All generations and engines together · 6,866 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 68k
Middling among SUVs, by age and by mileage. Watch suspension and brakes. A fair used buy, provided its MOT history has no repeating suspension advisories.
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
The EGR cooler and the pipework around it clog with soot over time on the 2.8 and 3.0 D-4D engines, and the heat coming off a blocked cooler has been known to cook the wiring loom running past cylinder six. Owners report rough idle, a smoky exhaust or a check-engine light as the first signs, usually well past 80,000 miles. Cleaning or replacing the cooler and associated pipework is not a quick job on this platform because of what has to come off to get at it, so labour adds up on top of parts.
The 1KD-FTV 3.0 diesel used in Land Cruisers up to around 2015 has a documented history of piston cracking, showing up as a loud knock at idle, a sudden loss of power or the engine running rough on three cylinders. Toyota addressed it with a service campaign in some overseas markets, but UK owners and club members report no formal UK recall for it, so it sits in a grey area: real fault, unclear whether it was ever officially owned up to here. Repair means a new piston and liner at minimum, engine-out labour, so budget four figures if it happens.
Owners of both the 150 and 200 series describe a shudder or rumble-strip feeling on light-throttle downshifts, most often 5th to 4th, which points to torque converter lock-up clutch wear or a failing oil pump seal letting fluid leak into the mix. It tends to show up from around 100,000 miles onwards and gets worse if fluid changes have been skipped. A full transmission and torque converter rebuild is the fix if it's gone too far, and that runs into thousands rather than hundreds. Manual cars are unaffected.
Higher-spec 200-series cars with Active Height Control ride on air springs, and owners report the system failing to hold height, dropping overnight, or refusing to respond to the height switch, usually traced to aged air springs, a height sensor or the compressor and its relay. This lines up with the measured MOT data for the model, where suspension is the standout failure category, though the AHC-specific complaints reported by owners are a different mechanism to the coil springs and bushes that dominate a standard MOT suspension check. Failed height sensors or a compressor are the cheaper end of the fix; leaking air springs cost more.
Diesel Land Cruisers used mainly for short, low-speed trips struggle to complete a passive regeneration, and owners report the DPF warning light coming on followed by limp mode until a proper motorway run (or a forced dealer regen) clears it. It's the same story as most modern diesel SUVs rather than a Land Cruiser-specific weakness, but it catches out buyers who assume a big 4x4 is immune. No parts failure is usually involved, just a filter that needs a proper burn, though a badly neglected one can mean a costly replacement.
Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.
Saveable checklistThe physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.
Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.
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.
The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 2,209 tests in this band.
Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.
Same segment (Family & large SUVs), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.