Toyota Corolla MOT failures and reliability

In 2023 the Toyota Corolla took 105,950 MOT tests in Britain and passed 71% of them first time, close to the national average of 71% for all cars. The figures below come from the DVSA's record of every test, so they show what testers actually found on these cars rather than what owners report.

MOT tests in 2023: 105,950
First-time pass rate: 71%
All cars: 71%

What the Corolla fails on

Share of tests with at least one failure in each area, against the figure for all cars.

Lights and electrics14.7% (all cars 11.3%)
Brakes9.0% (all cars 6.8%)
Visibility6.1% (all cars 4.8%)
Tyres5.3% (all cars 6.4%)
Suspension5.1% (all cars 9.0%)
Exhaust and emissions3.4% (all cars 3.1%)
Body and structure3.4% (all cars 3.5%)
Seat belts and airbags1.1% (all cars 1.0%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively 3.6%
Position lamp: not working 3.6%
Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect 3.2%
Stop lamp: not working 3.0%
Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick 2.1%
Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm 1.9%
Headlamp: not working on dipped beam 1.9%
Service brake performance: excessively binding 1.8%

Most common advisories

Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 15.7%
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material 9.3%
Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 8.3%
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 8.2%
Coil spring: corroded 6.8%
Brake pads: wearing thin 6.4%
Registration plates: deteriorated but not likely to be misread 6.1%
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 5.6%

Pass rate by year of registration

Older cars fail more often whatever the model, so compare a car with others of the same age.

First registered	Tests	Pass rate
1997	599	59%
1998	1,167	59%
1999	1,446	63%
2000	1,455	65%
2001	2,404	64%
2002	4,441	59%
2003	6,574	57%
2004	8,684	58%
2005	13,174	59%
2006	14,399	62%
2007	5,380	63%
2008	3,801	63%
2009	1,429	65%
2019	16,249	88%
2020	18,713	89%
2021	1,818	92%
2022	1,695	95%
2023	886	99%

Typical mileage by age

Average odometer reading at the MOT, by the car's age in years at the test.

Age at test	Average mileage
3 years	32,044 miles
4 years	46,492 miles
13 years	103,299 miles
14 years	113,456 miles
15 years	121,058 miles
16 years	115,749 miles
17 years	103,030 miles
18 years	105,068 miles
19 years	103,349 miles
20 years	102,566 miles

Check a particular Corolla

Model figures tell you what to look out for. To see one car's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration.

Other Toyota models

Source: Department for Transport, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023, cars and light vans, normal tests only. Pass rates are first-time passes; a pass after repair at the test station counts as a fail. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.