Common problems
Daihatsu Terios common problems
What MOT testers find on the Daihatsu Terios: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 14,631 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.
MOT data updated
At 16 years, the most tested age
What stands out
- Brakes fails show up on 13.6 of every 100 MOTs of a Daihatsu Terios at 16 years old (n=3,424), against 11.6 for all cars of that age (n=4,858,625).
- Lights and electrics fails are less common: 12.7 per 100 MOTs against 20.4 for all cars at the same age.
- The fail item testers record most often at 16 years: component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength, on 6.8 per 100 MOTs (all cars 1.5).
- The most common advisory or minor defect: tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing, on 13.3 per 100 MOTs.
Problems by part at 16 years
How many of every 100 MOTs found a fail, or an advisory or minor defect, in each area. A test with faults in two areas counts in both.
| Area | Fails | All cars | Advisories | All cars |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suspension | 16.3 | 17.1 | 40.2 | 33.7 |
| Brakes | 13.6 | 11.6 | 28.4 | 29.5 |
| Lights and electrics | 12.7 | 20.4 | 10.6 | 15.3 |
| Body and structure | 8.1 | 7.6 | 17.9 | 12.6 |
| Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 6.2 | 6.8 | 4.1 | 5.7 |
| Exhaust, emissions and leaks | 3.7 | 6.2 | 2.8 | 12.0 |
| Steering | 3.2 | 3.4 | 5.3 | 4.6 |
| Tyres | 3.2 | 7.5 | 20.2 | 28.4 |
| Seat belts and airbags | 2.4 | 2.1 | 1.1 | 1.1 |
| Number plates and VIN | 0.3 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 4.8 |
| Road wheels | 0.1 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 1.5 |
What testers fail most on the Terios at 16 years
| Item | Area | Per 100 MOTs | All cars | Typical repair (estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength | Suspension | 6.8 | 1.5 | |
| Side/position light not working | Lights and electrics | 4.0 | 5.9 | £10 to £47 per lamp |
| Wipers not clearing screen | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 3.7 | 2.6 | £15 to £30 per blade |
| Brake light not working | Lights and electrics | 3.6 | 4.0 | £10 to £47 per lamp |
| Suspension ball joint worn | Suspension | 3.5 | 2.5 | £75 to £237 per side (rough guide) |
| Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded | Brakes | 2.9 | 1.6 | £137 to £392 per car (rough guide) |
| Brake pads under 1.5 mm | Brakes | 2.7 | 2.0 | £72 to £174 per axle (rough guide) |
| Steering track rod end: ball joint play | Steering | 2.7 | 1.9 | £54 to £128 per side (rough guide) |
| Service brake performance: excessively binding | Brakes | 2.5 | 1.4 | £55 to £267 per wheel (rough guide) |
| Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction | Exhaust, emissions and leaks | 2.1 | 1.9 | diagnosis from £39 (rough guide) |
Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 16 years
Advisories and minor defects are recorded, but the car still passes. Across all cars, a part with an advisory or minor defect failed at the next MOT 5.5 times in 100 (n=88,666,940 pairs of consecutive MOTs), against 0.3 times in 100 when the same part had none (n=12,936,860,350).
| Item | Area | Per 100 MOTs | All cars | If it needs replacing (estimate) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing | Tyres | 13.3 | 9.5 | £88 to £145 per tyre |
| Coil spring: corroded | Suspension | 12.8 | 7.4 | |
| Linkage pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement | Suspension | 12.6 | 0.7 | |
| Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material | Brakes | 12.3 | 8.8 | £137 to £392 per car (rough guide) |
| Suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement | Suspension | 8.7 | 8.7 | £92 to £237 per arm (rough guide) |
| Brake pads: wearing thin | Brakes | 8.1 | 6.8 | £72 to £174 per axle (rough guide) |
| Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge | Tyres | 7.5 | 18.2 | £88 to £145 per tyre |
| Fuel Pipe/s corroded | Other | 6.8 | 0.6 | |
| Exhaust system: mounting defective | Body and structure | 6.5 | 1.7 | £28 to £108 per car (rough guide) |
| Component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area is corroded but not considered excessive | Suspension | 4.9 | 1.9 |
Repair estimates are a guide for an independent garage: labour at the national median local garage rate (median £78 an hour from 65 garages, ONS price quotes) times estimated labour hours, plus a parts band. Labour hours and most parts bands are estimates, not quotes, and prices vary by model, engine and region. A warning light fault shows the cost of the diagnosis only.
How problems change with age
| Age | Tests (n) | Suspension | Brakes | Lights and electrics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 years | 1,503 | 11.5 | 12.2 | 10.5 |
| 15 years | 2,755 | 14.6 | 14.5 | 11.9 |
| 16 years | 3,424 | 16.3 | 13.6 | 12.7 |
| 17 years | 3,149 | 19.2 | 13.3 | 12.5 |
| 18 years | 2,354 | 21.0 | 12.5 | 13.7 |
| 19 years | 1,446 | 20.7 | 10.9 | 14.2 |
What to check on a viewing
On the Daihatsu Terios, testers most often record component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength; side/position light not working; wipers not clearing screen. Look at these first, then the areas below.
Suspension
- Listen for knocks or clonks over speed bumps and rough roads on the test drive.
- Push down hard on each corner: the car should settle at once rather than keep bouncing.
- Look behind the wheels for broken or heavily rusted coil springs and split rubber bushes.
- Check that the car sits level and that no tyre is worn on one edge only.
Brakes
- On the test drive the car should stop in a straight line without pulling, juddering or grinding.
- Look at the discs through the wheels for a deep lip, heavy rust or scoring.
- Check that the handbrake or electronic parking brake holds the car on a slope.
- Ask when the pads, discs and brake fluid were last changed, and for the receipts.
Lights and electrics
- With someone outside, try every light: dipped and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and number plate lamps.
- Check that the warning lights come on with the ignition and go out once the engine runs.
- Look for misted, cracked or yellowed headlamp lenses.
Ask for the car's MOT history and service record: advisories that repeat from one year to the next show what has been left. GOV.UK MOT history.
Questions
What are the most common problems on the Daihatsu Terios?
At 16 years, the age with the most MOT tests (3,424), the fail items testers record most often on the Daihatsu Terios are component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength (6.8 per 100 MOTs), side/position light not working (4.0 per 100 MOTs), wipers not clearing screen (3.7 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing (13.3) and coil spring: corroded (12.8).
Which parts of the Daihatsu Terios fail more often than on other cars?
At 16 years: brakes (13.6 per 100 MOTs against 11.6 for all cars). Compared with 4,858,625 MOTs of all cars the same age.
Daihatsu Terios problems by area
More on the Daihatsu Terios
Other Daihatsu models
The all cars figures cover all class 4 vehicles (cars and light vans) tested at the same age.
Looking at a Daihatsu Terios?
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Repair estimates: ONS consumer price quotes for local garage labour (09/2025 to 08/2026), the MOT inspection manual for defect wording, and estimated labour hours and parts bands. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ONS.
Source
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 28 September 2026.
Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources