Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 291,265 tests

Pass rate climbs 13.3 points across the cohorts — newer Prius examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 211,905

Pass

79.1%

Fail

12.3%

PRS

7.9%

Avg mileage at test

143,942 mi

2018–2020 cohort 69,810

Pass

89.1%

Fail

5.7%

PRS

4.7%

Avg mileage at test

78,324 mi

2021+ cohort 9,550

Pass

92.4%

Fail

4.6%

PRS

2.6%

Avg mileage at test

43,642 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

Generations on file · 5

Toyota Prius · UK market

Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.

The picture

Toyota Prius: solid MOT record across 175,017 tests

The Toyota Prius is a car produced by Toyota since 1997 over five generations. The Prius has a hybrid drivetrain, hybrid drivetrain combines an internal combustion engine and an electric motor.

MOT data from 175,017 tests puts this car on a 80.2% first-time pass rate, above the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 127,641 miles. The most common fail item is failed number plate light, followed by headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective.

Buyers weighing up a used Prius should treat the failure breakdown as a pre-purchase checklist. The pass rate is reasonable, but the gap between first attempt and a clean sheet narrows with age and mileage.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 18–26

Around the UK fleet average for insurance cost. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

18–26

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

6,212 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
02

Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

4,478 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
03

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

3,729 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
04

A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

3,675 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
05

A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

3,635 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
06

Wiper blade defective

3,000 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
07

A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc

2,929 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
08

Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

2,676 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
09

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

2,482 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
10

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

2,460 occurrences · 0.8% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 4 failures

£158–£450

If every one of this Prius's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 13.3-point gap between bands means the year you buy Toyota Prius has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

92.4%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 92.4% — a 13.3-point improvement. Tests in this band average 43,642 miles — roughly 100K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, has ply or cords exposed — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

79.1%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 79.1% pass rate against a fleet average of 92.4% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: inoperative in the case of multiple lamps…, lens slightly defective, and not working. Average mileage on test for this band is 143,942 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (92.4% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (79.1% pass). That's a 13.3-point spread across 211,905 older tests and 9,550 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Headlight restoration kit

Yellowed lenses fail the light-output test. A restoration kit lifts the haze in an afternoon for £20.

Search Amazon UK

Item 03 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Draper Expert

Draper Expert Toyota Oil Filter Replacement Tool

£29.69

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Toyota Super White No. 2 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Toyota Lucerne Silver Metallic 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Toyota Tyrol Silver Metallic 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

Get a quote →

Recall history

31 UK recalls on record.

The Prius has 31 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping a Prius?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own a Prius and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.