Mazda RX-8 common problems and MOT failures
What goes wrong on a used Mazda RX-8, year by year: known faults from UK buying guides, the parts flagged at MOT more than on other cars (from 2,471 MOTs done during 2025), and what to check before you buy one.
Pick the year
Most years have their own guide. The year is when the car was first registered (it’s on the logbook, or check the reg below).
What usually goes wrong with a Mazda RX-8?
We haven’t found widely reported faults for the Mazda RX-8 in the UK buying guides we use yet. That doesn’t mean it has none, so check the car carefully and look at the MOT weak spots below.
Common Mazda RX-8 MOT failures to check
Parts flagged at MOT well above the usual rate for cars the same age. From the DVSA’s results for every MOT done in Great Britain during 2025.
Exhaust emissions (catalyst)
up to 3.2× usualStands out on cars registered in 2007.
Rough price £175–£900 (catalytic converter) ClickMechanicAt the viewing: Look for smoke when revving the warm engine and for engine or DPF warning lights.
Mazda RX-8 MOT pass rate by year
Older cars fail more, so compare each year with all cars registered the same year.
Questions to ask the seller before buying a Mazda RX-8
Ask before you travel to see it. A seller who knows the car will have answers, and receipts.
- Any recent work on the exhaust emissions (catalyst)? (Flagged at MOT 3.2× as often on the Mazda RX-8 as on other cars the same age.)
- Can I see the service history and receipts for any big jobs?
Looking at a Mazda RX-8?
Check the actual car: its own MOT history, whether it already shows these weak spots and what to ask the seller. Free, no sign-up.
Where this comes from: MOT figures are the DVSA’s anonymised results for every MOT test done in Great Britain during 2025, grouped by the year each car was first registered. How many are on the road is from the Department for Transport’s vehicle licensing statistics. Known faults are from UK buying guides, in our own words, with links. How we score