Toyota Prius MOT pass rate & common failures
The Toyota Prius appears in 866,307 MOT tests spanning model years 1983–2025, and 88.5% of them passed. Against small family cars of a similar age (17.5% fail rate), the Prius comes out 6.0pp better. Its most common failure areas are lighting & signalling, tyres and suspension.
Best and worst Prius years
Ranked across Prius years with at least 1,000 tests. Older cars fail more simply because they are older — compare years close together in age before drawing conclusions.
What the MOT record shows
The strongest year on this record is 2022 (95.0% pass rate); the weakest is 2006 (78.1%). Older cars carry more of the difference than the average implies.
Lighting & signalling dominates the failure mix at 10.2% of all tests — 5.9 points clear of tyres, so it is the first thing to check.
At component level the recurring items are position lamp, registration plate lamp(s) and headlamp — position lamp alone was recorded 33,813 times.
Mileage is the strongest signal on the record: 5.0% of 0-30k cars fail, rising to 14.4% once past 150k — 2.9× the risk.
Split by fuel, petrol examples fail 6.4pp more often than hybrid ones (17.6% vs 11.2%) — worth weighing if you have a choice.
Advisories point at the next bill rather than this one: tyres was flagged on 17.2% of tests without failing them.
How it compares
By model year
Every Prius model year with a usable sample. Years with their own detailed report are linked.
| Year | Tests | Pass rate | Fail rate | Most common failure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 87 | 72.4% | 27.6% | Suspension |
| 2001 | 591 | 75.8% | 24.2% | Suspension |
| 2002 | 325 | 80.0% | 20.0% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2003 | 921 | 77.6% | 22.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2004 | 5,735 | 78.3% | 21.7% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2005 | 15,217 | 79.2% | 20.8% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2006 | 22,567 | 78.1% | 21.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2007 | 41,249 | 79.4% | 20.6% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2008 | 41,049 | 80.8% | 19.3% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2009 | 41,601 | 81.1% | 18.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2010 | 56,569 | 82.8% | 17.2% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2011 | 43,165 | 84.6% | 15.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2012 | 49,497 | 87.4% | 12.6% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2013 | 52,135 | 88.9% | 11.1% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2014 | 65,051 | 90.6% | 9.4% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2015 | 71,318 | 91.2% | 8.8% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2016 | 79,932 | 92.1% | 7.9% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2017 | 74,836 | 93.3% | 6.7% | Tyres |
| 2018 | 71,403 | 93.8% | 6.2% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2019 | 83,098 | 93.9% | 6.1% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2020 | 35,794 | 92.2% | 7.8% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2021 | 8,824 | 93.9% | 6.1% | Lighting & signalling |
| 2022 | 3,179 | 95.0% | 5.0% | Tyres |
| 2023 | 1,323 | 94.9% | 5.1% | Tyres |
| 2024 | 645 | 96.1% | 3.9% | Tyres |
| 2025 | 190 | 97.9% | 2.1% | Other defects |
Most common failures (all years)
| # | Category | % of tests affected | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lighting & signalling | 10.2% | 88,083 |
| 2 | Tyres | 4.2% | 36,641 |
| 3 | Suspension | 3.9% | 33,843 |
| 4 | Visibility | 3.4% | 29,699 |
| 5 | Brakes | 3.1% | 26,683 |
| 6 | Body, structure & corrosion | 1.3% | 11,154 |
| 7 | Emissions & environmental | 1.1% | 9,871 |
| 8 | Steering | 0.5% | 4,057 |
Most common specific failures
The exact components most often recorded as failures — more specific than the categories above.
| # | Failure item | Times recorded |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Position lamp | 33,813 |
| 2 | Registration plate lamp(s) | 30,250 |
| 3 | Headlamp | 25,455 |
| 4 | Headlamp aim | 24,191 |
| 5 | Tread depth | 22,816 |
| 6 | Wipers | 22,658 |
| 7 | Brake pads | 13,132 |
| 8 | Linkage ball joint dust cover | 11,198 |
Top advisory categories
Advisories aren't failures, but they flag work likely needed soon — useful when budgeting.
| # | Category | % of tests with advisory | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tyres | 17.2% | 148,975 |
| 2 | Brakes | 14.6% | 126,460 |
| 3 | Suspension | 11.9% | 102,894 |
| 4 | Lighting & signalling | 7.5% | 64,873 |
| 5 | Other defects | 7.0% | 60,848 |
| 6 | Body, structure & corrosion | 3.7% | 31,831 |
Failure rate by mileage
Higher-mileage cars tend to fail more — often the most useful guide to real condition.
| Mileage band | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 53,345 | 5.0% |
| 30-60k | 125,753 | 7.0% |
| 60-90k | 137,942 | 9.8% |
| 90-120k | 127,439 | 11.9% |
| 120-150k | 114,011 | 12.9% |
| 150k+ | 307,128 | 14.4% |
Failure rate by age
By fuel type
| Fuel | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | 823,843 | 11.2% |
| Electric | 19,787 | 17.0% |
| Other | 14,154 | 16.2% |
| Petrol | 8,427 | 17.6% |
| Diesel | 83 | 21.7% |
Trend over time
| Dataset year | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 153,440 | 11.1% |
| 2022 | 167,839 | 10.9% |
| 2023 | 179,159 | 11.3% |
| 2024 | 181,960 | 11.9% |
| 2025 | 183,909 | 11.9% |
What to check before buying a Toyota Prius
- Lighting & signalling (10.2% of tests): Often a cheap bulb, but persistent issues can mean wiring or corrosion in the units. Typical repair: £10–£150.
- Tyres (4.2% of tests): Usually a quick, known-cost fix, but check tread, age and uneven wear (which can hint at alignment or suspension issues). Typical repair: £50–£120 per tyre.
- Suspension (3.9% of tests): Worn drop links, bushes, springs or shocks — listen for knocks over bumps and check for uneven tyre wear. Typical repair: £150–£450 per corner.
Repair costs are rough UK ballpark ranges to set expectations, not quotes — actual prices vary widely by car, parts and garage.
Frequently asked questions
What is the MOT pass rate for the Toyota Prius?
88.5% of the 866,307 Toyota Prius MOT tests in this dataset passed, an 11.5% fail rate, across model years 1983–2025.
What does the Toyota Prius most often fail its MOT on?
Lighting & signalling, recorded in 10.2% of tests, then tyres (4.2%).
Which Prius years are best and worst for MOT results?
2022 has the best pass rate at 95.0% and 2006 the weakest at 78.1%, from 3,179 and 22,567 tests respectively.
How much does mileage affect Prius MOT results?
Fail rates run at 5.0% for cars in the 0-30k band and 14.4% for 150k+, a 9.3-point difference.
Is the hybrid or petrol Prius more reliable at MOT time?
On MOT-testable defects the hybrid fails 11.2% of the time against 17.6% for the petrol. This covers testable items only, not engine or gearbox reliability.
Methodology & source. Based on 866,307 MOT tests. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-27. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.