All generations and engines together · 5,505 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 105k
One of the worst people carriers to buy at this age, but better than most per mile driven. Watch lights & electrics and suspension. One to judge on its mileage rather than its age, and worth it only if its MOT history has no repeating lights & electrics advisories.
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
The Elgrand's autobox (a conventional 4/5-speed auto on E50 and E51 cars, a CVT on later E52s) turns up repeatedly in owner reports as slow to kick down, jerky when changing gear, or refusing to select a gear at all, occasionally getting stuck in Park. It tends to surface from around 80,000-100,000 miles, worse on cars with patchy service history, which is common on personal imports. A rebuild or reconditioned unit runs into four figures; there's no manufacturer TSB because these were never officially sold new in the UK.
Owners of both the 3.3-litre VG33E and 3.5-litre VQ35DE V6 report head gasket failure: coolant that disappears with no visible leak, white smoke on start-up, or a rough-running engine. It's mentioned most often on E51 cars, generally well past 100,000 miles. Full repair including machining and reassembly is a big labour job and typically runs to four figures once you add a coolant flush and check the head for warping.
This is the folklore version of the model's measured weak spot. Owners describe dash instruments blanking out or flickering, central locking and remote unlocking dropping out, indicators and wipers cutting out together, and water getting into tail light units. It reads more like connector corrosion and earth faults than one single part failing, which fits cars that have spent years as personal imports parked outside. The measured MOT data for this model already flags lights and electrics as the standout failure category; the forum reports back that up, just spread across a dozen small symptoms rather than one named component.
The electric sliding side doors and powered tailgate on Highway Star and higher trims are reported to jam, refuse to close fully, or stop responding to the switch. It's usually the door control module, a sensor, or the cable mechanism rather than the motor itself, and it shows up more on higher-mileage cars where the linkage has had years of use. Fixes range from a sensor clean costing little to a few hundred pounds for a new latch or motor.
A handful of owners report the electric steering lock refusing to release after the car has sat for a while, leaving the wheel locked with the key turning freely. It isn't clear whether this is wiring, a weak battery, or the lock actuator itself, and it isn't reported often enough on the Elgrand specifically to call it a settled pattern. Similar electric steering locks on other Nissans of the same era are a known weak point, so it's plausible rather than proven here. Wiggling the wheel while turning the key usually frees it, and a failed actuator is a few hundred pounds to replace.
Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.
Saveable checklistThe physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.
Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.
Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.
The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 1,611 tests in this band.
Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.
Same segment (MPVs), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.