Toyota Rav-4: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Toyota Rav-4 fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 5.3 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 30,415 individual Toyota Rav-4 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 71.4% first-time pass rate means roughly 29 in every 100 Toyota Rav-4s presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Toyota Rav-4 tested had covered 111,027 miles and was built around 2007.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Toyota Rav-4 bought as a repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Toyota Rav-4 rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged Toyota Rav-4s actually sold for at UK salvage auction, from 3 real settled sales.

Most common MOT failures on a Toyota Rav-4

1. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 1.2% of tests (5.4x the national rate for this defect)
2. 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 repaired, 3.3% of tests (3.99x the national rate for this defect)
3. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 1.3% of tests (3.65x the national rate for this defect)
4. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 2.4% of tests (2.9x the national rate for this defect)
5. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 3.9% of tests (2.87x the national rate for this defect)
6. A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage, 1.7% of tests (2.47x the national rate for this defect)
7. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 1.6% of tests (2.16x the national rate for this defect)
8. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 3.2% of tests (1.95x the national rate for this defect)
9. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 2.9% of tests (1.66x the national rate for this defect)
10. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 2.1% of tests (1.54x the national rate for this defect)

From 43,900 DVSA-tracked Toyota Rav-4 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.45% of these flagged Toyota Rav-4 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Toyota Rav-4 pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Toyota Rav-4 year:

• 2000 Toyota Rav-4 - 69.3% first-time pass, 264 tests
• 2001 Toyota Rav-4 - 71.6% first-time pass, 777 tests
• 2002 Toyota Rav-4 - 67.9% first-time pass, 1,241 tests
• 2003 Toyota Rav-4 - 69.4% first-time pass, 1,821 tests
• 2004 Toyota Rav-4 - 69% first-time pass, 2,455 tests
• 2005 Toyota Rav-4 - 69.4% first-time pass, 3,040 tests
• 2006 Toyota Rav-4 - 64.9% first-time pass, 3,099 tests
• 2007 Toyota Rav-4 - 65.4% first-time pass, 2,532 tests
• 2008 Toyota Rav-4 - 67.1% first-time pass, 1,618 tests
• 2009 Toyota Rav-4 - 74.3% first-time pass, 1,542 tests
• 2010 Toyota Rav-4 - 75.5% first-time pass, 3,480 tests
• 2011 Toyota Rav-4 - 76% first-time pass, 3,225 tests
• 2012 Toyota Rav-4 - 79.8% first-time pass, 1,779 tests
• 2013 Toyota Rav-4 - 82.7% first-time pass, 1,407 tests
• 2014 Toyota Rav-4 - 83.8% first-time pass, 1,357 tests

Toyota Rav-4 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel Toyota Rav-4 - 71.8% first-time pass, 19,234 tests
• Petrol Toyota Rav-4 - 72.1% first-time pass, 10,959 tests

Other Toyota models

• Toyota Yaris - 78.6%
• Toyota Aygo - 80.9%
• Toyota Prius - 86%
• Toyota Auris - 80.5%
• Toyota Rav4 - 84.3%
• Toyota C-Hr - 90.6%
• Toyota Corolla - 75.3%
• Toyota Hilux - 73%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mitsubishi Lancer - 71.5%
• Smart (Mcc) Cabriolet - 71.5%
• Volkswagen Polo - 71.4%
• Peugeot Rcz - 71.4%
• Audi 80 - 71.4%
• SEAT Ibiza - 71.3%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate