Toyota Avensis 2017: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 81 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2017 Toyota Avensis were passes.

Summary

The 2017 Toyota Avensis follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 2,212 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
81 in every 100
Did not pass first time
19 in every 100419 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
8 yearsabout 76,789 miles
First tests counted
2,212

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 2017 Toyota Avensis vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Tyres

One wear pattern: tyre pressure monitoring system, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 418 of 419 failed first attempts (99.8%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

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.

Tyre pressure monitoring system

Failed on 34 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A tyre pressure monitoring system that is obviously inoperative is graded Major, and so is one listed as malfunctioning or obviously inoperative. The Minor row uses the word malfunctioning too, but its detail is a warning lamp indicating a fault, and it also covers a tyre that is obviously under-inflated.

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

Visibility

One fault: windscreen wipers (front), 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Windscreen wipers (front)

Failed on 31 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Only a clearly damaged or worn windscreen wiper needs to be rejected. A wiper that is missing or not working is graded Major, and so is a blade that is missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen. A defective blade is graded Minor.

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

Lamps and electrical

One fault: headlight, 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Headlight

Failed on 30 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

On vehicles first used on or after a set date, a halogen headlamp unit converted to take HID or LED bulbs fails for light source and lamp not compatible, which is Major. A complete unit built with those light sources is not failed for that. The precise position of the lamps is not part of the inspection beyond a visual look to see that they sit at about the same height and distance from each side.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. 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
81in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
5in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
14in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 81.1% of 2,212 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 85.6%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 5 fixed and the 14 not fixed make the 19 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as testedPassed first time, same mileage
Diesel1,43990,704 miles7981
Petrol76554,084 miles8584

Figures are in every 100 first tests. Cars with more miles usually fail more often, so the same-mileage figure gives every fuel the mileage mix of all the cars in this year.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002000200520102017Older cars
406080100200020102017Older 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, 83 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200060 in every 100338
200159 in every 100467
200260 in every 100661
200355 in every 1001,505
200458 in every 1002,014
200557 in every 1002,786
200657 in every 1003,614
200758 in every 1004,056
200857 in every 1004,274
200962 in every 1004,514
201064 in every 1004,842
201165 in every 1003,942
201269 in every 1004,291
201370 in every 1002,810
201473 in every 1002,681
201576 in every 1002,819
201680 in every 1003,203
2017 This car81 in every 1002,212
201881 in every 1001,022

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2017 Avensis.

Of 2017 Avensis vehicles with under 46,000 miles, 90 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 131,000 miles or more, 70 in every 100 did.

Under 46,000448 tests
90
46,000–66,000438 tests
85
66,000–89,000 Typical car438 tests
82
89,000–131,000447 tests
79
131,000 and over440 tests
70

Petrol or diesel?

Typical mileagePassed first time,
as tested
Passed first time,
same mileage
Diesel90,704 miles7981
Petrol54,084 miles8584

Figures are in every 100 first tests. Petrol cars look better on the raw figures only because diesel cars have done more miles (typically 90,704 against 54,084). At the same mileage there is no clear difference between the two.


When a car fails

47in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

28in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

5in every 100

of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).


Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.

FAQs

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

The 2017 Toyota Avensis follows the pattern of the model years either side. In 2025, 81.1% of 2,212 first MOTs on the 2017 Toyota Avensis passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 85.6%. Among 419 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Windscreen wipers (front) appears more often than on similar cars (7.4% of those tests; 31 observed failures; about 2.3× 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.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Windscreen wipers (front) (7.4% of those tests; 31 observed failures; about 2.3× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Windscreen wipers (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (7.4% of those tests; 31 observed failures; about 2.3× 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 2017 Toyota Avensis include Windscreen wipers (front), Headlight. These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2017 Toyota Avensis (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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