were: 415 licensed and 855 declared off the road (SORN). That is 76.3% still on the record, against 45.6% for all cars first registered in 1995.

Share still on the record since 2014

Cars licensed or SORN at each year end, as a share of the number at the end of 2014. Cars scrapped or exported leave the record. Late registrations and imports can push the share above 100%.

1995 Mazda MX-5s on the DVLA record at each year end as a share of the number at the end of 2014, compared with all 1995 cars
Year end 1995 Mazda MX-5All 1995 cars
2014 100.0%100.0%
2015 97.0%86.3%
2016 94.2%76.2%
2017 92.9%68.3%
2018 90.6%62.2%
2019 87.8%58.0%
2020 85.9%55.3%
2021 84.5%52.7%
2022 82.6%50.7%
2023 81.7%49.2%
2024 77.4%46.8%
2025 76.3%45.6%

Source:DfT / DVLA End of 2025 Updated

Recalls that may affect cars built around 1995

None of the Mazda MX-5’s 9 recalls in DVSA’s records has build dates that include 1995. 2 have no build dates, so could apply to any year.

The 1995 on this page is the year of first registration, not the year the car was built. A car first registered early in 1995 may have been built in 1994, and recalls apply to particular build dates and VINs, so check the recalls either side too.

Every Mazda MX-5 recall · Check a specific car on GOV.UK · How we match recalls

Recall details come from manufacturers through DVSA. “Vehicles” is the number the manufacturer reported; “all models” means the figure covers everything in the recall. A recall listed here may not apply to a particular car: only the manufacturer or GOV.UK can say for its VIN.

Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis January 1992 to September 2026 Updated

Other years of the Mazda MX-5

32 years of the Mazda MX-5, by year of first registration, have their own page with MOT results, common faults, mileage and how many are left. Against all cars of the same age, the 2012 cars did best at their 2025 MOT (79.6% passed first time) and the 1991 cars worst (64.7%).

Mazda MX-5s by year of first registration
Year Registered Left Pass rate All cars
1990 911 68.8% 75.5%
1991 860 64.7% 75.5%
1992 492 63.2% 72.6%
1993 466 66.9% 71.6%
1995 1,270 67.0% 71.5%
1996 2,090 66.3% 70.0%
1997 2,861 68.0% 68.5%
1998 3,048 68.1% 67.1%
1999 3,306 65.5% 65.4%
2000 3,162 63.3% 63.1%
2001 2,359 67.1% 61.5%
2002 3,902 65.6% 59.7%
2003 4,988 63.3% 58.9%
2004 3,661 64.7% 57.9%
2005 3,527 66.1% 57.7%
2006 6,558 67.0% 56.9%
2007 7,693 69.7% 57.3%
2008 5,356 68.8% 57.0%
2009 4,216 71.4% 58.2%
2010 4,693 73.2% 59.3%
2011 3,424 76.1% 61.5%
2012 3,115 79.6% 63.6%
2013 3,106 79.3% 66.0%
2014 2,903 2,835 80.4% 69.1%
2015 2,973 2,921 85.3% 72.6%
2016 4,146 4,007 86.1% 75.6%
2017 4,539 4,483 89.1% 79.1%
2018 4,234 4,127 89.2% 81.8%
2019 4,027 3,956 91.4% 84.4%
2020 1,061 1,053 91.8% 86.9%
2021 1,434 1,408 94.6% 88.4%
2022 1,350 1,296 94.0% 89.4%

Registered: cars on the DVLA record at the end of the year they were first registered (these counts start in 2014, so older years show a dash). Left: licensed or declared SORN at the end of 2025. Both cover the United Kingdom. Pass rate: first-time passes at normal MOT tests in Great Britain in 2025; all cars: every car first registered the same year.

Data sources and methodology

Datasets used on this page
Figures Source Period Records Updated
MOT results and mileage Anonymised MOT tests and results Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency
Derived statistics UK Motoring
2025 770 MOT tests of 1995 Mazda MX-5 cars 15 September 2026
Cars on the record Vehicle licensing statistics Department for Transport End of 2025 1,270 cars still on the record (licensed or SORN) 15 September 2026
  • MOT figures cover normal tests in Great Britain in 2025 of Mazda MX-5 cars first registered in 1995; retests are excluded. “All cars” means every car we match to a model, first registered in 1995.
  • Year of first registration is DVSA’s first-use date: when the car was first registered, in the UK or abroad.
  • Defects and advisories are DVSA’s descriptions made readable. Where on the car a defect was found (side, front or rear) is ignored, so the same fault on any wheel counts once per test.
  • Mileage is the odometer reading at each car’s latest normal MOT of the year, as recorded by the tester. A few readings are in kilometres or mistyped; percentiles are not thrown by a handful of outliers.
  • Cars on the record come from DfT table VEH0124 and cover the United Kingdom, including Northern Ireland; MOT figures cover Great Britain only.
  • DVSA records the model name typed in at the test. We match those names to DVLA’s generic models, so a handful of tests may be counted under a close relative.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.