Subaru Legacy: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Subaru Legacy fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 7.9 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 5,181 individual Subaru Legacy tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 68.8% first-time pass rate means roughly 31 in every 100 Subaru Legacies presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Subaru Legacy tested had covered 111,470 miles and was built around 2007.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Subaru Legacy bought as a repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Subaru Legacy rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged Subaru Legacies actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Subaru Legacy

1. Lambda coefficient outside the default limits or the range specified by the manufacturer, 2.4% of tests (6.18x the national rate for this defect)
2. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 3% of tests (3.58x the national rate for this defect)
3. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 2.5% of tests (3.27x the national rate for this defect)
4. Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction, 2.8% of tests (3x the national rate for this defect)
5. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 10.1% of tests (2.74x the national rate for this defect)
6. A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 4.1% of tests (2.54x the national rate for this defect)
7. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 3.9% of tests (2.22x the national rate for this defect)
8. Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 1.8% of tests (2.21x the national rate for this defect)
9. A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 2.4% of tests (2.12x the national rate for this defect)
10. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 1.6% of tests (2.12x the national rate for this defect)

From 8,178 DVSA-tracked Subaru Legacy tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.45% of these flagged Subaru Legacy defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Subaru Legacy pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each Subaru Legacy year:

• 2003 Subaru Legacy - 69% first-time pass, 210 tests
• 2004 Subaru Legacy - 68.2% first-time pass, 465 tests
• 2005 Subaru Legacy - 65.7% first-time pass, 551 tests
• 2006 Subaru Legacy - 64.6% first-time pass, 587 tests
• 2007 Subaru Legacy - 73.6% first-time pass, 443 tests
• 2008 Subaru Legacy - 65.1% first-time pass, 361 tests
• 2009 Subaru Legacy - 66.2% first-time pass, 376 tests
• 2010 Subaru Legacy - 68.1% first-time pass, 432 tests
• 2011 Subaru Legacy - 70.7% first-time pass, 430 tests
• 2012 Subaru Legacy - 74.5% first-time pass, 251 tests

Subaru Legacy by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Petrol Subaru Legacy - 70.3% first-time pass, 4,363 tests
• Diesel Subaru Legacy - 64.1% first-time pass, 761 tests

Other Subaru models

• Subaru Impreza - 78%
• Subaru Forester - 73.5%
• Subaru Outback - 79.2%
• Subaru Xv - 83.6%
• Subaru Wrx - 90.8%
• Subaru Forester I Xe Prm Ebxr Awd Cvt - 93.8%
• Subaru Brz - 88.9%
• Subaru Levorg - 88.4%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Mercedes-Benz Vito 110 Pure Cdi - 69%
• Vauxhall Meriva - 68.9%
• Fiat Doblo - 68.9%
• Alfa Romeo Brera - 68.8%
• Vauxhall Zafira - 68.7%
• Toyota Landcruiser Colorado - 68.6%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate