MOT History from tests of petrol BSA BSAs year 1948

Review the list of common BSA BSA failures below or to perform a specific mot history check on your BSA then use our popular KnowYourCar service

mot history

Pass percent:87.25%

(The average a petrol BSA BSA year 1948 passes without issue)

Based on:204 MOT Tests

Most common failures	No# failures
Headlamp aim out of alignment	5
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on main beam \|1.2.2a\|ii\|\|	3
Wheel alignment incorrect which adversely affects the handling \|2.5.1\|	2
Front wheel bearings have excessive free play \|2.3.5b\|	2
Steering headbearing has excessive free play \|2.2.2\|	2
Rear position lamp does not illuminate immediately when it is switched on \|1.1.3a\|	2
Horn not working \|1.7.3a\|	2
Riders seat insecure \|6.2.1a\|	2
Front Brake lever has inadequate reserve travel \|3.1.3b\|	1
Registration plate issues	1
Rear Stop lamp affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.3.2\|	1
Rear All position lamps adversely affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.1.3b\|	1
Nearside Front Footrest insecure \|6.2.1a\|	1
Rear Locking device\|s\| not correctly fitted which may make the motor bicycle dangerous to ride \|6.2.1h\|	1
Floor brake test The less effective brake control does not achieve an efficiency of 25%. \|3.3.C1b\|	1
Brake cable badly frayed \|3.2.A1b\|	1
Fuel system component leaking \|7.2.1a\|	1
Brake lever is bent and the brake cannot be readily applied \|3.1.3c\|	1
Nearside Rear Locking device\|s\| not correctly fitted which may make the motor bicycle dangerous to ride \|6.2.1h\|	1
Stop lamp affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.3.2\|	1
Offside Handlebar handgrip not secure to handlebars. \|2.1.1c\|	1
Exhaust mounting does not fully support the exhaust system \|7.1.1.c\|	1
Horn not loud enough to be heard by another road user \|1.7.3a\|	1
Clutch lever positioned so it cannot be readily operated. \|6.2.1g\|	1
Front Front suspension has excessive stiffness in the suspension movement. \|2.3.6b\|	1
Front position lamp does not illuminate immediately when switched on \|1.1.3a\|	1
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on dipped beam \|1.2.2a\|i\|\|	1
Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies \|1.3.1a\|	1
Headlamp aim not tested \|1.6\|	1
Rear Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies \|1.3.1a\|	1
Brake linkage has abnormal movement due to maladjustment \|3.2.A1i\|	1
Offside Front Throttle operating incorrectly \|6.2.1f\|	1
Centre Front Front suspension has excessive stiffness in the suspension movement. \|2.3.6b\|	1

We get to these numbers by trawling through over 1 billion MOT test results since 2004 and crunched the numbers. We remove anything to do with Tyres, as they are model independent and group together common non-model specific issues. We are trying to get to a picture of what models have what issues.

Please note: We take the data from the DVSA. This data is raw and can contain typos and spelling mistakes that garages may have entered while recording a MOT result. Specifically miss-match on names of models and makes. We are constantly cleaning the data so bear with the odd issue.

Got suggestions? We’re improving this section all the time. If you have any suggestions, please let us know.

Most common failures	No# failures
Headlamp aim out of alignment	5
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on main beam \|1.2.2a\|ii\|\|	3
Wheel alignment incorrect which adversely affects the handling \|2.5.1\|	2
Front wheel bearings have excessive free play \|2.3.5b\|	2
Steering headbearing has excessive free play \|2.2.2\|	2
Rear position lamp does not illuminate immediately when it is switched on \|1.1.3a\|	2
Horn not working \|1.7.3a\|	2
Riders seat insecure \|6.2.1a\|	2
Front Brake lever has inadequate reserve travel \|3.1.3b\|	1
Registration plate issues	1
Rear Stop lamp affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.3.2\|	1
Rear All position lamps adversely affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.1.3b\|	1
Nearside Front Footrest insecure \|6.2.1a\|	1
Rear Locking device\|s\| not correctly fitted which may make the motor bicycle dangerous to ride \|6.2.1h\|	1
Floor brake test The less effective brake control does not achieve an efficiency of 25%. \|3.3.C1b\|	1
Brake cable badly frayed \|3.2.A1b\|	1
Fuel system component leaking \|7.2.1a\|	1
Brake lever is bent and the brake cannot be readily applied \|3.1.3c\|	1
Nearside Rear Locking device\|s\| not correctly fitted which may make the motor bicycle dangerous to ride \|6.2.1h\|	1
Stop lamp affected by the operation of another lamp \|1.3.2\|	1
Offside Handlebar handgrip not secure to handlebars. \|2.1.1c\|	1
Exhaust mounting does not fully support the exhaust system \|7.1.1.c\|	1
Horn not loud enough to be heard by another road user \|1.7.3a\|	1
Clutch lever positioned so it cannot be readily operated. \|6.2.1g\|	1
Front Front suspension has excessive stiffness in the suspension movement. \|2.3.6b\|	1
Front position lamp does not illuminate immediately when switched on \|1.1.3a\|	1
Headlamp at least one does not illuminate on dipped beam \|1.2.2a\|i\|\|	1
Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies \|1.3.1a\|	1
Headlamp aim not tested \|1.6\|	1
Rear Stop lamp does not illuminate immediately a brake applies \|1.3.1a\|	1
Brake linkage has abnormal movement due to maladjustment \|3.2.A1i\|	1
Offside Front Throttle operating incorrectly \|6.2.1f\|	1
Centre Front Front suspension has excessive stiffness in the suspension movement. \|2.3.6b\|	1

MOT History from tests of petrol BSA BSAs year 1948

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