Saab 9-3 MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Recorded pass rate

We are not publishing a ranking for the 9-3. The examples tested do not cover a wide enough spread of ages and mileages to compare it fairly, and an unadjusted pass rate mostly sorts models by how recently they were bought rather than how well they were built. The failure and advisory patterns below come from the same 32,254 tests and are worth reading on their own terms.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Saab 9-3 tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1. 1.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened22.1%

   2,209 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained

2. 2.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning8.8%

   880 occurrencesLamp not working explained

3. 3.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm8.3%

   831 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

4. 4.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements8.0%

   803 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

5. 5.Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement7.9%

   788 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained

6. 6.The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements7.6%

   756 occurrencesHeadlamp aim incorrect explained

7. 7.Exhaust system leaking or insecure7.3%

   734 occurrencesExhaust leaking or insecure explained

8. 8.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen6.7%

   665 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

9. 9.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn5.8%

   575 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained

10. 10.A tyre cords visible or damaged5.6%

    559 occurrencesTyre ply or cord exposed, or the casing separating explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Saab 9-3 tests carrying each advisory. The denominator differs from the failure list above because an advisory can be issued on a car that passed.

1. 1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements23.6%

   7,602 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

2. 2.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured18.6%

   6,001 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

3. 3.Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users15.7%

   5,052 tests

4. 4.A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded15.0%

   4,847 testsSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained

5. 5.A tyre seriously damaged14.9%

   4,805 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

6. 6.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn9.9%

   3,202 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained

7. 7.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened9.5%

   3,072 testsRoad spring broken or fractured explained

8. 8.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm8.4%

   2,709 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

What gets tested

The 9-3 fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

115,407

Across examples of every age, so this is a description of the fleet rather than an annual figure.

Fuel mix of tested cars

Petrol56.6%

Diesel43.4%

Compare within the range

Other Saab models

• Saab 9-5 — 65.6% unadjusted
• Saab 900 — 63.5% unadjusted
• All Saab models →

Common questions

How reliable is the Saab 9-3 compared with other cars?

We do not publish a comparison for the Saab 9-3, because the cars of this model that have been tested do not cover a wide enough range of ages and mileages. Its raw pass rate is 63.6% across 32,254 tests, but comparing a raw rate between models mostly ranks them by how new they are rather than how good they are. The failure and advisory patterns further down the page are still drawn from real tests and are worth reading.

What is the most common MOT failure on a Saab 9-3?

The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 22.1% of failed Saab 9-3 tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.

What do testers most often warn about on a Saab 9-3?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 23.6% of all Saab 9-3 tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Saab 9-3 usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 115,407 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.

Are most Saab 9-3 models petrol or diesel?

Of the Saab 9-3 cars tested, 57% are petrol, 43% are diesel. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

How this was worked out

Method and limits

Figures come from the DVSA anonymised MOT testing dataset, published under the Open Government Licence. Only class 4 initial tests are counted: retests are excluded so a car appears once, and abandoned tests are excluded entirely. No adjusted rate is shown because this model's tested examples do not cover enough of the national age and mileage range for standardisation to mean anything.

An MOT measures whether a car met a legal standard on the day. It is not a breakdown record, a service history or a running-cost estimate, and a pass rate is a property of a fleet rather than a prediction about one car.

Further reading

Make sense of the numbers

• How to judge reliability from evidence rather than reputation
• What counts as high or low mileage for a car’s age
• The most common MOT failures and how to avoid them
• What to check before buying a used Saab