Fault File
All models / All cars / Saloons & estates / Toyota Avensis

Toyota Avensis

All generations and engines together · 31,843 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 95k

First-time failure at age 7
18.1%
Across 1,901 tests. The average across all tracked models is 19.5%.
Rank at age 7
111 of 239
1 = lowest failure rate among the models tracked.
Typical mileage at age 7
95k miles
Check the mileage view below; low-mileage models can look better by age than they are.

Generation

Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.

How this model wears

Toyota AvensisClass average, all tracked models

Known issues

Measured

Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.

What testers flag

Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.

Faults with the car itself

The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 8,808 tests in this band.

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Advisory
11.5%class 5.9%
A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded
Advisory
5.3%class 1.4%
Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users
Advisory
4.5%class 2.0%
A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated
Minor
3.2%class 1.6%
A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED
Fail
1.9%class 0.8%
Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated
Minor
1.7%class 0.7%
A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage
Advisory
1.3%class 2.3%

Wear, upkeep and luck

Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Advisory
27.2%class 22.9%
A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
Advisory
12.1%class 8.7%
Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured
Advisory
11.5%class 10.1%
A tyre seriously damaged
Advisory
9.3%class 12.7%
Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn
Advisory
6.7%class 3.4%
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
Minor
3.7%class 1.2%
A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
Fail
2.7%class 1.6%
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Fail
2.4%class 2.2%

Unconfirmed issues

Reported

Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.

Petrol engines burning oil (VVT-i bore wear)

Confirmed pattern

Early 1.8 and 2.0 VVT-i petrol Avensis, built before July 2005, can burn oil at an alarming rate, sometimes a litre every 600 miles, because of a bore liner defect. It usually shows up from around 40,000 miles as a smoky exhaust and a dipstick reading low between services. Toyota extended the warranty on affected engines to 6 years/100,000 miles by February 2009. Left unchecked it can mean engine work running into four figures.

From ~40k miles, pre-July 2005 build · sources: Honest John

2.2 diesel DPF regeneration overfuelling

Confirmed pattern

On the 2.2 D-4D, failed or incomplete DPF regeneration cycles can overfuel the engine, washing oil off the cylinder bores and damaging piston rings. It shows up as rising oil consumption or a smoky idle rather than an MOT emissions fail, and it isn't limited to one generation, both the 2003-2009 and 2009-2015 2.2 diesels are affected. Toyota extended the warranty on the affected engines to 5 years to cover it. Repair cost ranges from an oil flush to a full rebuild depending on how long it ran overfuelled.

2.2 D-4D, both generations · sources: Honest John

Front-end knocks: steering rack and suspension bushes

Partly in the MOT data

A recurring owner complaint across generations: clonks and rattles from the steering rack, front suspension bushes and wheel bearings, sometimes appearing well inside 100,000 miles, including a reported front bearing replacement at 79,500 miles and a steering rack rattle at 104,000. This is the folklore version of what shows up in the measured data as this model's most common MOT fault category, suspension. It rarely causes a problem early on, but it's the same components wearing out that eventually fail the test.

From ~80k miles · sources: Honest John; ties to the measured MOT signature fault for this segment

BMW-sourced 1.6/2.0 D-4D niggles

Diesel only (2015-2019 models)

The final Avensis, sold 2015-2019, used BMW-designed 1.6 and 2.0 D-4D diesel engines instead of Toyota's own units. Owners have reported an EGR fault causing loss of power and a no-start as early as 6,000 miles on a 1.6, and oil consumption of around a litre every 1,000 miles on the 2.0. Doesn't affect the 1.8 petrol sold alongside it in the same generation.

Reported from very low mileage on some cars · sources: Honest John

Turbo and swirl flap failure on early 2.0 D-4D

Emerging

Owners of 2003-2009 2.0 D-4D belt-cam diesels report turbo failures between 80,000 and 100,000 miles, with some blaming swirl flap separation in the inlet manifold. At least one failure was reported on a car only 9 months old, so it isn't purely a high-mileage problem. No manufacturer acknowledgement found, so treat it as a pattern to budget for rather than a confirmed design fault.

80-100k miles, some earlier · sources: Honest John

Electric parking brake repeat failures

Disputed

A handful of 2009-2010 Avensis estates with the electromechanical parking brake have needed the system replaced more than once, at roughly £1,500 a time. It isn't clear from the reports whether this is a genuine weak point across the range or a small number of unlucky cars getting the same fault repeatedly, so owners are split on how worried to be.

2009-2015 estate · sources: Honest John

Viewing one? Ask this

Built from the two sections above.

Pull the dipstick and ask when the oil was last topped up between services. If nobody can say, a pre-2005 VVT-i petrol may be burning oil quietly and could be running low.
Ask if the DPF light has ever come on and how the warning was cleared. A history of DPF warnings on a 2.2 diesel points at the overfuelling and bore-damage risk Toyota extended the warranty for.
Turn the steering wheel lock to lock at a standstill and listen for knocks. Clunks or rattles point to a worn steering rack or front suspension bushes, this model's most common MOT fault.
On a 2015-2019 1.6 or 2.0 D-4D, check the service book for EGR-related work. Owners have reported EGR failures as early as 6,000 miles on these BMW-sourced diesel engines.
On a 2003-2009 2.0 D-4D, listen for turbo whistle and watch for smoke under hard acceleration. Could be an early sign of turbo or swirl-flap failure, reported from as little as 80,000 miles.
On a 2009-2015 estate, operate the electronic parking brake a few times. Hesitation or a fault light has meant a roughly £1,500 replacement on some cars.
Check the MOT history for the same advisory repeated year after year. The same note showing up three years running means nobody is fixing it, just re-noting it.

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