Toyota MR2 MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Toyota MR2 MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Toyota MR2 passed on its first attempt in 70.9%, and its overall record sits −5.1 percentage points below the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Toyota MR2 in the 2023–2025 data: 24,989 tests across 9 model years (2000–2008). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.

Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.

Most Common Toyota MR2 MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Toyota MR2, the Brakes section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.

Shares are over the Toyota MR2's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Toyota MR2 DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Toyota MR2, each with how many of the model's 24,989 tests it was noted on.

• "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements" (Major) — noted on about 2,147 Toyota MR2 tests, 8.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Parking brake performance inoperative on one side" (Major) — noted on about 1,159 Toyota MR2 tests, 4.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Headlamp lens slightly defective" (Minor) — noted on about 1,099 Toyota MR2 tests, 4.4% of the model's MOT record.
• "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (Minor) — noted on about 613 Toyota MR2 tests, 2.5% of the model's MOT record.
• "Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits" (Major) — noted on about 611 Toyota MR2 tests, 2.4% of the model's MOT record.
• "Service brake performance excessively binding" (Major) — noted on about 526 Toyota MR2 tests, 2.1% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Toyota MR2 Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Toyota MR2 model year on record is 2008 (83.8% across 99 tests), and the weakest is 2000 (73.4%). The gap between them is 10.4 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Toyota MR2 reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.1 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.

Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for Toyota MR2 Owners

These checks follow this Toyota MR2's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Toyota MR2.

• the lights — “headlamp lens slightly defective”

  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.

• the exhaust and emissions — “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.

• the windscreen — “windscreen damaged”

  Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Toyota MR2. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Where the Toyota MR2 is most common

Across every MR2 model year on record (2000–2008): 10,391 Toyota MR2 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 24,988 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 297 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.

The twenty areas with the most Toyota MR2 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 →

Frequently Asked Questions: Toyota MR2 MOT & Reliability