Model Reports 3 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Toyota Estima 2018: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 78 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2018 Toyota Estima were passes.

Summary

With 654 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2018 Toyota Estima differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist.

At a glance

How 654 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
78 in every 100
Did not pass first time
22 in every 100143 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
7 yearsabout 82,686 miles
First tests counted
654

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 2018 Toyota Estima 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.

Lamps and electrical

Two faults. The strongest is the rear fog light: 18 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 143 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.

Rear fog light

Failed on 22 first tests18 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing obligatory rear fog lamp, one that is not working, or one that does not emit a steady red light is graded Major. A rear fog lamp adversely affected by the operation of any other lamp is Major too. The manual allows it to go out when main beam is switched on or when dipped beam headlamps are switched off.

Individual sidelight or tail light (front)

Failed on 20 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A position lamp showing red light to the front or white light to the rear is Major. Rear lamps must show a steady red light, and front ones can show white, predominantly white with a blue tinge, or yellow if combined in a yellow headlamp. With a multiple light source, up to half not working is Minor and more than half is Major.

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
78in 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
16in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 78.1% of 654 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 84.1%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 16 not fixed make the 22 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

406080100201020152018Older carsNewer cars
40608010020102018Older 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, 76 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200672 in every 100851
200771 in every 100902
200874 in every 1001,257
200978 in every 1001,580
201076 in every 1001,656
201175 in every 1001,246
201282 in every 1001,772
201381 in every 1001,553
201480 in every 1001,194
201579 in every 100813
201674 in every 100908
201780 in every 100826
2018 This car78 in every 100654
201981 in every 100646
202069 in every 100489
202171 in every 100347

FAQs

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

With 654 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2018 Toyota Estima differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist. In 2025, 78.1% of 654 first MOTs on the 2018 Toyota Estima passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 84.1%. Among 143 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Rear fog light appears more often than on similar cars (15.4% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 18× 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: Rear fog light (15.4% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 18× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Rear fog light shows up more often than on similar cars (15.4% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 18× 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 2018 Toyota Estima include Rear fog light, Individual sidelight or tail light (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.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2018 Toyota Estima (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.

Check any vehicle’s MOT history

Full MOT history, mileage records, and reliability insights for any UK vehicle.

Run a free check