1998 Subaru Impreza: MOT pass rate and reliability

82.4% of 1998 Subaru Imprezas pass the MOT first time, measured across 421 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 104,534 miles.

How the 1998 compares

  • Against all Subaru Imprezas (79.1%, 17,713 tests): +3.3 points
  • Against all 1998 cars (70%): +12.4 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every Subaru Impreza model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 1998 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the Subaru Impreza:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
1997 79.8% 247 110,987
1998 82.4% 421 104,534
1999 82.5% 758 109,421
2000 81% 898 108,031
2001 77.2% 904 114,383
2002 78.9% 1,053 108,290
2003 77.1% 1,682 108,784
2004 79.6% 1,748 105,101
2005 78.3% 2,175 105,004
2006 77.5% 1,684 99,509
2007 75.5% 1,789 94,064
2008 76.1% 1,023 96,507
2009 78.5% 767 88,704
2010 79.8% 788 88,995
2015 84.2% 215 62,865
2018 90.1% 202 43,782

What this means if you are buying a 1998 Impreza

The 1998 is one of the stronger years for this model, passing 3.3 points more often than the Subaru Impreza average. That is a point in its favour, though condition and service history still matter more than the model year. Check the exact car with the free MOT history checker before you buy, and run its VIN and mileage through our free VIN decoder and clocking check.

What a 28-year-old car fails on

A 1998 car is 28 years old now, and age drives the failure mix more than the badge does. Across all cars tested, these are the categories that actually cause failures:

  • Lights and electrical: 10.36% of all cars tested
  • Suspension: 8.65% of all cars tested
  • Tyres: 6.23% of all cars tested
  • Brakes: 6.1% of all cars tested
  • Visibility: wipers, washers, glass: 4.65% of all cars tested
  • Body, chassis and structure: 3.18% of all cars tested

That is above average and into the range where cambelts and water pumps are due if they have not already been done, so ask for the service history rather than take the mileage on trust. On a 1998 Subaru Impreza the average at test was 104,534 miles, so treat anything far above that as a car that has worked harder than its peers, and anything far below as one worth checking for the faults that come from standing still.

The strongest year for this model is 2018 at 90.1%, and the weakest in our data is 2007 at 75.5%. That 14.6 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 1998 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All Subaru Impreza MOT data · Every model