MOT cost .
Toyota Avensis
MOT 2023
Wikimedia

Toyota

Avensis

88,486 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where Avensiss pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.

That's 3.9 points below the UK fleet average across our 1,988 tracked models — buyers should expect more first-time fails than the typical UK car.

Pass

71.9%

Pass-after-fix

6.8%

Fail

20.6%

Avg miles

119,774

Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%

The picture

119k average miles — lighting failures hit hardest

The Toyota Avensis presents for MOT at an average of 119,774 miles — the highest average mileage in this batch — yet manages only a 71.86% pass rate across 88,486 tests. Rear number plate lamps, inoperative light sources across multi-lamp clusters, and headlamp reflector defects all feature: a lighting-heavy failure list that reflects a car well into its working life.

Owner reports point to deeper mechanical concerns. The 2015 2.0 D-4D with BMW's N47 diesel engine was consuming one litre of oil per 1,000 miles — a serious issue on a car that's expected to rack up miles economically. A/C pump bearing failure on the same year car cost £1,400 at a Toyota dealer; an independent replaced just the bearings for £400. EGR problems on the 1.6 D-4D — also a BMW-sourced engine — surfaced at just 6,000 miles. At this mileage, the Avensis needs a careful pre-MOT inspection: check all lamps, check the reflectors, and factor engine oil consumption into the ownership cost.

Top ten reasons for rejection.

  1. 01

    A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

    4,808 occurrences · 5.4% of tests

  2. 02

    A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

    3,521 occurrences · 4.0% of tests

  3. 03

    Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

    2,778 occurrences · 3.1% of tests

  4. 04

    A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

    2,513 occurrences · 2.8% of tests

  5. 05

    Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

    2,326 occurrences · 2.6% of tests

  6. 06

    Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

    2,132 occurrences · 2.4% of tests

  7. 07

    a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

    2,013 occurrences · 2.3% of tests

  8. 08

    A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

    1,769 occurrences · 2.0% of tests

  9. 09

    A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

    1,657 occurrences · 1.9% of tests

  10. 10

    Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

    1,621 occurrences · 1.8% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 4 failures

£158–£450

If every one of this Avensis's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Headlight restoration kit

Yellowed lenses fail the light-output test. A restoration kit lifts the haze in an afternoon for £20.

Search Amazon UK

Item 03 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

Recent owner-reported faults

  1. 15 Jul 2019

    Report of high oil consumption of 1 litre per 1,000 miles from 2015 Toyota Avensis 2.0 D-4D with BMW N47 diesel engine. Tritan Purple Finish Twin/Full Bunk Bed Twin/Full Metal Bunk Bed, Slat System Included Built-in Side Ladders, Full Length Guardrail, 2" Metal Tube frame, Mattress Not Included K...eBay Friday: The IRS Is Forgiving Millions in Tax Debt Before the May 15 Deadline freshstartinfo.org Ask a Pro: "I'm 65 With $1.1M Saved. What's My Retirement Budget?"This quiz matches nearly 50,000 people each month with vetted financial advisors.SmartAsset Learn More Top 5 Mouse Repellents for 2026 Expert Product Review Learn More Why AI Brings Speech Clarity That Old Hearing Aids Just Can’t Match Understand speech in noise effortlessly AudioNova Cardiologist: "Avoid Bottled Water At All Costs For Your Waistline"Most Americans don't know this yet.Water Health Experts Learn More Sponsored IRS Cuts Millions in Tax Debt Before April 30th Deadline Learn More As the tax relief deadline nears, thousands of Americans are rushing to resolve their tax debts before the IRS imposes hefty penalties.Fresh Start Information Sponsored Stop Wasting Groceries: The Fridge Mistake Most Households Make Consumer Check Sponsored North Charleston: AudioNova is giving free 30-minute hearing checks complete this short quiz to schedule your free hearing test AudioNova [![Image 32: Find Senior Women Who Bring The Spark [See Who's Online]](https://images.outbrainimg.com/transform/v3/eyJpdSI6ImUzNDY5NWJhMzA0NzRhODZiMzJlYzFmNTJkNTM3ZDIxMzZiMWM1MTMzZTBhNDVkNTJkZjQ0ZWFhZDQ2ZTY3YWIiLCJ3Ijo0MDAsImgiOjMwMCwiZCI6MS4wLCJjaCI6LTc1NDE0MjE0NiwiY3MiOjAsImYiOjR9.webp)Sponsored Find Senior Women Who Bring The Spark [See Who's Online]It all starts with a message.amorelation.com Read more](https://amorelation.com/land/sp/17f2ebbb?utm_source=Outbrain&utm_medium=ua&utm_campaign=OBN_Amorelation_USA_All_Native_EU2_NewU_aOBX25_WL-exclude2_Creo-t_Text-t_mua_20Apr&campaign_id=004aea76c4e6e4694169bd0cc89a5ab731&utm_content=Find+Senior+Women+Who+Bring+The+Spark+%5BSee+Who%27s+Online%5D&partner=outbrain_datingsmatch&OutbrainClickId={{ob_click_id}}&subid={{ob_click_id}}&ad_id=00b3c19bfc65a0cbf37f87168b7a2dc38a&publisher_name={{publisher_name}}&section_name={{section_name}}&publisher_id={{publisher_id}}&ad_name={{ad_name}}&obOrigUrl=true) Sponsored Stop Wasting Money on Plumbers: This Simple Foam Fixes Any Drain Trending Deal Journal * Terms and Conditions * Privacy * Cookies * Advertise on this site * Contact * Mobile) Website of the Year 2016, 2017 & 2018

  2. 1 Nov 2018

    Report of a/c pump bearings failing on 2015 Toyota Avensis. Toyota dealer wanted £1,400 to replace the pump. Independent replaced the bearings for £400. (Bit strange because a 2015 shgould have been under Toyota's 5 year warranty.)

  3. 13 Mar 2016

    EGR problem reported on Avensis 1.6 D-4D (BMW engine) at 6,000 miles. First loss of power then unable to start the engine at all.

  4. 5 Aug 2015

    All 'current' Toyota sat-navs use the same software. There is a manufacturer's advisory that if customers complain about nonsense directions in UK, France or Spain and their sat-nav has Software Version: 2.8.4al it requires upgrading free of charge, takes about one hour.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 4 reports indexed

Buying or keeping a Avensis?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own a Avensis and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.