Subaru Legacy MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Subaru Legacy MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Subaru Legacy passed on its first attempt in 69.8%, and its overall record sits −5.4 percentage points below the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Subaru Legacy in the 2023–2025 data: 18,458 tests across 22 model years (2000–2021). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.

Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.

Most Common Subaru Legacy MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Subaru Legacy, the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.

Shares are over the Subaru Legacy's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Subaru Legacy DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Subaru Legacy, each with how many of the model's 18,458 tests it was noted on.

• "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (Minor) — noted on about 1,128 Subaru Legacy tests, 6.1% of the model's MOT record.
• "Position lamp not working" (Major) — noted on about 753 Subaru Legacy tests, 4.1% of the model's MOT record.
• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 611 Subaru Legacy tests, 3.3% of the model's MOT record.
• "Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction" (Major) — noted on about 545 Subaru Legacy tests, 3.0% of the model's MOT record.
• "Headlamp lens slightly defective" (Minor) — noted on about 545 Subaru Legacy tests, 3.0% of the model's MOT record.
• "Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn" (Major) — noted on about 536 Subaru Legacy tests, 2.9% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Subaru Legacy Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Subaru Legacy model year on record is 2018 (86.5% across 192 tests), and the weakest is 2000 (71.4%). The gap between them is 15.1 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for Subaru Legacy Owners

These checks follow this Subaru Legacy's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Subaru Legacy.

• the lights — “registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”

  Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.

• the windscreen — “windscreen damaged”

  Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.

• the suspension joints — “pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn”

  With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Subaru Legacy. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Where the Subaru Legacy is most common

Across every Legacy model year on record (2000–2021): 7,878 Subaru Legacy cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 18,453 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 206 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.

The twenty areas with the most Subaru Legacy cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →

Frequently Asked Questions: Subaru Legacy MOT & Reliability