Know Your MOT
27.9%fail rate

Toyota M common MOT failures and failure rate

What a Toyota M fails its MOT on, from real DVSA test data, and the part that resolves each item.

Based on 129 MOT tests in DVSA data.

About 27.9% of MOT tests recorded on the Toyota M in DVSA data end in a failure. The same handful of items account for most of them.

Its most common failure is lamps & electrical, which makes up 44.4% of the Toyota M's failures, followed by lamps & electrical, exhaust & emissions, other, visibility/wipers. Each item below links to the part that resolves it. Confirm the exact fitment against your registration or VIN before buying, and have safety-critical work done by a competent mechanic.

What it fails on, and why

Lamps & electrical44.4% of failures

Lighting is the single most common MOT failure and the cheapest to put right. A blown headlight, brake-light or number-plate bulb, a cracked lens, or a headlamp beam that points too high or low will all fail. Most are a two-minute bulb swap.

Exhaust & emissions38.9% of failures

Exhaust failures cover leaks, insecure mountings and emissions over the limit. A blowing exhaust, a failed lambda reading or a diesel that smokes beyond the limit will fail.

Other27.8% of failures

This covers a range of smaller items, from a non-working horn to a warning light left on.

Visibility/wipers27.8% of failures

Visibility failures include torn or smearing wiper blades, a washer jet that does not reach the screen, and chips or cracks in the driver's swept area. Blades and washer fluid are quick, cheap fixes.

Brakes27.8% of failures

Brake failures cover worn pads and discs, an imbalance between wheels, corroded or scored discs, or a binding caliper. Braking efficiency is measured on a rolling road, so a spongy or pulling brake shows up as a low reading.

Tyres22.2% of failures

Tyres fail for tread below the 1.6mm legal limit across the central three-quarters, uneven or exposed-cord wear, or sidewall damage. The tester inspects all four; a single illegal tyre is a fail.

The parts that fix each

If your car has just failed, you have 10 working days to fix the items and get a free partial retest. These are the usual parts; confirm the exact fitment against your registration or VIN before buying.

For the lamps & electrical failure: Toyota M headlight and indicator bulbsSearch Amazon for Toyota M headlight and indicator bulbsaffiliate searchFind Toyota M headlight and indicator bulbs on eBayaffiliate
For the exhaust & emissions failure: Toyota M exhaustSearch Amazon for Toyota M exhaustaffiliate searchFind Toyota M exhaust on eBayaffiliate
For the visibility/wipers failure: Toyota M wiper bladesSearch Amazon for Toyota M wiper bladesaffiliate searchFind Toyota M wiper blades on eBayaffiliate
For the brakes failure: Toyota M brake pads and discsSearch Amazon for Toyota M brake pads and discsaffiliate searchFind Toyota M brake pads and discs on eBayaffiliate
For the tyres failure: Toyota M tyresSearch Amazon for Toyota M tyresaffiliate searchFind Toyota M tyres on eBayaffiliate

Other models

Toyota Yaris MOT failures22.1% failure rateToyota Corolla MOT failures24.0% failure rateToyota Avensis MOT failures24.9% failure rateFord Fiesta MOT failures27.1% failure rate

Sources: DVSA MOT History API: MOT test results and defect data ยท DVSA MOT testing data for Great Britain