Toyota RAV-4 MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Recorded pass rate

We are not publishing a ranking for the RAV-4. 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 26,977 tests and are worth reading on their own terms.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Toyota RAV-4 tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1. 1.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning14.4%

   1,131 occurrencesLamp not working explained

2. 2.A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc13.0%

   1,018 occurrencesSuspension joint dust cover missing or split explained

3. 3.The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired12.6%

   986 occurrencesSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained

4. 4.The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements11.8%

   920 occurrencesHeadlamp aim incorrect explained

5. 5.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements9.0%

   708 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

6. 6.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm8.7%

   683 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

7. 7.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen8.6%

   675 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

8. 8.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded8.4%

   654 occurrencesBrake pipe corroded explained

9. 9.A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage7.8%

   608 occurrencesShock absorber defective explained

10. 10.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened7.2%

    564 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Toyota RAV-4 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 requirements24.0%

   6,485 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

2. 2.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn19.1%

   5,148 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained

3. 3.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened19.0%

   5,138 testsRoad spring broken or fractured explained

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

   5,016 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

5. 5.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded18.5%

   4,978 testsBrake pipe corroded explained

6. 6.A tyre seriously damaged15.0%

   4,057 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

7. 7.A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded12.0%

   3,227 testsSuspension mounting corroded or insecure explained

8. 8.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm11.2%

   3,028 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

How wear changes the picture

Pass rate by vehicle age

Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The RAV-4 fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

113,713

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

Fuel mix of tested cars

Diesel63.7%

Petrol36.2%

Compare within the range

Other Toyota models

• Toyota Yaris — 72.3% adjusted
• Toyota Aygo — 70.4% adjusted
• Toyota Prius — 81.4% adjusted
• Toyota Auris — 72.6% adjusted
• Toyota Corolla — 78.8% adjusted
• Toyota RAV4 — 79.0% adjusted
• All Toyota models →

Common questions

How reliable is the Toyota RAV-4 compared with other cars?

We do not publish a comparison for the Toyota RAV-4, 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 64.1% across 26,977 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 Toyota RAV-4?

The item recorded most often is "A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning", which appears in 14.4% of failed Toyota RAV-4 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 Toyota RAV-4?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 24.0% of all Toyota RAV-4 tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Toyota RAV-4 usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 113,713 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.

Does a Toyota RAV-4 get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 9 to 11 years old, 76.0% of Toyota RAV-4 tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 61.1%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Are most Toyota RAV-4 models petrol or diesel?

Of the Toyota RAV-4 cars tested, 64% are diesel, 36% are petrol. 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 Toyota