Subaru Outback 2018: MOT failure rate for its age

10.9% of 2,616 MOT tests of the Subaru Outback first registered in 2018 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 97.0 (95% CI 85.8–108.3; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2018 build year is no different from other years of the same model at the same age. This is a rough estimate from a smaller sample.

Subaru Outback built in 2018 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	10.9	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	2616
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 85.8–108.3)	97.0	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	2616
Rank among this model's 17 build years	3	of 17	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	2616
Tested in 2024	646	tests	median 50,146 miles	2024	646

Built 2018 against Subaru Outback normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 3: 10.2% vs 8.5%; age 4: 9.4% vs 10.3%; age 5: 10.1% vs 11.6%; age 6: 13.8% vs 14.4%. Axis from 0% to 20%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2018 Subaru Outback by registration · All Subaru Outback MOT statistics · Download the build-year table (CSV)

Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · full dataset (v5).

How does the 2018 Subaru Outback fail at each age?

Cars built in 2018 were tested at ages 3 to 6 between 2019 and 2024. Each row compares their first-time failure share with what this model normally shows at that age, after allowing for the overall failure level of each test year.

Subaru Outback built 2018: first-time MOT failure by age, against the model's normal rate at that age (2019–2024)
Age	Tests	Failed, %	95% interval	Normal for this model at that age, %	Index (100 = normal)
3	657	10.2	8.1–12.7	8.5	119.9
4	657	9.4	7.4–11.9	10.3	91.5
5	656	10.1	8–12.6	11.6	87.1
6	646	13.8	11.3–16.6	14.4	95.4

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,616 (initial tests) · Method: normal rate = this model's first-time failure share at that age across its build years (cells of 400+ tests), adjusted for each test year's overall level; cells of 30+ tests, under 500 marked rough · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

What fails most on the 2018 Subaru Outback?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2018 is tyres: 4.8 items per 100 first tests, against 6 across all build years of the Subaru Outback. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2018 were tested at ages 3 to 6.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Subaru Outback built 2018 against the Subaru Outback in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2018, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Tyres	4.8	6	125
Visibility	4	7.7	106
Brakes	3.7	10.5	97
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	2.6	22.1	69
Suspension	1.6	17.1	41

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,628 (initial tests of this build year) · Method: failure items grouped by DVSA's top-level defect groups, per 100 initial tests; groups with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How does 2018 compare with the years around it?

Among the 17 published build years of the Subaru Outback, 2018 ranks 3 (1 = fails least for its age). 2017: index 87.7. 2019: index 100.3.

Subaru Outback build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
2004	98.2	89.4–107.0	no different (rough estimate)	1,098
2005	107.7	100.7–114.8	worse (rough estimate)	1,910
2006	99.5	93.9–105.1	no different (rough estimate)	2,906
2007	100.7	94.9–106.5	no different (rough estimate)	2,795
2008	104.2	96.9–111.6	no different (rough estimate)	1,870
2009	101.4	94.9–107.9	no different (rough estimate)	2,442
2010	95.7	90.0–101.4	no different (rough estimate)	3,278
2011	101.1	95.1–107.2	no different (rough estimate)	3,423
2012	103.4	94.7–112.2	no different (rough estimate)	1,905
2013	112.2	101.9–122.6	worse (rough estimate)	1,705
2014	106.9	94.8–119.0	no different (rough estimate)	1,428
2015	99.7	92.6–106.7	no different	4,761
2016	98.6	90.8–106.5	no different	4,582
2017	87.7	76.8–98.5	better (rough estimate)	2,420
2018	97.0	85.8–108.3	no different (rough estimate)	2,616
2019	100.3	85.6–114.9	no different (rough estimate)	1,792
2020	103.4	74.2–132.7	no different (rough estimate)	499

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 41,430 (initial tests) · Method: observed failures against those expected for the same model at the same ages, test-year level adjusted; verdict follows the printed one-decimal bound · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How to cite this page

MOT Risk Index (2026). Subaru Outback 2018 MOT statistics (data release dvsa-2024-v2; full dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22975051), updated 30 September 2026. motriskindex.co.uk/cars/subaru-outback/2018/

How every figure is calculated: methodology. Age, test year and build year are tied together (age = test year − build year), so the test-year level is taken as observed, not estimated.

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