Pass rate, every year
8,027 tests across 14 model years, 2008–2021.
+7.2 pts vs the national average
Pass rate, every year
8,027 tests across 14 model years, 2008–2021.
+7.2 pts vs the national average
Best year to buy
2016 93.6%
The strongest of the 14 years on record. See the 2016 page →
Worst year to buy
2021 84.8%
8.8 points below the 2016 peak. See the 2021 page →
The Toyota Vellfire MOT pass rate is 88.2%, +7.2 percentage points above the UK average. That is 8,027 DVSA MOT tests recorded between 2008 and 2021. This page lists the most common Toyota Vellfire MOT failures by category, names the best and worst model years, and finishes with a pre-MOT checklist you can run at home.
The Toyota Vellfire passed on its first attempt in 86.8%, and its overall record sits +7.2 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Toyota Vellfire in the 2023–2025 data: 8,027 tests across 14 model years (2008–2021). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.
| Measure | This model |
|---|---|
| Tests analysed | 8,027 |
| Overall pass rate | 88.2% |
| Passed on first attempt | 86.8% |
| Average mileage at test | 68,062 mi |
| Model years covered | 2008–2021 (14 years) |
| Versus UK national average | +7.2 pts above |
Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.
Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Toyota Vellfire, the Suspension section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.
| Inspection section | Share of failures |
|---|---|
| Suspension | 48% |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 37% |
| Visibility | 9% |
| Body, chassis, structure | 2% |
| Brakes | 2% |
| Tyres | 1% |
| Steering | 1% |
Shares are over the Toyota Vellfire's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.
Around 48% of the recorded Toyota Vellfire failures fall in the Suspension section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated" (3.3%), "Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated" (2.0%), "Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt" (1.9%) among the Toyota Vellfire's suspension faults.
Around 37% of the recorded Toyota Vellfire failures fall in the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (1.9%), "Rear fog lamp not working" (1.4%), "Rear fog lamp missing" (1.1%) among the Toyota Vellfire's lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment faults.
Around 9% of the recorded Toyota Vellfire failures fall in the Visibility section of the MOT inspection manual. Testers recorded "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively" (1.2%), "Wipers blade defective" (0.2%), "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (0.1%) among the Toyota Vellfire's visibility faults.
The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Toyota Vellfire, each with how many of the model's 8,027 tests it was noted on.
The strongest Toyota Vellfire model year on record is 2016 (93.6% across 140 tests), and the weakest is 2021 (84.8%). The gap between them is 8.8 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.
Toyota Vellfire reliability is declining in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.2 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.
| Year | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 Vellfire | 99 | 84.8% |
| 2020 Vellfire | 84 | 91.7% |
| 2019 Vellfire | 109 | 91.7% |
| 2018 Vellfire | 107 | 88.8% |
| 2017 Vellfire | 130 | 91.5% |
| 2016 Vellfire | 140 | 93.6% |
| 2015 Vellfire | 221 | 88.7% |
| 2014 Vellfire | 436 | 92.0% |
| 2013 Vellfire | 726 | 91.6% |
| 2012 Vellfire | 1,153 | 89.8% |
| 2011 Vellfire | 723 | 86.6% |
| 2010 Vellfire | 1,810 | 86.4% |
| 2009 Vellfire | 1,260 | 87.3% |
| 2008 Vellfire | 1,029 | 85.9% |
Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.
These checks follow this Toyota Vellfire's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Toyota Vellfire.
the suspension joints — “ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”
With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.
the lights — “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.
the wipers and washers — “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.
Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Toyota Vellfire. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.
Across every Vellfire model year on record (2008–2021): 4,857 Toyota Vellfire cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 8,027 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 298 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) | 298 | 93.5% |
| 2 | Southampton (SO) | 235 | 86.0% |
| 3 | London (E) | 171 | 94.9% |
| 4 | Ilford (IG) | 145 | 94.8% |
| 5 | Romford (RM) | 130 | 91.7% |
| 6 | Warrington (WA) | 129 | 84.3% |
| 7 | Bradford (BD) | 124 | 98.2% |
| 8 | Bristol (BS) | 121 | 78.6% |
| 9 | Portsmouth (PO) | 120 | 75.2% |
| 10 | Guildford (GU) | 120 | 91.4% |
| 11 | Derby (DE) | 109 | 89.3% |
| 12 | Stourbridge (DY) | 106 | 95.1% |
| 13 | Wigan (WN) | 105 | 95.6% |
| 14 | Peterborough (PE) | 98 | 92.4% |
| 15 | Enfield (EN) | 93 | 94.6% |
| 16 | Swansea (SA) | 90 | 92.7% |
| 17 | Maidstone (ME) | 87 | 92.2% |
| 18 | Plymouth (PL) | 85 | 89.2% |
| 19 | Sheffield (S) | 78 | 95.4% |
| 20 | Canterbury (CT) | 77 | 82.6% |
The twenty areas with the most Toyota Vellfire 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 →
88.2% of the 8,027 recorded Toyota Vellfire MOT tests ended in a pass, +7.2 percentage points above the national average. 86.8% of those passed on the first attempt.
2016 is the strongest Toyota Vellfire year on record at 93.6%, while 2021 is the weakest at 84.8%. The year-by-year table below lists every model year with at least 50 recorded tests.
The most recorded Toyota Vellfire failures are "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated" and "Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated" — together around 5% of tests, mostly in the Suspension section.