Pass rate
74.3%
Below average — 1.2 pts ahead of the 73.1% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 6,171 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £23–£65
2008 Toyota Rav-4 MOT pass rate
- 2008
- typical 116,002 mi
Most common fault
Suspension
34.7% of faults · 21.0% nationally
mostly worn arm bushes, split ball-joint boots and broken coil springs.
Part only £40–£65 for Shock absorber leaking. What fitting it takes →
2.7 pts down across model years — 3.4% in 2000, 0.7% in 2014.
Which year to buy
- Best 2014 85.9% pass
- Avoid 2006 72.8% pass
Across the 16 years on record, a spread of 13.1 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 67.1%
- Typical mileage
- 116k mi
The 2008 Toyota Rav-4 MOT pass rate is 74.3% of its MOT tests — 1.2 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Suspension is the biggest single reason it fails, at 34.7% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Toyota Rav-4 does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Suspension: 1.7× the national share
Suspension accounts for 34.7% of everything recorded on the 2008 Toyota Rav-4, against 21.0% nationally — 13.7 points above. Ask for the front and rear suspension to be checked on a ramp before you buy — worn bushes and broken springs are cheap to look at and expensive to discover at test time.
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 Rav-4? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2008 Toyota Rav-4 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.1%, so this figure is 1.2 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 67.1%. The median 2008 Toyota Rav-4 in this dataset had covered 116,002 mi.
The most common fuel recorded here is Diesel — 66% of tests, with a 72.3% pass rate. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 74.2% of the time, April–September 74.5%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 9.71% of tests.
- 6,171 recorded tests behind this page.
- 74.3% overall pass rate, 67.1% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Toyota Rav-4, the average is 77.5% — best year 2014 (85.9%), worst 2006 (72.8%).
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
- 6,171
- Typical mileage (median)
- 116,002 mi
- Make and model
- Toyota Rav-4
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Number Plate Lamp
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Rav-4 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 61% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (66% of tests).
Regional pass rates for the Rav-4
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 1,375 | 79.2% |
| South West | 967 | 71.5% |
| East of England | 621 | 77.5% |
| North West | 574 | 74.2% |
| West Midlands | 546 | 74.4% |
| Yorkshire | 463 | 74.3% |
| Scotland | 424 | 63.9% |
| Wales | 369 | 70.2% |
| East Midlands | 368 | 71.5% |
| London | 240 | 83.3% |
| North East | 223 | 70.4% |
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 Rav-4
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 Rav-4
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 lights 9.7% of tests
“registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”
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.
-
Check the windscreen 4.0% of tests
“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.
-
Check the shock absorbers 3.3% of tests
“shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak”
Press down hard on each corner of the car and let go. It should settle in one bounce; if it keeps rocking, or you can see oil weeping down a shock absorber, that is the fault a tester will find.
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 Rav-4 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £23–£65 — and 44% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £23–£65
- Cheapest common item: registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the…
- £5–£20
- Dearest common item: windscreen damaged
- £80–£200
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 80%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 44%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 6,171 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 Rav-4, side by side
16 model years on record, from 2000 to 2015. Across them the pass rate runs from 72.8% to 85.9% — a spread of 13.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2000 73.8% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2001 75.1% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2002 75.7% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2003 75.9% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2004 76.0% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2005 76.4% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2006 72.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 73.0% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2008 74.3%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2009 77.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2010 79.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2011 80.9% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2012 82.8% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2013 85.1% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2014 85.9% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2015 85.3% headlamp not working on dipped…
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 Rav-4 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
- Volkswagen Jetta 74.3%
- Mercedes-Benz A-Class 74.2%
- SEAT Leon 74.2%
- Volkswagen Scirocco 74.4%
- Audi A3 74.1%
- Suzuki Grand Vitara 74.5%
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 Rav-4 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 17,424 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 6,120 | 34.70% | 20.98% | +13.72 |
| Brakes | 3,283 | 18.60% | 20.89% | −2.29 |
| Tyres | 1,990 | 11.30% | 19.76% | −8.46 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 1,871 | 10.60% | 12.21% | −1.61 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 1,387 | 7.90% | 5.57% | +2.33 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 814 | 4.60% | 5.52% | −0.92 |
| Non-component advisories | 781 | 4.40% | 4.18% | +0.22 |
| Visibility | 688 | 3.90% | 4.97% | −1.07 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 263 | 1.50% | 1.76% | −0.26 |
| Steering | 227 | 1.30% | 2.57% | −1.27 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 9.7% | £5–20 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 4.0% | £80–200 |
| Position lamp not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.6% | £5–25 |
| Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak Suspension | Major | 3.3% | £30–75 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 3.1% | £18–45 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 2.8% | £18–45 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Suspension | Major | 2.7% | £18–45 |
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 2.2% | £45–110 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 2.1% | £5–20 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Major | 1.9% | £40–150 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 18.5% | £40–150 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 17.7% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 15.1% | £45–110 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 15.1% | £25–65 |
| Sub-frame corroded and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 11.7% | £180–450 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 10.3% | £80–180 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 7 | 100.0% | 26,905 mi |
| 30-60k | 384 | 84.4% | 48,654 mi |
| 60-90k | 1,028 | 80.4% | 77,537 mi |
| 90-120k | 1,943 | 75.6% | 106,104 mi |
| 120k+ | 2,807 | 69.8% | 150,128 mi |
Source: 6,171 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 Rav-4 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2008 Toyota Rav-4?
74.3% of the 6,171 2008 Toyota Rav-4 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.1% for cars first used in 2008. First-attempt pass rate: 67.1%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2008 Toyota Rav-4?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (9.71%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (3.99%), position lamp not working (3.65%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2008 Toyota Rav-4 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 69.8% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2008 Toyota Rav-4 in this dataset had covered 116,002 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2008 Toyota Rav-4?
Diesel: 72.3% pass rate across 4,062 tests. Petrol: 78.4% pass rate across 2,109 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2008 Toyota Rav-4 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 74.2% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 74.5%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.