Saab 9-3 MOT reliability

Saab 9-3s passed their MOT first time 64% of the time across 32,421 tests in 2025. 25,844 are still licensed in Great Britain.

First-time pass rate

64%

MOTs analysed

32,421

Still licensed (GB)

25,844

Body type

Convertible

Pass rate by year of first registration

Older cars fail more often, so compare a car with others of the same age. Years with very few MOTs can show extreme pass rates, even 0% or 100%, so give more weight to years with more tests.

In detail:

First registered

2011 diesel

1,836 MOTs

Passed first time 66%. Typical mileage 119,071 (most between 91,337 and 149,035).

2012: 100% → 2013: 90% → 2014: 84% → 2015: 81% → 2016: 81% → 2017: 75% → 2018: 70% → 2019: 69% → 2020: 66% → 2021: 67% → 2022: 65% → 2023: 66% → 2024: 67% → 2025: 66%

Most common failures

Coil spring: fractured or broken (9.9%)
Sub-frame: corroded and seriously weakened (2.5%)
Ball joint excessively worn (2.3%)
Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements (2.2%)
Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases (2.1%)

2011 petrol

422 MOTs

Passed first time 69%. Typical mileage 80,116 (most between 59,616 and 99,662).

2013: 90% → 2014: 86% → 2015: 80% → 2016: 78% → 2017: 73% → 2018: 76% → 2019: 74% → 2020: 71% → 2021: 71% → 2022: 72% → 2023: 71% → 2024: 70% → 2025: 69%

Most common failures

Coil spring: fractured or broken (5.7%)
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction (2.8%)
Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (2.6%)
Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (2.1%)
Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (1.9%)

2011 lpg

1 MOT

These figures come from only 1 MOT test. With so few cars, a single pass or fail changes the percentages a lot, so treat them as a rough guide rather than a true average.

Passed first time 100%. Typical mileage 143,791 (most between 143,791 and 143,791).

2022: 0% → 2023: 100% → 2024: 100% → 2025: 100%

Most common failures

Where 2011 9-3s fail

Suspension & axles

20.0%

Brakes

8.4%

Wheels & tyres

7.4%

Lights & electrics

7.4%

Visibility & wipers

4.2%

Body, structure & corrosion

4.0%

Exhaust, emissions & leaks

3.6%

Steering

2.2%

Looking at a particular car?

See its own MOT history, mileage and red flags, compared with these figures. Free.

Based on 2025 initial MOT tests in DVSA's anonymised MOT dataset (cars and light vans). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Model details: Vehicle data by VehiclesDB.