MOT Risk Index.co.uk

Toyota RAV4 — MOT statistics 2024

The Toyota RAV4 failed 23.21% of 130,592 first MOT attempts in 2024 ("first-time", excluding retests). Adjusted for the age of the fleet, its initial-failure ratio is 81.2 (100 = expected for its age profile). This car fails its MOT about 19% less often than expected for its age.

MOT risk index 81.2, 95% CI 80.4–82.0 (100 = national average) 100 81.2 0 200
Index
81.2
100 = age-normal
Raw fail rate
23.21%
n = 130,592
Dangerous /100
9
national ≈11
Diesel − petrol
-5.2 pp
fail-rate gap
Rank
274 of 761
lower index = better

Age-adjusted peer: Honda e (index 81.0) — the two published results are 0.2 index points apart.

Toyota RAV4 common problems: what actually fails the MOT

Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment are well below the reference at 17.6 per 100 tests, against 22.4 per 100 tests across UK vehicles of the same ages.

higher bar = fails more oftenrate per 100 tests

Toyota RAV4 common problems: what actually fails the MOT — 2024 UK MOT data

family vs national — matched to UK vehicles of the same ages — top component groups, per 100 tests. Legend: This family · National avg. Combined labels: family / national average. A gap here reflects how these vehicles are driven, used and maintained as well as how they were built — an MOT defect is a test outcome, not a breakdown.

Component-group comparison table

Each ratio carries a 95% interval. With 6 groups compared here, roughly one apparent difference in twenty is chance alone.

GroupThis familyCases behind itUK, same agesFamily / national
Lamps & electrical17.6127,60222.40.78×0.78–0.79
Suspension16.0116,06618.80.85×0.85–0.86
Brakes11.885,64714.50.81×0.81–0.82
Visibility8.460,7909.10.93×0.92–0.93
Tyres5.136,8199.00.57×0.56–0.57
Body & structure4.935,5837.80.63×0.62–0.64
Named defects — items per 100 initial tests, this family vs UK national average; this model measured on 723,850 tests, 2019-2024, national column 2024
What failedper 100 tests (this family)per 100 tests (UK average)ratio family / UKWhat to check
Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defectiveHeadlamp reflector or lens slightly defective3.411.093.12×Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure
Suspension joint dust cover severely deterioratedA suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated3.141.901.65×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn joints show up on the test
Rear registration plate lamp or light source…A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources3.382.831.19×Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure
Suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer…A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc2.261.781.27×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn joints show up on the test
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously…Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view2.792.361.18×Check wipers, washers and windscreen chips in the driver's view
Brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mma brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm2.492.151.16×Feel for brake judder and pulling on the test drive
Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the…Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen2.452.221.10×Check wipers, washers and windscreen chips in the driver's view
Aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down…The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements2.202.570.86×Try every light and switch — lamps are a top failure
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the…Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements2.163.590.60×Check tyre tread depth across the full width
Suspension pin, bush or joint excessively wornA suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn3.354.870.69×Listen for knocks over bumps — worn joints show up on the test

Named defects ranked by how much more often they appear than the national average — not by raw rate.

Toyota RAV4 MOT advisories: what gets flagged

Brakes are highest at 42.9 per 100 tests; Emissions & leaks are lowest at 4.6 per 100 tests — the gap is 38.3 per 100 tests.

higher bar = flagged more oftenadvisory items per 100 initial tests

Toyota RAV4 MOT advisories: what gets flagged — 2024 UK MOT data
Advisory rates table
GroupAdvisories per 100
Brakes42.9
Suspension37.3
Tyres36.2
Non-component advisories7.6
Body & structure7.5
Emissions & leaks4.6

Advisories are wear the tester noted but didn't fail — what will need money soon.

Tyres, brakes and suspension: Toyota RAV4 against cars of the same age

AgePartToyota RAV4Same age, petrol and dieselDifference
3 yearsTyres2.514.17-1.66
3 yearsBrakes0.661.77-1.11
3 yearsSuspension0.330.63-0.30
4 yearsTyres2.644.54-1.90
4 yearsBrakes1.282.43-1.15
4 yearsSuspension0.981.21-0.23
5 yearsTyres2.925.06-2.14
5 yearsBrakes2.083.09-1.01
5 yearsSuspension2.152.19-0.04
6 yearsTyres3.095.54-2.45
6 yearsBrakes2.93.81-0.91
6 yearsSuspension3.383.72-0.34
7 yearsTyres3.25.95-2.75
7 yearsBrakes3.774.55-0.78
7 yearsSuspension4.455.68-1.23
8 yearsTyres3.466.31-2.85
8 yearsBrakes4.385.38-1.00
8 yearsSuspension5.047.78-2.74

Failing items per 100 initial tests, 2019-2024. The comparison group is every petrol or diesel car tested at the same age, so weight and drivetrain show up rather than fleet age.

If a car like this fails, does it fail again?

A failure rate does not say whether a failure is a one-off or the start of something. This follows the same vehicles into their next ordinary MOT a year later — retests after a repair are excluded, because they follow a failure by definition. 2019-2024.

After this year's testFails next yearVehicles followed
It failed32.8%42,781
It passed22.3%395,067

A failed test raises next year's chance of failing again by 10.5 percentage points. The failure most likely to come back is lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment — 36.0% of those vehicles fail again next year. Some of this is the vehicle and some is the owner: a car that was let go once tends to be let go again. One caveat: a car that fails may be sold or scrapped rather than tested again, so these figures describe the vehicles that came back.

Adjusted for how much these are actually driven

The headline index adjusts for the fleet's age. Wear, though, follows mileage: a three-year-old taxi and a three-year-old garage queen sit in the same age band. These two rows compare every car with vehicles of the same age, and then with vehicles of the same age and the same annual mileage, 2019-2024, on 719,132 tests. Both stand on the six-year corpus so they are measured on identical data — compare them with each other, not with the headline index above, which is measured on 2024 alone.

Standardised forIndexReading
Age only81.2fails less often than expected
Age and annual mileage79.0fails less often than vehicles driven as much
Share doing under 3,000 miles a year3.6%a normal spread of use

Mileage changes little here (-2.2 points): this fleet is driven about as much as the vehicles it is compared with. One limit to keep in mind: mileage is partly a result of how often a car breaks down — one that spends weeks in the workshop covers fewer miles — so the mileage-matched figure can understate a real weakness. Tests with no usable odometer reading are left out of it.

How the Toyota RAV4 compares with cars of its own age and size

Not against the whole fleet — against cars of the same size class tested at the same age, 2019-2024.

AgeToyota RAV4Same class, same ageDifferenceTests
3 years7.68%11.76%-4.08 pp60,156
4 years10.69%13.33%-2.64 pp50,564
5 years12.82%15.09%-2.27 pp44,588
6 years14.29%17.37%-3.09 pp41,796
7 years15.87%20.2%-4.33 pp37,540
8 years17.6%23.27%-5.68 pp33,453
9 years20.58%26.8%-6.22 pp29,835
10 years22.96%30.11%-7.15 pp27,845
11 years26.84%33.53%-6.69 pp27,801
12 years31.33%36.53%-5.2 pp29,792
13 years33.74%38.97%-5.22 pp34,068
14 years35.65%40.94%-5.29 pp39,149
15 years37.12%42.44%-5.31 pp42,939
16 years38.32%43.28%-4.97 pp45,306
17 years39.1%43.68%-4.58 pp43,300
18 years39%43.83%-4.83 pp36,906
19 years38.97%43.4%-4.43 pp29,266
20 years39.51%42.58%-3.07 pp21,349

Raw first-time failure rates within each age, so fleet age cannot flatter either side. A positive difference means this model fails more often than its own class at that age.

How does the Toyota RAV4 perform as it gets older?

The RAV4 at age 11 is well below the reference at 21.8%, against 33.2% for all vehicles of the same age.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

How does the Toyota RAV4 perform as it gets older? — 2024 UK MOT data

Chart axes: car age, years · failure-rate scale 0–47%.

Takeaway: a 10-year-old RAV4 has roughly a 20% chance of failing its MOT.

Data table
AgeToyota RAV4All vehiclesGap
37.9%12.4%-4.5 pp
48.7%13.1%-4.4 pp
59.1%15.1%-6.0 pp
614.3%17.5%-3.2 pp
715.7%20.2%-4.5 pp
815.7%23.3%-7.7 pp
918.5%26.5%-8.0 pp
1020.4%30.1%-9.7 pp
1121.8%33.2%-11.4 pp
1225.1%35.7%-10.6 pp
1330.3%38.2%-7.9 pp
1431.2%40.4%-9.2 pp
1534.0%41.6%-7.6 pp
1638.6%43.1%-4.5 pp
1740.6%43.1%-2.5 pp
1840.6%43.9%-3.3 pp
1936.6%43.5%-6.9 pp
2038.6%41.0%-2.4 pp

Is a Toyota RAV4 ULEZ compliant?

The share of classifiable 2024 Toyota RAV4 MOT tests likely ULEZ compliant by first-registration date is 54.7%.

Based on 128,158 classifiable initial MOT tests. This describes the tested fleet, not a specific car. MOT data do not record Euro class, so likely compliance is inferred from fuel and first-registration date. For the only authoritative answer, check the registration with TfL's official ULEZ checker.

higher = larger share likely compliantinferred from fuel and first-registration date; not a recorded Euro class

Age-band estimate from classifiable initial MOT tests
Vehicle age at testLikely ULEZ-compliant shareTests
Under 3 years100.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 737
3–5 years100.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 33,990
6–7 years100.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 15,304
8 years100.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 7,727
9 years36.9%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 5,443
10–14 years10.5%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 23,031
15–17 years37.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 14,059
18 years50.1%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 5,418
19 years0.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 6,363
20+ years0.0%
Check a registration with TfL
n = 16,086

Toyota RAV4 petrol vs diesel: which ages best

Petrol is highest at 34.3%; Hybrid is lowest at 10.7% — the gap is 23.6 percentage points.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Toyota RAV4 petrol vs diesel: which ages best — 2024 UK MOT data
Fuel split table
FuelTests% failingGap vs best
Hybrid50,04810.7%+0.0 pp
Diesel45,41329.0%+18.4 pp
Petrol34,12734.3%+23.6 pp

Chart sample sizes: n=50k · n=45k · n=34k.

How dangerous are Toyota RAV4 MOT failures?

Major defects are well below the reference at 45.6 per 100 tests, against 52.8 per 100 tests nationally.

higher bar = fails more oftenrate per 100 tests

How dangerous are Toyota RAV4 MOT failures? — 2024 UK MOT data
Severity table
SeverityThis family /100National /100Family / national
Minor17.2014.221.21×
Major45.5752.750.86×
Dangerous8.8111.150.79×

Chart values: Minor 17.2 · Major 45.6 · Dangerous 8.8.

Per 100 tests on this family. National average: Minor 14.2 · Major 52.8 · Dangerous 11.2 per 100.

Does the month of a Toyota RAV4 MOT matter?

Nov is highest at 28.5%; Sep is lowest at 24.5% — the gap is 4.0 percentage points.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Does the month of a Toyota RAV4 MOT matter? — 2024 UK MOT data

Chart scale: 23%–33%.

bars: Toyota RAV4 · dashed: all class-4 cars

Month-by-month table
MonthToyota RAV4All vehiclesGap
Jan28.47%31.12%-2.7 pp
Feb26.86%29.99%-3.1 pp
Mar25.74%28.26%-2.5 pp
Apr26.84%29.78%-2.9 pp
May25.61%28.79%-3.2 pp
Jun24.97%28.15%-3.2 pp
Jul26.13%29.33%-3.2 pp
Aug25.61%29.2%-3.6 pp
Sep24.5%28.19%-3.7 pp
Oct27.61%30.34%-2.7 pp
Nov28.53%30.58%-2.0 pp
Dec26.86%29.33%-2.5 pp

Takeaway: the spread between best and worst month is 4.0 percentage points — noticeable seasonality. Seasonality partly reflects registration-date clustering, not weather.

Before reading the shape: most of it is not about cars. Britain changes its registration plates twice a year, and 18.9% of these cars were first registered in March with another17.1% in September — 36% in two months against the 17% an even spread would give. An MOT falls due three years after first registration, so the buying calendar becomes the testing calendar. That shapes how many cars are tested each month — not how often they fail: the busiest months here are not the worst ones, so read the failure line on its own and the volume behind it separately.

Toyota RAV4 average mileage by age

At age 8, the middle half of RAV4s runs from 47,591 miles to 79,791 miles, against 63,211 miles as the median.

further right = more milesmedian is the typical car; band is p25–p75

Bars: Toyota RAV4 · dashed: all class-4 cars — 2024 UK MOT data

Chart axes: car age, years · odometer scale 0–149k mi.

Does high mileage mean more Toyota RAV4 MOT failures at the same age?

Within the same age group, split by odometer (2024 MOTs), so this separates wear from age: at ages 15+, 16.5% of those with under 40,000 miles failed first time versus 45.7% of those with over 140,000 miles.Inside this age group, higher mileage goes with more failures.

Does high mileage mean more Toyota RAV4 MOT failures at the same age? — 2024 UK MOT data
Toyota RAV4: first-time failure by mileage within each age group (2024)
AgeOdometer% failing95% intervalTests
3–5<40k miles7.1%6.8–7.5%23,197
3–540-70k miles11.4%10.7–12.1%8,749
3–570-100k miles11.4%10–13%1,672
3–5100-140k miles11.5%8.6–15.4%338 (rough estimate)
6–9<40k miles10.9%10.1–11.7%6,478
6–940-70k miles15.4%14.7–16%12,919
6–970-100k miles18.5%17.6–19.4%6,656
6–9100-140k miles24.4%22.6–26.4%1,969
6–9140k+ miles26.1%22.3–30.3%456 (rough estimate)
10–14<40k miles10.9%9.1–13.1%925
10–1440-70k miles16.7%15.7–17.7%4,969
10–1470-100k miles23.5%22.6–24.5%8,279
10–14100-140k miles30.3%29.2–31.4%6,826
10–14140k+ miles38.5%36.4–40.7%2,029
15+<40k miles16.5%13.6–19.9%528
15+40-70k miles26%24.6–27.5%3,660
15+70-100k miles33.3%32.4–34.2%9,887
15+100-140k miles40.4%39.6–41.1%17,370
15+140k+ miles45.7%44.8–46.7%10,468

line: median · band: middle half of the fleet (p25–p75)

Mileage by age (p25 / median / p75)
Agep25Medianp75Tests
318,56425,72634,92012,811
423,94133,37046,55512,082
528,92739,21752,3189,098
632,90144,28658,8687,399
741,22755,44371,8297,906
847,59163,21179,7917,732
955,48372,50392,2135,444
1063,85282,844103,1606,110
1167,94387,941109,8535,932
1268,34687,832110,5813,331
1374,98396,851119,6313,719
1480,285103,612127,3953,943
1585,039108,209132,0383,201
1690,531114,443140,1484,971
1792,696117,668141,9015,892
1894,306117,177141,3105,422
1989,934113,372138,3786,365
20+90,887115,221140,66116,104

A typical 8-year-old RAV4 has ~63,211 miles on the clock. Much more — ask why; much less — check for gaps in the MOT history.

Where in Britain the Toyota RAV4 fails its MOT most

Exeter area is highest at 38.3%; Bromley area is lowest at 18.4% — the gap is 19.9 percentage points.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Where in Britain the Toyota RAV4 fails its MOT most — 2024 UK MOT data
Toughest areas% failingvs model overall
Exeter (EX)38.33%+11.9 pp
Plymouth (PL)38.2%+11.7 pp
Truro (TR)37.36%+10.9 pp
Torquay (TQ)36.96%+10.5 pp
Dorchester (DT)36.62%+10.1 pp
Easiest areas% failingvs model overall
Bromley (BR)18.4%-8.1 pp
Enfield (EN)18.45%-8.0 pp
Ilford (IG)18.71%-7.8 pp
Dartford (DA)19.6%-6.9 pp
Derby (DE)20.42%-6.0 pp

Why do areas differ?

For each external factor we correlate the area fail rate with the factor across postcode areas that have ≥800 tests of this family, then compare the bottom vs top fifth (quintile) of the factor. Correlation, not causation — factors travel together (the north is colder and often poorer; urban areas are denser and less salted). Road surface condition is joined now, for the 91 English areas the DfT publishes, and it explains nothing: the correlation with suspension failures is −0.01 and with body and structure failures 0.07. Potholes wreck wheels and tyres between tests, but by the time a car reaches the bay the road it drives on leaves no measurable trace.

In areas with the highest mot centre density this model fails 7.0 pp more often than in the lowest fifth (r=0.48, n=117 areas with ≥800 tests).

In areas with the highest urban share this model fails 6.3 pp less often than in the lowest fifth (r=-0.43, n=117 areas with ≥800 tests).

In areas with the highest terrain gradient this model fails 3.6 pp more often than in the lowest fifth (r=0.29, n=69 areas with ≥800 tests).

Toyota RAV4 Why do areas differ? — 2024 UK MOT data
Values shown in the quintile chart
FactorLow QHigh QGapCorrelation
MOT centre density22.9%29.9%+7.0 ppr=0.48
Urban share29.6%23.2%-6.4 ppr=-0.43
Terrain gradient25.7%29.4%+3.7 ppr=0.29

Factors that only mean something combined

Some conditions are useless on their own and informative multiplied together. Frost days alone say little — Britain barely freezes. Salt tonnage alone says little — it tracks frost. Distance to the sea alone says little. Multiply the first two and divide by the third and you get an index of how hard an area attacks a car's underside, and it lines up with the corrosion defects we actually record. We built five such combinations and tested each against our own data. Three survived; two did not, and the failures are listed here on purpose — a proxy that was never checked is decoration. One survivor only survived on the second attempt: built from a crude stand-in for street parking it failed outright, and rebuilt from the census — terraced streets carrying more cars than they have driveways — it works, and carries information the salt index does not.

Composite area indicators, each tested against a defect rate we measure
CompositeBuilt fromTested againstrVerdict
Underbody corrosionfrost days × salt load ÷ (distance to coast + 1)share of tests with a corrosion defect+0.42holds (116 areas)
Tyre wearrain days × annual miles ÷ age at first tyre advisoryshare of tests failing on tyres+0.45holds (116 areas)
Overnight corrosionterraced housing × cars per household × frost daysshare with a corrosion defect+0.41holds (102 areas) — and adds signal beyond the first index
Deferred maintenancedeprivation × advisory-to-failure conversion ÷ labour ratecars repeating the same advisory−0.26fails (118 areas)
Powertrain stressengine capacity ÷ kerb weightsuspension, brake and emissions failures−0.16fails (22 models)

The deprivation result is the one worth dwelling on. The intuition that poorer areas defer repairs is strong enough that most people treat it as established. We tested it twice — once on raw failure rates (r = 0.04) and again, more fairly, on whether an advisory turns into a failure — and it did not hold any of the three times we tried it — on raw failure rates, on advisory-to-failure conversion, and again with deprivation measured properly inside each nation rather than England alone. We are closing it. What does predict local failure rates is the density of test centres, which is a statement about testing, not about cars.

All external-factor correlations (machine-readable)
Factorrn areasLow-Q fail %High-Q fail %Gap ppLow-Q factorHigh-Q factor
MOT centre density (per 10k vehicles)0.48511722.929.9+7.058.9
Urban share (0–1)-0.43411729.623.2-6.30.31
Terrain gradient (% grade)0.2886925.729.4+3.60.54.2
Distance to coast (km)-0.23911728.925.5-3.55.778.7
Frost days (days/year)0.20111727.327.9+0.611.838
Road-salt proxy (g/m²-yr)0.19111726.527.8+1.3223674.9
Income deprivation (score)-0.1369726.125.2-0.90.10.2

Deprivation uses England IMD 2019 income score only (Scotland SIMD is a different scale). Salt proxy is a simplified NWSRG-style dry-salt sum from air Tmin; coastalness is distance from the area centroid to the nearest coastline.

Every dot is a postcode area — size = how many were tested there, colour = share failing. These figures are not age-adjusted: coastal and rural areas often run older fleets and salted roads, so higher raw fail rates do not automatically mean a worse local stock of this model.

Map labels: Scotland · N. England · Wales · London · S. West. Colour scale: 21%–35% failing.

Toyota RAV4 survival: which cars are still on the road

By age 19 is well below the reference at 64.1%, against 100.0% at the ages 4–6 reference level.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Toyota RAV4 survival: which cars are still on the road — 2024 UK MOT data

Chart axes: car age, years · survival vs ages 4–6 · scale 0–105%.

Survival vs fail rate by age
AgeTestsSurvival vs ages 4–6Fail %
360,156100%7.68%
450,564100%10.69%
544,58897.7%12.82%
641,79691.6%14.29%
737,54082.2%15.87%
833,45373.3%17.6%
929,83565.4%20.58%
1027,84561%22.96%
1127,80160.9%26.84%
1229,79265.3%31.33%
1334,06874.6%33.74%
1439,14985.8%35.65%
1542,93994.1%37.12%
1645,30699.2%38.32%
1743,30094.9%39.1%
1836,90680.8%39%
1929,26664.1%38.97%

By age 19, only about 64% as many cars of this family present for MOT as at ages 4–6 (reference n≈45,649); survivors still fail at 39.0% vs 10.7% at age 4. Older cars that still appear are a selected subset — weaker ones have already left.

How many miles does a Toyota RAV4 last?

100,000+ miles is highest at 34.4%; 200,000+ miles is lowest at 0.7% — the gap is 33.7 percentage points.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

OdometerTests ≥ thresholdShare of sample
100,000+ miles248,46734.43%
150,000+ miles51,0287.07%
200,000+ miles5,3300.74%

Of 721,620 tests of this family with a usable odometer in 2024, 34.4% had reached 100k miles, 7.1% had reached 150k miles, 0.7% had reached 200k miles. This is a cross-section of cars still presenting for MOT, not a full birth cohort.

How many years is a Toyota RAV4 likely to last?

Bought at age 10 is highest at 12.3 years; Bought at age 15 is lowest at 4.1 years — the gap is 8.2 years.

bigger number = longer remaining lifeyears on the observed survival curve

Age nowTypical mileage (p50)Expected years left
5—at least 11.7
8—at least 12
10—at least 12.3
12—at least 9.6
15—at least 4.1

estimateEstimate only — not a warranty: a typical 10-year-old example of this family has at least 12.3 expected years of further MOT-present life. The curve is observed only until age 19, so the true figure is likely higher.

Toyota RAV4 faults that come together

Body & structure + Emissions & leaks stand out at 7.95×, against 1.00× if the faults were independent.

above 1.0× = more than expectedbelow 1.0× = less

Group AGroup BTogetherLift
Body, chassis, structureNoise, emissions and leaks7,8597.95×
Noise, emissions and leaksSeat belt installation check207.21× (rough estimate)
Identification of the vehicleSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems1586.53× (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems1,6355.39×
Road WheelsSteering535.28× (rough estimate)
Noise, emissions and leaksSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems1,5375.19×
Seat belt installation checkVisibility275.08× (rough estimate)
BrakesSeat belt installation check275.08× (rough estimate)
Identification of the vehicleNoise, emissions and leaks3945× (rough estimate)
Road WheelsSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems714.96× (rough estimate)
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentSeat belt installation check414.85× (rough estimate)
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systemsSteering3084.84× (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureIdentification of the vehicle3884.8× (rough estimate)
Noise, emissions and leaksRoad Wheels2174.65× (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureSteering9834.63×
BrakesNoise, emissions and leaks7,9444.3×
BrakesSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems2,4314.29×
SteeringSuspension2,4854.22×
Noise, emissions and leaksSteering8724.2×
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systemsSuspension3,5134.18×
Body, chassis, structureBrakes7,7504.09×
BrakesRoad Wheels3664.09× (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureRoad Wheels1944.06× (rough estimate)
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentNoise, emissions and leaks11,8914.05×
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentRoad Wheels5754.04×
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentSeat belts and supplementary restraint systems3,5823.97×
Identification of the vehicleTyres3133.97× (rough estimate)
Identification of the vehicleLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment9433.93×
BrakesIdentification of the vehicle5663.74×
Body, chassis, structureSuspension10,4353.72×
Identification of the vehicleSteering633.72× (rough estimate)
Identification of the vehicleVisibility5523.65×
Body, chassis, structureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment10,7593.57×
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentSteering2,2403.55×
Noise, emissions and leaksSuspension9,5563.49×
Road WheelsTyres1603.43× (rough estimate)
BrakesSteering1,3423.38×
Road WheelsSuspension4433.34× (rough estimate)
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systemsTyres9693.28×
Identification of the vehicleSuspension7343.28×
BrakesTyres5,9463.22×
BrakesSuspension16,8623.21×
BrakesLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment18,0203.2×
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systemsVisibility1,7633.11×
Seat belt installation checkSuspension243.05× (rough estimate)
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentSuspension25,1713.02×
Noise, emissions and leaksTyres2,8862.99×
Road WheelsVisibility2652.96× (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureTyres2,8952.93×
Noise, emissions and leaksVisibility5,3362.89×
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentTyres8,2182.8×
TyresVisibility5,0732.75×
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentVisibility15,3902.73×
Body, chassis, structureVisibility5,1732.73×
SteeringVisibility1,0362.61×
BrakesVisibility9,1182.57×
SteeringTyres5222.52×
SuspensionTyres6,6512.43×
SuspensionVisibility12,3842.36×
Body, chassis, structureSeat belt installation check19too few (rough estimate)
Identification of the vehicleRoad Wheels18too few (rough estimate)
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipmentSpeedometer and speed limiter17too few (rough estimate)
Speedometer and speed limiterSuspension16too few (rough estimate)
Noise, emissions and leaksSpeedometer and speed limiter12too few (rough estimate)
BrakesBuses and coaches supplementary tests12too few (rough estimate)
Seat belt installation checkTyres12too few (rough estimate)
Speedometer and speed limiterVisibility12too few (rough estimate)
BrakesSpeedometer and speed limiter11too few (rough estimate)
Buses and coaches supplementary testsSuspension11too few (rough estimate)
Buses and coaches supplementary testsLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment11too few (rough estimate)
Buses and coaches supplementary testsNoise, emissions and leaks8too few (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureBuses and coaches supplementary tests8too few (rough estimate)
Body, chassis, structureSpeedometer and speed limiter8too few (rough estimate)
Buses and coaches supplementary testsTyres5too few (rough estimate)

Defects in «Body, chassis, structure» and «Noise, emissions and leaks» appear together 7.95× more often than chance (7,859 co-occurrences in the same test; lift≥1.3, n≥500).

Lift = how many times more often both groups appear on the same test than if independent. A pair is listed from 5 tests with both faults; the lift is shown from 20, and called above chance only when its 95% interval excludes 1 (see rough estimates).

Is low mileage better for a Toyota RAV4?

Cars driven under 5,000 miles a year is well below the reference at 14.3%, against 25.6% for cars driven 8,000–12,000 miles a year.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

BandFail %Tests
<5k miles/year14.26%47,062
8–12k miles/year25.63%131,460
Gap (low − normal)-11.37 pp—
By fuel and age

Diesel

AgeLow-use fail %nNormal fail %nGap pp
511.731,29613.96,397-2.17 pp
69.921,95514.438,979-4.51 pp
710.42,32617.1310,095-6.72 pp
810.782,61520.2110,754-9.42 pp
912.42,83823.1111,042-10.71 pp
1014.192,62226.5710,303-12.38 pp
1116.292,41831.049,808-14.74 pp
1218.352,10936.959,744-18.6 pp
1320.242,01139.710,484-19.46 pp
1422.311,93242.1410,417-19.83 pp

Petrol

AgeLow-use fail %nNormal fail %nGap pp
59.4393314.57995-5.14 pp
611.171,07415.51,032-4.33 pp
710.581,06816.91,006-6.32 pp
89.6396617.7836-8.08 pp
912.3993625828-12.61 pp
1014.6890628.85877-14.17 pp
1116.291,22832.961,335-16.67 pp
1219.671,74436.12,072-16.43 pp
13212,39538.472,732-17.47 pp
1422.193,69142.553,868-20.37 pp

At matched ages 5–14, cars averaging under 5k miles/year fail at 14.3% vs 25.6% for 8–12k miles/year — 11.4 pp lower (n_low=47,062, n_normal=131,460). In this family low annual use is associated with fewer MOT fails, not more — the ‘garage queen’ penalty is not visible in overall fail rates. Diesel alone: 14.5% low-use vs 26.6% normal (-12.1 pp).

Best year for a Toyota RAV4, and the years to avoid

Build year 2018 is highest at 112.2; Build year 2019 is lowest at 80.0 — the gap is 32.2 points.

below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age

build year vs the same model at the same age · 100 = as expected

Toyota RAV4 build year vs the same model at the same age · 100 = as expected — 2024 UK MOT data
Toyota RAV4 by build year, tests 2019–2024. Below 100 is better than the model's own age norm.
Every build year with its confidence interval
Build yearvs own age norm95% CIRaw fail %TestsVerdict
202090.986.8–94.98.07%24,440better
20198076.7–83.38.02%28,051better
2018112.2108.6–115.812.41%29,757worse
2017105.2102.3–108.112.42%41,548worse
201694.692.1–9712.29%46,987better
2015105.3102.5–108.115.93%33,987worse
2014100.798.3–103.117.28%38,033no different
201392.690.4–94.818.02%37,067better
201295.592.7–98.321.23%20,996better
201198.596–101.124.78%23,653no different
201097.695.3–99.827.47%25,352better
2009101.499–103.831.29%21,555no different
2008106104.1–107.935.48%34,802worse
2007105.9104.3–107.637.74%43,903worse
2006103.5101.9–10538.28%42,972worse
200594.493–95.835.88%50,197better
200496.294.8–97.737.32%47,043better
2003100.599–102.139.59%39,233no different
2002101.199.3–102.940.24%29,409no different
2001102.599.9–10541.11%14,923no different
2000103.499.3–107.541.96%5,777no different
1999103.398.3–108.342.81%3,763no different
1998100.595.2–105.742.61%3,307no different

The best build year here is 2019 and the weakest is 2018. Comparing build years sounds simple and is not: within a single year of testing, a car's build year and its age are the same number, so a naive comparison of years is a comparison of ages wearing a disguise. Each year below is measured against the same model at the same age in other cohorts, across six years of testing — 14 of 23 years come out distinguishable from their own model's age norm.

Two limits worth knowing before you act on this. Age, test year and build year are locked together by arithmetic, so the test-year effect is taken from the observed national failure level of each year rather than estimated — it is an adjustment, not a solution.

Toyota RAV4 MOT repair costs

The MOT-failure repair budget per test runs from £75.73 to £143.89, against £54.85 for the test itself.

bigger number = costs morepounds per test, MOT-failing faults only

MOT repairs, budget
£76–144
per test, repairs only
The test itself
£54.85
statutory cap, unchanged since 2010
How the figure is built: chance of failing × typical price of that repair
ComponentFails per 100 testsTypical repairIts priceContribution
Suspension16.0 (nat. 15.36)Suspension coil spring (single corner)£180£28.80
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment17.6 (nat. 18.09)Battery replacement (standard 12V lead-acid)£140£24.64
Brakes11.8 (nat. 11.25)Front brake pads (parts + labour, typical hatchback)£150£17.70
Tyres5.1 (nat. 8.7)Tyre (single mid-range 16" fitted)£90£4.59

Multiply how often each component fails on this model by what that repair usually costs, and you get the amount an owner should expect to budget per test for MOT-failing faults only — roughly £76 to £144, on top of the test fee itself. It is a budgeting figure, not a quote: the spread between a set of pads and a set of discs is most of the range.

Prices are modal quotes from a hand-kept catalogue of published UK garage guides — we do not scrape the booking sites, their terms forbid it, so this list is short and updated by hand with a source and date against each line. Each line prices one typical repair in that group, not a full remedy, and only groups our catalogue actually covers are counted. The contrast worth noticing is the second card: the legal maximum for the test has been £54.85 since 2010, while the repairs it uncovers have followed inflation the whole time.

For scale from a different direction: Warrantywise, which sees used-car warranty claims rather than test failures, puts the average claim at £2,052 across the ten highest-claim models it ranks and £539 for Honda, the lowest-claim make in its index (Warrantywise index 2026, 1.6 million claims, cars aged 3–15). Those sit an order of magnitude above the figures in this table, and the gap is the point: a warranty claim is a gearbox or an engine, which almost never fails an MOT, while the faults that do fail one are corrosion, lamps and tyres, which no warranty pays for. The two numbers answer different questions and neither replaces the other.

Toyota RAV4 running costs for a fleet

Vehicles failing at age 10 stand out at 20.0%, against 9.0% at age 5, tested in the same year.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Fails per 100 at age 5
9
vehicles needing work
At age 10
20
other cars of this model tested at age 10 in 2024
Repairs per 100
£7,573
plus £5,485 in test fees
Off the road
1d
median; 39.09% cleared same day
Failure rate and typical odometer by age
AgeFailsMedian odometerTestsGap vs age 5
37.88%25,72612,811-1.2 pp
48.67%33,37012,082-0.4 pp
59.11%39,2179,098+0.0 pp
614.26%44,2867,399+5.2 pp
715.72%55,4437,906+6.6 pp
815.68%63,2117,732+6.6 pp
918.53%72,5035,444+9.4 pp
1020.44%82,8446,110+11.3 pp
1121.75%87,9415,932+12.6 pp
1225.07%87,8323,331+16.0 pp
1330.28%96,8513,719+21.2 pp
1431.19%103,6123,943+22.1 pp
1533.99%108,2093,201+24.9 pp
1638.62%114,4434,971+29.5 pp
1740.6%117,6685,892+31.5 pp
1840.56%117,1775,422+31.5 pp
1936.62%113,3726,365+27.5 pp

The number a fleet manager needs is not the failure rate, it is the year the car starts costing more. Between cars aged 12 and cars aged 13, both tested in 2024, the failure rate of this model is 5.21 percentage points higher — the steepest one-year step in this cross-section of different cars, and a natural planning point for replacement.

Repair spend uses the same modal prices as the section above, so it inherits the same limits: one typical repair per component group, not a full remedy. Downtime is the gap between the failed test and the passed re-test, which is the window a vehicle is legally off the road.

Toyota RAV4 rust problems: where they corrode

Age-standardised corrosion susceptibility stands out at 1.79×, against 1.00× for the national age-standardised rate.

above 1.0× = rusts more than averagebelow 1.0× = rusts less

How it rusts
1.79×
1.37% of tests record a corrosion defect vs 0.77% typical — age-standardised
Salt Belt exposure
63rd
percentile among the models published here, from its tests across 117 postcode areas

This Toyota RAV4 fails on corrosion far more often than average once age is held constant, and its owners live in areas that are about typical for the models we publish.

Corrosion is the one failure mode that is as much about geography as about the car. We keep the two apart on purpose: a model can look rusty simply because it is popular in Scotland, and a model can look clean simply because it is bought in Surrey. Blending them into a single score would hide which of the two is doing the work.

Exposure is this model's tests weighted by an area corrosion index built from frost days, salt load and distance to the coast — the composite validated at r = 0.42 against corrosion defects we actually record. It is published as a rank, not a raw score, because every mainstream model skews towards low-corrosion areas for the simple reason that most of Britain's cars are in the south. Susceptibility is standardised to the national age profile, so an old fleet does not get labelled a rusty model.

Does a Toyota RAV4 advisory become a failure?

Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment are highest at 29.0%; Non-component advisories are lowest at 0.0% — the gap is 29.0 percentage points.

higher = more likelypercentage is the observed transition probability

chance the same component fails at the next MOT, given an advisory now

Toyota RAV4 chance the same component fails at the next MOT, given an advisory now — 2024 UK MOT data
Toyota RAV4, advisory → failure conversion by component group, chained tests 2019–2024. Chart labels and rates: Lamps & electrical 29% · Suspension 21.1% · Body & chassis 13.8% · Brakes 13% · Noise, emissions, leaks 10.7% · Tyres 7.1% · Seat belts & restraints 6.3% · Steering 5.9%.
Advisory today → failure at the next test, with how long you have
ComponentFails next timeTypical lead timeMiles of warningAdvisories tracked
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment29.0%12 months4,57111,946
Suspension21.1%12 months5,12392,591
Body, chassis, structure13.8%12 months4,46431,159
Brakes13.0%12 months5,070130,990
Noise, emissions and leaks10.7%12.1 months4,35421,585
Tyres7.1%12 months6,020110,729
Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems6.3%12 months4,7043,982
Steering5.9%12 months5,0893,500
Identification of the vehicle3.1%12.1 months5,42012,338
Non-component advisories0.0%——36,253

This is the question an advisory note actually raises, and it needs six years of test history to answer. We followed the same vehicles from one MOT to the next across 2019–2024 and measured how often a component that was merely advised came back as a genuine failure at the next test.

Read it as a budgeting horizon, not a prophecy: the most likely component above turns into a failure for about 29 in 100 cars, and the median gap is 12 months and roughly 4,571 miles. The rest were repaired, sold, scrapped, or simply held. Rows with fewer than 500 tracked advisories are not shown.

What will fail next on a Toyota RAV4?

Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment after a failure at age 15-19 are highest at 27.6%; Suspension after a passed at age <3 is lowest at 0.8% — the gap is 26.8 percentage points.

higher = more likelypercentage is the observed transition probability

Probability of each component failing at the next test, by age and last result
AgeLast testMost likely next failuresCars tracked
<3passedVisibility 4.0% · Tyres 2.1% · Suspension 0.8%30,510
<3advisoryVisibility 5.9% · Tyres 3.6% · Brakes 2.1%6,162
<3failureVisibility 5.4% · Tyres 3.1% · Suspension 1.7%2,937
3-5passedVisibility 4.2% · Suspension 2.6% · Tyres 2.3%67,477
3-5advisoryVisibility 6.3% · Tyres 4.0% · Suspension 4.0%25,639
3-5failureVisibility 5.9% · Tyres 4.1% · Suspension 3.5%13,072
6-8passedSuspension 4.4% · Visibility 4.2% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 3.5%42,253
6-8advisorySuspension 6.6% · Visibility 6.5% · Brakes 5.9%25,704
6-8failureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 7.9% · Visibility 7.5% · Brakes 7.2%14,100
9-11passedSuspension 8.2% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 8.1% · Brakes 5.2%27,027
9-11advisoryLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 11.8% · Suspension 11.6% · Brakes 8.5%21,372
9-11failureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 16.3% · Suspension 14.3% · Brakes 10.9%17,186
12-14passedSuspension 12.4% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 11.2% · Brakes 6.9%28,718
12-14advisorySuspension 18.5% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 16.9% · Brakes 10.5%31,808
12-14failureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 21.7% · Suspension 21.1% · Brakes 13.6%32,011
15-19passedLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 13.8% · Suspension 12.1% · Brakes 6.8%37,917
15-19advisoryLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 21.8% · Suspension 18.0% · Brakes 10.8%50,635
15-19failureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 27.6% · Suspension 21.3% · Brakes 13.7%53,263
20+passedSuspension 12.0% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 11.6% · Body, chassis, structure 8.8%8,404
20+advisoryLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 19.7% · Suspension 19.4% · Body, chassis, structure 14.7%11,216
20+failureLamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 23.4% · Suspension 22.3% · Body, chassis, structure 16.5%13,048
unknownfailureNoise, emissions and leaks 11.1% · Body, chassis, structure 10.2% · Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 9.3%108 (rough estimate)

The same chains, cut differently: given a car's age and how its last test went, which component most often causes trouble at the following one.

The pattern that repeats across every family: a failure at one test roughly doubles the chance of a failure on the same component at the next one, and an advisory sits about half-way between a clean pass and a failure. Age bands in years; probabilities are per car, not per defect item.

Toyota RAV4 ownership: what six years of MOTs show

The ten-day re-test pass rate is highest at 57.2%; The later re-test pass rate is lowest at 3.7% — the gap is 53.6 percentage points.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Fixed same day
39.09%
of failures re-tested
Fails /10k miles
0.432
miles actually driven
Clean streaks
36.4%
3+ tests, nothing noted
Odometer anomaly
1.39%
reading went backwards

Failing is usually a same-week event, not a disaster. Of 131,866 failures followed through to their re-test, 39.09% were repaired and passed the same day and 57.24% within ten days; the median gap is 1 day. 337,354 defect items were cleared in the process.

Per mile driven, not per year. Dividing failures by the miles that actually went onto the odometers between consecutive tests gives 0.432 failures per 10,000 miles, on a median of 5,297 miles a year across 144,670 chains. This is the number to compare between models — an annual rate quietly rewards cars that barely leave the drive.

Two populations hide inside one model. 36.4% of these cars strung together three or more tests with nothing recorded at all, while 34.66% carried the same advisory three times or more — the same fault, noted, ignored, noted again. When you buy used you are buying one of those two histories, and the MOT record shows which.

Odometer anomalies: 1.39% of 144,783 chains show a reading lower than the previous test, with a median drop of 23,448 miles. We call this an anomaly and not fraud on purpose — instrument swaps, imports, unit mix-ups and keying errors all land in the same bucket. Obvious typos (drops under 100 miles or over 90% of the reading) are already excluded.

Toyota RAV4 safety recalls and how to check yours

DVSA recall campaigns stand out at 36.

bigger number = more recorded casescompare like-for-like scope, not sample size alone

recall campaigns launched per year

Toyota RAV4 recall campaigns launched per year — 2024 UK MOT data
Campaigns launched per year for the Toyota RAV4. Source: DVSA vehicle safety recalls. Chart values: 2011: 0 · 2012: 5 · 2013: 0 · 2014: 3 · 2015: 3 · 2016: 3 · 2017: 0 · 2018: 2 · 2019: 3 · 2020: 2 · 2021: 3 · 2022: 0 · 2023: 5 · 2024: 0 · 2025: 3.
Most recent safety recall campaigns for the Toyota RAV4
ReferenceLaunchedVehiclesConcern
R/2025/46601/12/20258,802Parking Assist ECU reprogram on multiple models
R/2025/27024/11/20255,112Combination Meter Reprogramming on Multiple Models
R/2025/27024/11/20257,433Combination Meter Reprogramming on Multiple Models
R/2023/27912/10/202327,327On affected vehicles there is a possibility that the DCM may not complete the shutdown pro
R/2023/27912/10/202327,327On affected vehicles there is a possibility that the DCM may not complete the shutdown pro
All 36 campaigns
ReferenceLaunchedBuild datesVehiclesConcern
R/2025/46601/12/202521/10/2022 – 09/06/20258,802Parking Assist ECU reprogram on multiple models
R/2025/27024/11/202503/01/2022 – 17/02/20255,112Combination Meter Reprogramming on Multiple Models
R/2025/27024/11/202530/09/2022 – 17/09/20247,433Combination Meter Reprogramming on Multiple Models
R/2023/27912/10/202323/01/2023 – 18/07/202327,327On affected vehicles there is a possibility that the DCM may not complete the shutdown pro
R/2023/27912/10/202317/01/2023 – 07/07/202327,327On affected vehicles there is a possibility that the DCM may not complete the shutdown pro
R/2023/20621/08/202314/07/2020 – 26/05/20223,422DC-DC converter may have been damaged during production
R/2023/04013/02/202326/11/2019 – 17/06/2021686The Hybrid Vehicle Control ECU (HEV-ECU) contains software that could cause the hybrid sys
R/2022/32623/01/202307/08/2003 – 09/09/20052The force-limiter in the seat belt retractor may not operate as designed
R/2021/31515/11/202127/08/2020 – 15/03/202126,575THE EMERGENCY CALLING SYSTEM (eCall) MAY NOT FUNCTION WHEN REQUIRED
R/2021/31515/11/202114/07/2020 – 09/03/202126,575THE EMERGENCY CALLING SYSTEM (eCall) MAY NOT FUNCTION WHEN REQUIRED
R/2021/10431/05/202112/06/2015 – 31/05/201824,241THERE IS A POSSIBILITY THAT THE EXHAUST GAS RECIRCULATION COOLER COULD DEVELOP AN INTERNAL
R/2020/01905/10/202005/06/1997 – 31/08/199937,586TAKATA AIRBAG INFLATOR MAY RUPTURE ON DEPLOYMENT
R/2020/14203/08/202025/09/2019 – 25/10/2019791THE FRONT LOWER SUSPENSION ARMS MAY HAVE CRACKS ON SOME PORTIONS OF ITS SURFACE
R/2019/24804/11/201926/04/2019 – 03/06/20192,146BRAKE BOOSTER PUMP MAY STOP WORKING
R/2019/12211/05/201931/10/2018 – 06/04/20193,484THE EMERGENCY CALLING SYSTEM MAY NOT BE ENABLED
R/2018/37825/02/201908/10/2015 – 13/12/2017321INCORRECT TIGHTENING TORQUE WAS POSSIBLY APPLIED DURING PREVIOUS INJECTOR REMOVAL OR REPLA
R/2017/32801/02/201805/10/2015 – 04/04/20174,818POSSIBILITY OF A FUEL LEAK
R/2017/32929/01/201822/08/2016 – 29/09/2016442BOLTS ON THE EXHAUST SIDE OF THE TURBOCHARGER ASSEMBLY MAY BE INCORRECTLY TIGHTENED
R/2016/02411/04/201604/02/2012 – 11/06/201249,015SEATBELT MAY NOT PERFORM AS DESIGNED
R/2016/02411/04/201621/08/2009 – 19/11/201249,015SEATBELT MAY NOT PERFORM AS DESIGNED
R/2016/02411/04/201631/10/2005 – 16/11/201249,015SEATBELT MAY NOT PERFORM AS DESIGNED
R/2015/20601/12/201513/06/2005 – 31/12/2010123,306RISK OF FIRE
R/2015/09522/06/201504/07/2003 – 25/10/20050DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG MAY RUPTURE
R/2015/09522/06/201502/07/2003 – 31/12/20050DRIVER SIDE AIRBAG MAY RUPTURE
R/2014/04822/04/201407/12/2006 – 29/06/200726,210DRIVERS AIRBAG MAY NOT FUNCTION
R/2014/04822/04/201404/07/2007 – 08/07/200826,210DRIVERS AIRBAG MAY NOT FUNCTION
R/2014/04822/04/201403/11/2005 – 28/11/200826,210DRIVERS AIRBAG MAY NOT FUNCTION
R/2012/11826/10/201201/09/2006 – 02/12/2008138,049FIRE MAY OCCUR
R/2012/08512/09/201231/10/2005 – 31/08/201065,863REAR SUSPENSION ARM MAY SEPARATE
R/2012/08512/09/201231/10/2005 – 31/10/201065,863REAR SUSPENSION ARM MAY SEPARATE
R/2012/08512/09/201231/10/2008 – 31/08/201065,863REAR SUSPENSION ARM MAY SEPARATE
R/2012/08512/09/201231/08/2005 – 31/08/201065,863REAR SUSPENSION ARM MAY SEPARATE
R/2010/01006/02/2010174,426ACCELERATOR PEDAL MAY FAIL TO RETURN TO IDLE
R/2006/01209/08/200619/05/1995 – 31/07/19951,998FRONT COIL SPRING MAY FRACTURE RESULTING IN THE POSSIBILITY OF TYRE DAMAGE
R/2006/05726/07/200618/09/2003 – 02/09/200511AIRBAGS MAY NOT INFLATE DURING A COLLISION
R/2006/04906/06/200604/07/2001 – 15/09/2004851ROAD WHEEL SPOKES MAY CRACK AND SEPARATE

DVSA lists 36 safety recall campaigns for the Toyota RAV4, covering roughly 1,134,858 vehicles in total. A recall is the manufacturer fixing a fault for free, so an open recall on your car costs nothing to clear.

Counter-intuitive, and measured on our own data: across the 25 families published here, more recalls go with a lower MOT Risk Index (r = −0.52). Heavily recalled models are not worse cars in the test bay — an active manufacturer removes the fault before it becomes an MOT failure.

Check whether a specific car has an outstanding recall — free, by registration — at DVSA's recall service. Source: DVSA vehicle safety recalls (check-vehicle-recalls.service.gov.uk), OGL.

Toyota RAV4 technical service bulletins: what dealers are told

US market, Toyota RAV4 and its variants, model years 2015–2022 only. A count of bulletins, not a UK failure rate.

NHTSA manufacturer communications are 942.

bigger number = more recorded dealer communicationsnot affected vehicles or confirmed faults

These are the issues the manufacturer fixes quietly: service communications sent to dealers without a public recall campaign. They show what the service network has been told even when the issue never became news.

United States · NHTSA manufacturer communications

US technical service bulletins by communication year; leading subjects cover the full file
Communication yearBulletinsLeading subjects across all years
20011
  • Equipment (373)
  • Electrical system (306)
  • Structure (91)
  • Engine (69)
  • Engine and cooling (62)
  • Adaptive and mobility equipment (52)
  • Powertrain (48)
  • Petrol fuel system (41)
201427
201589
201671
201748
201851
201997
2020170
202189
202295
202349
2024103
202533
202618

Caveat worth stating plainly: this is NHTSA data about US-specification cars. British cars sold under the same name often use different gearboxes, engines and equipment, so a bulletin may describe a component that was never fitted here. The file counts dealer communications, not affected vehicles or confirmed failures, and it cannot tell you whether an individual UK car has the issue. A communication can carry more than one subject tag, so topic counts do not have to add up to the total. Source: NHTSA Manufacturer Communications API (US-market vehicles; queried model years 2015-2022). Licence: U.S. Government work / public domain · retrieved 2026-09-25.

Toyota RAV4 owner complaints: what goes wrong

US market, Toyota RAV4 and its variants, model years 2015–2022 only. A count of owner complaints, not a UK failure rate; NHTSA has no UK denominator.

Lamps & electrical are highest at 841; Transmission (not MOT-tested) is lowest at 239 — the gap is 602.

bigger number = more recorded casescompare like-for-like scope, not sample size alone

Owner complaints (US) against actual MOT failures (UK) for the same component groups
ComponentComplaintsShareMOT fail items per 100MOT rankAgreement
Lamps & electrical84124.4%17.6#1complained about and fails often
Engine (not MOT-tested)61517.8%not in top 6—complained about, rarely an MOT failure
Restraints37811.0%not in top 6—complained about, rarely an MOT failure
Body & structure2808.1%4.9#6complained about, fails occasionally
Brakes2627.6%11.8#3complained about and fails often
Transmission (not MOT-tested)2396.9%not in top 6—complained about, rarely an MOT failure

Two different populations answering two different questions: the MOT records what an inspector can measure once a year, the complaint file records what annoyed or frightened an owner on the road. A component high in one column and absent from the other is the interesting case — driver-assistance and electronics dominate complaints while almost never appearing as an MOT failure item.

What the reports actually say
Purchased less than 2 months ago from Performance Mitsubishi in Delray Beach FL. Lift gate was not opening and closing properly. Yesterday the hinges broke and lift gate won't shut. It appears there is a class action lawsuit for this issue. I am now responsible for fixing this because the dealership won't.
NHTSA complaint, filed 05/19/2026 · STRUCTURE
On Friday February 27, 2026 as the vehicle was being driven it caught fire. Fire department and sheriffs office was called to the scene. Vehicle fire was put out but the whole front end burned.
NHTSA complaint, filed 03/02/2026 · ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

US owners have filed 3,448 complaints about the equivalent Toyota RAV4 to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, including 264 that mention a crash, 124 a fire and 211 an injury. These are owner reports, not verified findings — but they are the only large public record of what drivers themselves notice, and they cover the years between MOT tests.

Caveat worth stating plainly: US-specification cars, self-selected reporters, no denominator — complaint counts scale with how many cars were sold there and how motivated owners are to file. The mechanical gap matters as much as the statistical one: American cars of the same name often carry different gearboxes, engines and equipment — automatics where Britain buys manuals — so a drivetrain complaint filed in Ohio may describe a part that was never fitted here. Read the ranking inside a model, not between models, and treat drivetrain entries with particular caution. Source: NHTSA ODI consumer complaints (US market, public domain) — US-spec vehicles, indicative only.

Toyota RAV4 inspection results in other countries

Netherlands APK is well below the reference at 39.2%, against 50.8% nationally.

higher = larger sharecompare shares in percentage points

Same model, different national inspection regimes
CountryTestThis model failsNational averagePositionSample
United KingdomMOT (class 4)23.21%26.01%-2.8 pp130,592
NorwayPKK29.8%33.7%-3.9 pp34,688
NetherlandsAPK39.2%50.8%-11.6 pp26,137
FinlandKatsastus17.9%26.3%-8.4 pp15,565

The verdict is consistent across every regime where the difference is clear, which is the strongest form this comparison takes: independent inspectorates, different rulebooks, same direction of travel.

What Finland fails it for — share of recorded faults
Fault areaShare
Axles, wheels and suspension41.8%
Brake systems28.2%
Chassis and body12.6%
Environmental hazards8.4%
Steering equipment3%

Useful as a cross-check on the UK defect table above: the categories are named differently, but a component that dominates in both regimes is a genuine weak point of the model rather than an artefact of one country's testing style.

The exact faults Netherlands records — APK defect codes, 2024
CodeFaultRecordedType
210Tyre pressure not at the correct value4,508failure
391Wipers leave insufficient visibility1,839failure
205Tyre with insufficient tread1,805failure
516Dipped headlight incorrectly aimed1,460failure
497Number-plate light not working or missing1,441failure
AC1Tyre down to 1.6–2.5 mm of tread1,261advisory
584Sidelight not working properly943failure
203Tyre damaged772failure

Worth dwelling on how mundane the top of that list is: tyre pressure, tread depth, headlight aim. The Dutch APK records 0.901 defects per inspection against a much higher national failure rate than Britain's, and the reason is not that Dutch cars are worse — it is that the two regimes draw the line between "note it" and "fail it" in different places. Codes are the RDW's own; the English wording here is our translation of the Dutch original.

Britain is not the only country that inspects every car every year, and the Toyota RAV4 is on the road in all of them. Each national regime writes its own rules, so the pass rates below are not comparable to each other — what does travel across a border is whether a model sits above or below its own country's average.

Rows with fewer than 500 inspections are not published. Sources: Statens vegvesen — Periodisk kjøretøykontroll (PKK) 2024, CC BY 4.0; RDW open data — Meldingen Keuringsinstantie + Geconstateerde Gebreken + Gekentekende voertuigen (2024), CC0. Not an RDW endorsement.; Traficom — Periodic inspections of cars by model / by model and fault object 2024, CC BY 4.0. Adapted; licences and full notice.

Toyota RAV4 MOT: quick answers

Toyota RAV4 MOT Risk Index is well below the reference at 81.2, against 100 for a car with the same age profile.

below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age

What is the Toyota RAV4 first-time MOT pass rate?
76.79% of first attempts passed in 2024 (130,592 tests). This is the first-time figure: retests after repair are excluded. Basis: first-time, excluding retests.
Why does this number differ from other sites?
Other sites often report a pass rate that includes retests or counts all attempts. Our 23.21% figure is the first-time initial failure rate, using 130,592 primary tests as the denominator (first-time, excluding retests). The age-adjusted MOT initial-failure ratio 81.2 is shown separately because raw rates compare fleet age as well as cars.

Compare the Toyota RAV4 with other cars

Toyota RAV4 is highest at 81.2; Honda Jazz is lowest at 80.8 — the gap is 0.4 points.

below 100 is betterabove 100 is worse100 = normal for this model at that age

Same brand

All Toyota MOT statisticsToyota Prius MOT statsToyota Aygo MOT stats

Similar risk

Honda e (index 81.0)Honda Jazz (index 80.8)Volkswagen Tiguan (index 80.8)

Same size class

how Audi Q3 compareshow Audi A5 compareshow Land Rover Range Rover Sport compares

By build year

Toyota RAV4 1998Toyota RAV4 1999Toyota RAV4 2000Toyota RAV4 2001Toyota RAV4 2002Toyota RAV4 2003Toyota RAV4 2004Toyota RAV4 2005Toyota RAV4 2006Toyota RAV4 2007Toyota RAV4 2008Toyota RAV4 2009Toyota RAV4 2010Toyota RAV4 2011Toyota RAV4 2012Toyota RAV4 2013Toyota RAV4 2014Toyota RAV4 2015Toyota RAV4 2016Toyota RAV4 2017Toyota RAV4 2018Toyota RAV4 2019Toyota RAV4 2020

By area

Toyota RAV4 MOT failure rate by postcode area

By failure group

Toyota RAV4 body, chassis and structure failuresToyota RAV4 brakes failuresToyota RAV4 vehicle identification failuresToyota RAV4 lamps, reflectors and electrics failuresToyota RAV4 noise, emissions and leaks failuresToyota RAV4 road wheels failuresToyota RAV4 seat belts and airbags failuresToyota RAV4 steering failuresToyota RAV4 suspension failuresToyota RAV4 tyres failuresToyota RAV4 visibility failures

Inspections abroad

Toyota RAV4 in NorwayToyota RAV4 in FinlandToyota RAV4 in the Netherlands


Data details & how to cite

Scope: class-4 vehicles (cars), initial tests only, outcomes pass / fail / fixed-on-the-spot at the station (PRS counts towards the failure rate — the defect was present at arrival). Index = observed initial failures ÷ failures expected for this fleet's exact age profile, ×100; margin of error is a 95% confidence interval. Covers ALL generations together — a 3-year-old and a 15-year-old are very different cars; a generation split is on the roadmap. Dataset release dataset_release_id=dvsa-2024-v2, frozen baseline; headline claim_id=family-stats:toyota-rav4:dvsa-2024-v2. Full method: methodology.

Cite: MOT Risk Index (2026). Toyota RAV4 MOT statistics 2024 (data release dvsa-2024-v2; downloadable dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, doi:10.5281/zenodo.22975051). https://motriskindex.co.uk/cars/toyota-rav4/ · Published 2026-07-30.