Objective To investigate the effect of titania addition (0, 10 and 30 mol%) on the microstructure, relative density, Young’s modulus (E), Poisson’s ratio ( υ ), mechanical properties (flexural strength, σ f , and Weibull modulus, m) of a Y-TZP/TiO 2 composite. The effect of the presence of a biomimetic coating on the microstructure and mechanical properties was also evaluated. Methods Y-TZP (3 mol% of yttria) and Y-TZP/TiO 2 composite (10 or 30 mol% of titania) were synthesized by co-precipitation. The powders were pressed and sintered at 1400°C/2 h. The surfaces, with and without biomimetic coating, were characterized by X-ray diffraction analysis and scanning electron microscopy. The relative density was measured by the Archimedes’ principle. E and υ were measured by ultrasonic pulse-echo method. For the mechanical properties the specimens (n = 30 for each group) were tested in a universal testing machine. Results Titania addition increased the grain size of the composite and caused a significant decrease in the flexural strength (in MPa, control 815.4 a ; T10 455.7 b and T30 336.0 c ), E (in GPa, control 213.4 a ; T10 155.8 b and T30 134.0 c ) and relative density (control 99.0% a ; T10 94.4% c and T30 96.3% b ) of the Y-TZP/TiO 2 composite. The presence of 30% titania caused substantial increase in m and υ . Biomimetic coating did not affect the mechanical properties of the composite. Significance The Y-TZP/TiO 2 composite coated with a layer of CaP has great potential to be used as implant material. Although addition of titania affected the properties of the composite, the application of a biomimetic coating did not jeopardize its reliability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]