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Honda Civic exhaust, emissions and leaks problems

DVSA MOT tests 2022–2025 · 88,735 MOT tests · Updated

At 15 years, 3.1 in 100 MOT tests of the Honda Civic failed on exhaust, emissions and leaks, against 5.7 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 88,735 MOT tests) [1].

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  • Against all class 4 vehicles the same age: fails less often than all class 4 vehicles the same age (0.5–0.6×) (all test years), 2,708 MOT tests with a fail
  • By age: seen at 23 ages from 3 to 25 years, 1,140,581 MOT tests
  • MOT tests at 15 years: 88,735 for the Honda Civic

Figures are for the model as a whole, not for one car.

What the MOT tests show

What we know

3.1 fails per 100 MOT tests at 15 years, against 5.7 for all class 4 vehicles tested at 15 (all test years). The Honda Civic fails less often here.

Why it matters

An exhaust, emissions and leaks fail stops the car passing until it is fixed.

What to check

Start the car from cold and look for smoke at the exhaust, listen for blowing joints, and look under the engine and gearbox for fresh oil or fluid drips.

Honda Civic exhaust, emissions and leaks fails by age

Honda Civic exhaust, emissions and leaks fails per 100 MOT tests by ageSolid line: the Honda Civic. Dashed line: all cars the same age. The table below lists every value.053 years: 0.2 per 100 (all cars 0.5), 25,317 MOT tests34 years: 0.3 per 100 (all cars 0.7), 37,328 MOT tests5 years: 0.5 per 100 (all cars 1.0), 46,919 MOT tests56 years: 0.6 per 100 (all cars 1.3), 57,431 MOT tests7 years: 0.7 per 100 (all cars 1.7), 59,711 MOT tests78 years: 0.7 per 100 (all cars 2.1), 60,576 MOT tests9 years: 0.9 per 100 (all cars 2.4), 61,332 MOT tests910 years: 0.9 per 100 (all cars 2.8), 58,492 MOT tests11 years: 1.8 per 100 (all cars 3.2), 54,791 MOT tests1112 years: 2.3 per 100 (all cars 3.7), 57,965 MOT tests13 years: 2.7 per 100 (all cars 4.3), 63,504 MOT tests1314 years: 2.9 per 100 (all cars 5.1), 74,100 MOT tests15 years: 3.1 per 100 (all cars 5.7), 88,735 MOT tests1516 years: 3.3 per 100 (all cars 6.2), 86,175 MOT tests17 years: 4.4 per 100 (all cars 6.5), 76,146 MOT tests1718 years: 5.4 per 100 (all cars 6.8), 62,744 MOT tests19 years: 6.7 per 100 (all cars 7.0), 47,645 MOT tests1920 years: 7.6 per 100 (all cars 7.0), 40,289 MOT tests21 years: 7.1 per 100 (all cars 7.1), 31,448 MOT tests2122 years: 7.1 per 100 (all cars 7.0), 21,226 MOT tests23 years: 7.3 per 100 (all cars 6.9), 14,519 MOT tests2324 years: 8.4 per 100 (all cars 7.0), 8,811 MOT tests25 years: 8.6 per 100 (all cars 7.1), 5,377 MOT tests25
Fails per 100 MOT tests by age, all first-use years pooled. Honda Civic All class 4 vehicles the same age Shaded: over 18 years, survivors only.
AgeMOT testsFails per 100All class 4 vehicles the same age
325,3170.20.5
437,3280.30.7
546,9190.51.0
657,4310.61.3
759,7110.71.7
860,5760.72.1
961,3320.92.4
1058,4920.92.8
1154,7911.83.2
1257,9652.33.7
1363,5042.74.3
1474,1002.95.1
1588,7353.15.7
1686,1753.36.2
1776,1464.46.5
1862,7445.46.8
19*47,6456.77.0
20*40,2897.67.0
21*31,4487.17.1
22*21,2267.17.0
23*14,5197.36.9
24*8,8118.47.0
25*5,3778.67.1

All first-use years of the Honda Civic pooled at each age, against all class 4 vehicles at that age over all 2022–2025 test years. * Only survivors are still tested at this age.

What fails in the exhaust, emissions and leaks at 15 years

Advisories (not fails)

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By engine and fuel

  • 1.8 petrol: 1.2 per 100 at 15 years, fails less often than petrol class 4 vehicles the same age (0.2× (0.18–0.22×)) (all test years; 39,475 MOT tests)
  • 1.6 diesel: 1.3 per 100 at 9 years, fails less often than diesel class 4 vehicles the same age (0.5–0.6×) (all test years; 27,682 MOT tests)
  • 1.3 petrol: 6.6 per 100 at 15 years, about average for petrol class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 14,760 MOT tests)
  • 1.6 petrol: 7.6 per 100 at 20 years, about average for petrol class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 24,964 MOT tests)
  • 2.2 diesel: 2.4 per 100 at 15 years, fails less often than diesel class 4 vehicles the same age (0.4–0.5×) (all test years; 21,996 MOT tests)
  • 1.0 petrol: 0.3 per 100 at 5 years, about average for petrol class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 21,421 MOT tests)
  • 2.0 petrol: 5.9 per 100 at 15 years, about average for petrol class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 9,154 MOT tests)

How to check on a test drive

Start the car from cold and look for smoke at the exhaust, listen for blowing joints, and look under the engine and gearbox for fresh oil or fluid drips.

The most common advisory here in MOT records: Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive.

Check one Honda Civic, not the average

The figures here describe Honda Civic cars as a group. These free tools answer for one car. Each line says what the tool reads.

Other Honda Civic problems

Exhaust, emissions and leaks on rival models

Questions people ask

Does the Honda Civic have more exhaust, emissions and leaks problems than other cars?

0.5 to 0.6 times the exhaust, emissions and leaks fail rate of all class 4 vehicles the same age at 15 years (all test years), from 88,735 MOT tests. The interval is clear of 0.8 in the same direction at 14 of the 23 ages seen (ages up to 18 with at least 100 MOT tests with a fail).

How common are Honda Civic exhaust, emissions and leaks problems?

3.1 in 100 MOT tests at 15 years failed on exhaust, emissions and leaks, against 5.7 for all class 4 vehicles the same age (all test years; 88,735 MOT tests).

Sources

  1. Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2022 to 2025. DVSA MOT data, Open Government Licence v3.0, 1,140,581 MOT tests. Accessed 7 Oct 2026.

Parts: against all class 4 vehicles at the same age, all 2022–2025 test years pooled, not adjusted for mileage. Breakdowns and non-MOT faults are not in this data. How we compare