Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Honda Civic 2000: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 64 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2000 Honda Civic were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Petrol emissions (with catalyst).

Summary

A 2000 Honda Civic passed first time about 5 in every 100 more often than the average of the 1999 and 2001 model years.

At a glance

How 1,362 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
64 in every 100
Did not pass first time
36 in every 100497 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
25 yearsabout 92,938 miles
First tests counted
1,362

What failed most often

  1. Petrol emissions (with catalyst)17 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension mounting area (rear)10 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Headlight aim10 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2000 Honda Civic vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

One fault: suspension arm pins and bushes (rear), 12 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 497 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear)

Failed on 35 first tests12 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Pins and bushes on suspension arms fail as Major when they are excessively worn. They are graded Dangerous when likely to become detached. DVSA uses the same wording for a suspension joint.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 81 first tests, 9.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: petrol engine warning light, 6.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Petrol engine warning light

Failed on 21 first tests6.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

The malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) on a petrol engine is a Major failure when it is illuminated indicating a malfunction. The detail line DVSA gives for the same row also names an inoperative lamp. The test covers only certain petrol vehicles, depending on their age, size and fuel type.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Steering

One fault: steering rack (front), 3.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Steering rack (front)

Failed on 28 first tests3.8 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Steering gear casing retaining devices dangerously loose, or visible relative movement to the chassis or bodywork, is graded Dangerous. A casing not properly attached, or fractured, is Major, but a fracture that affects the stability or attachment of the casing is Dangerous. A gaiter damaged but still keeping dirt out is Minor, and Major once missing or no longer doing so.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Brakes

Two faults. The strongest is the anti-lock braking system (ABS): 2.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 29 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

ABS is failed as removed only where it has obviously been removed, because not every vehicle in the age range where removal is not permitted has ABS. A warning lamp that does not light or shows an ABS fault is Major, as is a missing or excessively damaged wheel speed sensor. Every failure row for this component is Major.

Brake performance (roller test, front)

Failed on 27 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A wheel with no recorded braking effort on the roller test is graded Dangerous. Inadequate effort, a brake grabbing severely, abnormal lag and excessive fluctuation in effort are each Major. So is significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied, which indicates a binding brake.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 29 first tests, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: airbag warning light, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Airbag warning light

Failed on 20 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

The airbag warning lamp (SRS MIL in DVSA's wording) is failed only if it indicates a system malfunction, which is Major. A lamp lit to show the passenger airbag is disabled is not to be regarded as a defect. Dashboard messages are not a defect in their own right, though they can help the tester confirm a malfunction.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Body and structure

Two faults. The strongest is the drive shaft joints and boots (front): 2.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Drive shaft joints and boots (front)

Failed on 49 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A constant velocity boot that is only severely deteriorated is Minor. It is Major once it is missing, split or insecure so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. A transmission joint excessively worn is Major, and graded Dangerous when it is so worn it is likely to fail.

Exhaust system (rear)

Failed on 24 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Exhaust fumes causing a danger to health of persons on board are graded Dangerous, and so is a silencer likely to become detached. Fumes entering the cabin are Major. One or more missing or defective mountings does not necessarily make the exhaust insecure, since testers assess the overall security of the system.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 44 first tests3.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Number plates (rear)

Noted on 44 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Shock absorbers (rear)

Noted on 40 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension arm (front)

Noted on 21 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
64in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
6in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
30in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 63.5% of 1,362 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 69.6%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 30 not fixed make the 36 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

406080100199520002005201020152020Older carsNewer cars
406080100200020102020Newer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 63 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
199578 in every 100325
199663 in every 100482
199759 in every 100755
199861 in every 100857
199962 in every 1001,141
2000 This car64 in every 1001,362
200155 in every 1003,589
200254 in every 1005,292
200353 in every 1006,068
200456 in every 1008,557
200556 in every 10010,433
200653 in every 10011,109
200753 in every 10018,127
200853 in every 10017,412
200954 in every 10016,721
201054 in every 10015,256
201157 in every 10010,444
201269 in every 10012,469
201371 in every 10014,653
201476 in every 10013,892
201579 in every 10014,533
201681 in every 10015,631
201783 in every 10013,989
201885 in every 10012,976
201986 in every 10012,034
202087 in every 1005,301
202188 in every 1004,738
202294 in every 1001,381

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

A 2000 Honda Civic passed first time about 5 in every 100 more often than the average of the 1999 and 2001 model years. In 2025, 63.5% of 1,362 first MOTs on the 2000 Honda Civic passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 69.6%. Among 497 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (7.0% of those tests; 35 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2000 Honda Civic at the first attempt were Petrol emissions (with catalyst) (16.9%), Suspension mounting area (rear) (10.3%) and Headlight aim (10.1%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) (7.0% of those tests; 35 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (7.0% of those tests; 35 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2000 Honda Civic include Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear), Petrol engine warning light, Steering rack (front). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2000 Honda Civic (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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