Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Toyota Hilux 2002: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 58 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2002 Toyota Hilux were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test).

Summary

With 742 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2002 Toyota Hilux differs from the model years either side.

At a glance

How 742 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
58 in every 100
Did not pass first time
42 in every 100310 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
23 yearsabout 145,922 miles
First tests counted
742

What failed most often

  1. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)16 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 2002 Toyota Hilux 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.

Body and structure

One fault: chassis condition (rear), 4.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 310 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.

Chassis condition (rear)

Failed on 39 first tests4.8 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A main load-bearing structural member that is fractured, deformed, modified or inadequately repaired is Major when structural rigidity is significantly reduced, and Dangerous where steering or braking is likely to be adversely affected. Corrosion of the body, cab or chassis at a mounting point is Dangerous where overall security or stability is impaired.

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

Lamps and electrical

Two faults. The strongest is the rear fog light: 4.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Rear fog light

Failed on 45 first tests4.7 times as often as similar carsLikely 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 (rear)

Failed on 24 first tests2.0 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.

Brakes

Two faults. The strongest is the brake performance (roller test, rear): 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 24 first tests2.4 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.

Brake imbalance across an axle (roller test, efficiency check, rear)

Failed on 21 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A wheel giving less than a set share of the maximum effort from the other wheel on the same axle is Major. On a steered axle, less than half is graded Dangerous. Testers disregard an imbalance if the lower effort is the result of a locked wheel, or if the higher effort from a wheel is at or below a low set figure.

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.

Wheel bearings (front)

Noted on 62 first tests8.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Chassis condition

Noted on 25 first tests4.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Brake pads (front)

Noted on 34 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Noted on 22 first tests2.2 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
58in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
7in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
35in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 58.2% of 742 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 64.8%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 7 fixed and the 35 not fixed make the 42 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020022005201020152020Older carsNewer cars
406080100200220102020Newer 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, 53 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
199663 in every 100348
199761 in every 100307
199855 in every 100537
199961 in every 100508
200058 in every 100483
200156 in every 100489
2002 This car58 in every 100742
200355 in every 100773
200453 in every 1001,121
200558 in every 100931
200658 in every 100820
200757 in every 1001,475
200856 in every 1001,645
200957 in every 1001,494
201056 in every 1002,040
201156 in every 1003,180
201258 in every 1003,400
201360 in every 1003,546
201463 in every 1004,427
201564 in every 1005,140
201669 in every 1004,151
201775 in every 1004,679
201876 in every 1005,088
201979 in every 1004,802
202080 in every 1004,709
202182 in every 1007,700
202285 in every 1005,889

FAQs

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

With 742 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2002 Toyota Hilux differs from the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test), about 16 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 58.2% of 742 first MOTs on the 2002 Toyota Hilux passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 64.8%. Among 310 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Chassis condition (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (12.6% of those tests; 39 observed failures; about 4.8× 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 2002 Toyota Hilux at the first attempt were Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (16.5%), 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: Chassis condition (rear) (12.6% of those tests; 39 observed failures; about 4.8× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Chassis condition (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (12.6% of those tests; 39 observed failures; about 4.8× 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 2002 Toyota Hilux include Chassis condition (rear), Rear fog light, Brake performance (roller test, rear). 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 2002 Toyota Hilux (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