77.7%
Lexus IS
Lexus IS MOT pass rate and common problems
The Lexus IS passed 77.7% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 5.4 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was position lamp not working.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the IS compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
84%
Lexus average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The IS runs 6.3 points behind the Lexus average. It is 9th of the 10 Lexus models in the data. The average IS arrived at its test 14.4 years old with 101,310 miles recorded.
A pass rate records whether cars met the roadworthiness standard on test day. It is not a reliability score, and part of any gap reflects how old the tested cars were.
IS MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Lexus IS cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 90.2% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 72.9%, a drop of 17.4 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years | 1,383 | 90.2% | 17.9 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 9,879 | 87.2% | 14.9 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 23,354 | 72.9% | 0.6 pts above |
That is a steep decline with age, so the headline rate flatters older examples. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where IS failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Lexus IS cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and brakes together account for 46.9% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common IS MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Lexus IS cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 40% of everything testers recorded against failed Lexus IS cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a IS
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: position lamp not working, headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect, headlamp not working on dipped beam and headlamp aim too low. 17.8% of failure items.
2
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, condition has ply or cords exposed and condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords. 11.8% of failure items.
3
Visibility
Recorded most often: wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively. 4.6% of failure items.
4
Brakes
Recorded most often: brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick. 3.5% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific IS has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Lexus IS buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Lexus IS MOT FAQs
What is the Lexus IS MOT pass rate?
77.7% of Lexus IS cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 34,616 tests. That is 5.4 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 230th of 575 models.
What does a Lexus IS most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Lexus IS cars failing their 2025 MOT was position lamp not working, on 7% of failure items. Next were tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (4.7%) and wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively (4.6%).
Which area causes the most Lexus IS MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 29.7%, followed by brakes at 17.2%.
Do older Lexus IS cars fail their MOT more often?
Lexus IS cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 90.2% of MOT tests in 2025, against 72.9% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Lexus IS has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Lexus IS that failed in 2025. They show where the model most often needs attention, not the condition of any individual car.
How do I see a specific Lexus IS's MOT history?
Enter its registration on the free Carpeep MOT history check to see that car's own test results, failures, advisories and recorded mileages.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025: class 4 initial tests, retests excluded, with failure items from failed tests (advisories and minor defects excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.