Pass rate
79.9%
Around average — 6.8 pts ahead of the 73.1% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 139 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £54–£206
2008 Toyota Celica MOT pass rate
- 2008
- typical 120,895 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Emissions & leaks
20.7% of faults · 5.5% nationally
Which year to buy
- Best 2009 83.3% pass
- Avoid 2000 71.4% pass
Across the 10 years on record, a spread of 11.9 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 76.3%
- Typical mileage
- 121k mi
The 2008 Toyota Celica MOT pass rate is 79.9% of its MOT tests — 6.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Emissions & leaks is the biggest single reason it fails, at 20.7% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 3.8× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 20.7% of everything recorded on the 2008 Toyota Celica, against 5.5% nationally — 15.2 points above. A smoky diesel or a leaking joint fails on emissions more often than on wear, so ask for a recent emissions printout.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 73.1% and this one manages 79.9% — 6.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 16% of this model’s typical repairs come in under £30 in parts — the failures here tend to be the kind that need a garage rather than a bulb.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a Toyota Celica? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2008 Toyota Celica compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.1%, so this figure is 6.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 76.3%. The median 2008 Toyota Celica in this dataset had covered 120,895 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 78.6% of the time, April–September 80.7%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits", noted on 7.19% of tests.
- 139 recorded tests behind this page.
- 79.9% overall pass rate, 76.3% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Toyota Celica, the average is 73.3% — best year 2009 (83.3%), worst 2000 (71.4%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 139
- Typical mileage (median)
- 120,895 mi
- Make and model
- Toyota Celica
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Emissions Repair
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the Celica MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 60% so small gaps stay visible.
Where the Toyota Celica is most common
Across all Celica model years on record (2000–2009): 11,278 Toyota Celica cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 27,501 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 375 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Birmingham (B) | 375 | 79.3% |
| 2 | Sheffield (S) | 256 | 75.6% |
| 3 | Leicester (LE) | 229 | 76.7% |
| 4 | Bristol (BS) | 218 | 67.9% |
| 5 | Portsmouth (PO) | 212 | 72.5% |
| 6 | Peterborough (PE) | 201 | 73.0% |
| 7 | Crawley (RH) | 196 | 75.8% |
| 8 | Guildford (GU) | 193 | 74.7% |
| 9 | Nottingham (NG) | 192 | 70.1% |
| 10 | Southampton (SO) | 187 | 70.4% |
| 11 | Norwich (NR) | 183 | 71.1% |
| 12 | Brighton (BN) | 180 | 71.7% |
| 13 | Reading (RG) | 173 | 75.5% |
| 14 | Ashford (TN) | 172 | 74.2% |
| 15 | Coventry (CV) | 171 | 72.5% |
| 16 | Ipswich (IP) | 167 | 71.3% |
| 17 | Cardiff (CF) | 161 | 69.0% |
| 18 | Doncaster (DN) | 159 | 70.9% |
| 19 | Poole (BH) | 157 | 69.8% |
| 20 | Milton Keynes (MK) | 157 | 74.9% |
The twenty areas with the most Toyota Celica cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the Celica
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South West | 28 | 78.6% |
| East of England | 24 | 66.7% |
| South East | 24 | 70.8% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2008 Celica
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2008 Celica
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the exhaust and emissions 7.2% of tests
“catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits”
Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.
-
Check the wipers and washers 3.6% of tests
“wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively”
Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.
-
Check the lights 2.9% of tests
“rear fog lamp not working”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2008 Celica through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £54–£206 — and 16% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £54–£206
- Cheapest common item: rear fog lamp not working
- £3–£15
- Dearest common item: catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd…
- £60–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 30%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 16%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 139 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the Celica, side by side
10 model years on record, from 2000 to 2009. Across them the pass rate runs from 71.4% to 83.3% — a spread of 11.9 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 71.4% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2001 74.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2002 74.1% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2003 71.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2004 72.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2005 73.7% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2006 74.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 78.6% catalyst emissions carbon…
- 2008 79.9%catalyst emissions lambda reading…
- 2009 83.3% steering rack gaiter missing or…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2008 Toyota Celica with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2008 cars with a similar record
Closest pass rates among 2008 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2008 Toyota Celica 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 327 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 68 | 20.70% | 5.52% | +15.18 |
| Brakes | 61 | 18.50% | 20.89% | −2.39 |
| Suspension | 58 | 17.60% | 20.98% | −3.38 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 42 | 12.80% | 12.21% | +0.59 |
| Tyres | 31 | 9.40% | 19.76% | −10.36 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 26 | 7.90% | 5.57% | +2.33 |
| Visibility | 18 | 5.50% | 4.97% | +0.53 |
| Non-component advisories | 9 | 2.70% | 4.18% | −1.48 |
| Steering | 7 | 2.10% | 2.57% | −0.47 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 7 | 2.10% | 1.76% | +0.34 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 7.2% | £60–250 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 5.8% | £80–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 5.0% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 5.0% | £60–250 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 3.6% | £8–22 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 2.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 2.9% | £60–250 |
| Rear fog lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.9% | £3–15 |
| Battery(ies) insecure but not likely to fall from carrier Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 2.2% | £60–140 |
| Catalyst emissions hydrocarbon content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 2.2% | £60–250 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 17.3% | £200–700 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 12.2% | £80–180 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 10.1% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 8.6% | £45–110 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 8.6% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 7.2% | £18–45 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-60k | 9 | 88.9% | 44,564 mi |
| 60-90k | 16 | 68.8% | 78,574 mi |
| 90-120k | 42 | 88.1% | 106,357 mi |
| 120k+ | 72 | 76.4% | 154,893 mi |
Source: 139 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2008 Celica MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2008 Toyota Celica?
79.9% of the 139 2008 Toyota Celica tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.1% for cars first used in 2008. First-attempt pass rate: 76.3%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2008 Toyota Celica?
The three most recorded items are catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (7.19%), joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated (5.76%), catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits (5.04%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2008 Toyota Celica MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 88.9% of the time, falling to 76.4% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2008 Toyota Celica in this dataset had covered 120,895 mi.
Does the season affect the 2008 Toyota Celica MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 78.6% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 80.7%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.