Does the Subaru XV fail the MOT on brakes more than it should?
The Subaru XV records 6.09 brakes failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 5.90 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (+0.19, 95% interval −0.09 to +0.46). It ranks 311 of 712 models on brakes (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on brakes · check a Subaru XV by registration
What exactly fails on brakes?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Subaru XV is “a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm”, recorded 815 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | 815 | 2.67 |
| Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn | 238 | 0.78 |
| Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake | 177 | 0.58 |
| Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded | 93 | 0.30 |
| Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured | 77 | 0.25 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 30,580 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Subaru XV gets a brakes advisory, how often does it fail next time?
7.5% of Subaru XV MOTs with a brakes advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 7,025 miles later (3,888 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 3,888 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Subaru XV 2012 · Subaru XV 2013 · Subaru XV 2014 · Subaru XV 2015 · Subaru XV 2016 · Subaru XV 2017 · Subaru XV 2018 · Subaru XV 2019 · Subaru XV 2020 · Subaru XV in Norway · Subaru XV in Finland · Subaru XV in the Netherlands · Subaru XV by postcode area · Subaru XV body, chassis and structure failures · Subaru XV vehicle identification failures · Subaru XV lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Subaru XV noise, emissions and leaks failures · Subaru XV seat belts and airbags failures · Subaru XV steering failures · Subaru XV suspension failures · Subaru XV tyres failures · Subaru XV visibility failures