243,794 tests in 2025
Honda Civic reliability and MOT pass rate
74.4% passed first time. The 25.6% fail rate is 3.0 points worse than the all-car average, on a median example 14 years old with 89,798 miles.
Pass rate
74.4%
22.6% of all cars failed; 25.6% of these did.
Fixed on the day
7.4%
Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.
Median at test
89,798 mi
14 years old.
Fail rate by age
| Age at test | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 10,861 | 8.5% |
| 6-9 years | 52,423 | 12.7% |
| 10-13 years | 53,385 | 18.8% |
| 14+ years | 127,015 | 35.3% |
What the Civic fails on
Share of failed tests with at least one fail item in each DVSA inspection section. A test can fail in several sections at once.
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment217 dangerous46.7%
- Suspension1,914 dangerous41.6%
- Brakes9,726 dangerous29.9%
- Tyres15,484 dangerous23.5%
- Visibility21 dangerous14.6%
- Body, chassis, structure692 dangerous12.3%
- Noise, emissions and leaks40 dangerous10.6%
- Steering159 dangerous8.5%
Is the Civic getting worse?
The fail rate rose 0.9 points to 25.9% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
| Year | Tests | Median age | Fail rate | All cars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 309,297 | 13 | 25% | 22.5% | |
| 2023 | 294,829 | — | 25.3% | 22.8% | |
| 2024 | 244,397 | — | 26.2% | 23.2% | |
| 2025 | 238,998 | — | 25.9% | 22.6% |
Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Civic at its test that year, and it is the number to watch: across the whole fleet each extra year of age adds roughly 1.9 points to the fail rate, so a model whose age and fail rate rise together is simply getting older.
The exact defects that fail it
Every failure item DVSA recorded against a Civic in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.
- 1Position lamp: not working8,927 tests
- 2Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect8,077 tests
- 3Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick6,403 tests
- 4Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm5,961 tests
- 5Stop lamp: not working5,247 tests
- 6Shock absorbers: has a serious fluid leak5,041 tests
- 7Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively3,922 tests
- 8Component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength3,917 tests
What wears out first
Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Civic collects 2.88 of them per test, and these are the ones that come up most. Treat it as the running-repairs list for the next year or two.
- 1Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm38,766 tests
- 2Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick25,636 tests
- 3Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure24,375 tests
- 4Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened21,872 tests
- 5Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn15,995 tests
- 6Coil spring: corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened13,815 tests
- 7Registration plates: inscription illegible12,470 tests
- 8Shock absorbers: has a serious fluid leak11,779 tests
Questions
What is the Honda Civic MOT pass rate?
74.4% of the 243,794 Honda Civic first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 25.6% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 7.4% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.
What does a Honda Civic usually fail on?
The single most common failure is "Position lamp: not working", recorded on 8,927 failed tests, followed by "Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect" and "Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick". By section, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment appears in 46.7% of failures, suspension appears in 41.6% of failures, brakes appears in 29.9% of failures.
Does age change the odds?
Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 8.5%; at 14+ years it was 35.3%. The median Honda Civic tested in 2025 was 14 years old with 89,798 miles.
Is the Honda Civic getting less reliable?
The fail rate rose 0.9 points to 25.9% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
First-attempt class 4 tests, 2025, from DVSA’s anonymised MOT data (OGL v3, retrieved 2026-09-12). DVSA records newer cars trim by trim; this page adds every Civic trim together. Year-on-year figures come from the same DVSA extracts for 2026 and earlier years. Full method on the pass rates hub.
DVSA has published 41 safety recalls naming the Honda Civic: Honda Civic recalls.
Other Honda models
Checking a particular Civic?
The odds above are the model. The car in front of you has its own record: every test, every advisory, the mileage at each one.
Due a test? Find an approved MOT station near you.