Common problems

Subaru Legacy common problems

What MOT testers find on the Subaru Legacy: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 16,488 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 18 years, the most tested age

Lights and electrics fails per 100 MOTs (n=2,268)18.3

All cars at 18 years (n=3,261,622)21.4

Suspension advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=2,268)43.5

All cars, same age (n=3,261,622)35.3

What stands out

Exhaust, emissions and leaks fails show up on 11.1 of every 100 MOTs of a Subaru Legacy at 18 years old (n=2,268), against 6.8 for all cars of that age (n=3,261,622).
Brakes fails are less common: 9.3 per 100 MOTs against 12.9 for all cars at the same age.
The fail item testers record most often at 18 years: malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction, on 5.4 per 100 MOTs (all cars 2.5).
The most common advisory or minor defect: suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement, on 19.5 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 18 years

How many of every 100 MOTs found a fail, or an advisory or minor defect, in each area. A test with faults in two areas counts in both.

Subaru Legacy at 18 years (n=2,268) against all cars at 18 years (n=3,261,622). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Lights and electrics	18.3	21.4	15.4	17.8
Suspension	15.7	17.2	43.5	35.3
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	11.1	6.8	6.1	14.1
Body and structure	9.5	8.7	16.5	14.7
Brakes	9.3	12.9	28.7	32.3
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	6.0	7.3	4.7	6.2
Tyres	5.7	7.0	21.0	27.6
Seat belts and airbags	1.1	2.7	0.4	1.3
Steering	1.0	3.9	2.7	5.6
Number plates and VIN	0.7	0.6	4.8	5.5
Road wheels	0.4	0.5	1.3	1.3

What testers fail most on the Legacy at 18 years

Fail items on the Subaru Legacy at 18 years (n=2,268), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=3,261,622).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	5.4	2.5	diagnosis from £39 (rough guide)
Side/position light not working	Lights and electrics	4.8	5.6	£10 to £47 per lamp
Brake light not working	Lights and electrics	4.5	4.0	£10 to £47 per lamp
Driveshaft CV boot split	Body and structure	3.8	3.2	£88 to £196 per boot (rough guide)
Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	3.6	2.0	£182 to £263 per section
Catalyst emissions: Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	3.5	1.3
Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect	Lights and electrics	3.1	4.0	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)
Suspension arm bush worn	Suspension	2.9	2.2	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Brake pads under 1.5 mm	Brakes	2.7	1.8	£72 to £174 per axle (rough guide)
Anti-roll bar link worn	Suspension	2.7	1.5	£33 to £102 per link (rough guide)

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 18 years

Advisories and minor defects are recorded, but the car still passes. Across all cars, a part with an advisory or minor defect failed at the next MOT 5.5 times in 100 (n=88,666,940 pairs of consecutive MOTs), against 0.3 times in 100 when the same part had none (n=12,936,860,350).

Advisories and minor defects on the Subaru Legacy at 18 years (n=2,268), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=3,261,622).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement	Suspension	19.5	8.5	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	13.4	17.4	£88 to £145 per tyre
Brake pads: wearing thin	Brakes	10.3	6.4	£72 to £174 per axle (rough guide)
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	10.2	11.1	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened	Suspension	10.2	5.3
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material	Brakes	9.2	12.3	£137 to £392 per car (rough guide)
Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	8.6	5.0	£182 to £263 per section
Linkage ball joints: ball joint has slight play	Suspension	8.5	2.7	£33 to £102 per link (rough guide)
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources	Lights and electrics	7.1	5.8
Coil spring: corroded	Suspension	6.9	7.7

Repair estimates are a guide for an independent garage: labour at the national median local garage rate (median £78 an hour from 65 garages, ONS price quotes) times estimated labour hours, plus a parts band. Labour hours and most parts bands are estimates, not quotes, and prices vary by model, engine and region. A warning light fault shows the cost of the diagnosis only.

How problems change with age

Fails per 100 MOTs in the three most common areas at 18 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Lights and electrics	Suspension	Exhaust, emissions and leaks
12 years	1,449	16.3	8.9	6.6
13 years	1,695	17.9	11.1	8.0
14 years	1,778	18.7	11.8	8.2
15 years	1,734	18.5	13.6	8.9
16 years	2,033	19.7	15.1	10.8
17 years	2,256	19.5	15.2	10.8
18 years	2,268	18.3	15.7	11.1
19 years	1,895	19.6	16.0	9.8
20 years	1,380	18.8	16.2	9.4

What to check on a viewing

On the Subaru Legacy, testers most often record malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction; side/position light not working; brake light not working. Look at these first, then the areas below.

Lights and electrics

With someone outside, try every light: dipped and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and number plate lamps.
Check that the warning lights come on with the ignition and go out once the engine runs.
Look for misted, cracked or yellowed headlamp lenses.

Suspension

Listen for knocks or clonks over speed bumps and rough roads on the test drive.
Push down hard on each corner: the car should settle at once rather than keep bouncing.
Look behind the wheels for broken or heavily rusted coil springs and split rubber bushes.
Check that the car sits level and that no tyre is worn on one edge only.

Exhaust, emissions and leaks

Start the engine from cold if you can and watch the exhaust for blue or black smoke.
Check that the engine warning light goes out after starting and stays out on the test drive.
Look under the car and around the engine for oil or fluid leaks, and listen for a blowing exhaust.

Ask for the car's MOT history and service record: advisories that repeat from one year to the next show what has been left. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the most common problems on the Subaru Legacy?

At 18 years, the age with the most MOT tests (2,268), the fail items testers record most often on the Subaru Legacy are malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction (5.4 per 100 MOTs), side/position light not working (4.8 per 100 MOTs), brake light not working (4.5 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement (19.5) and tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (13.4).

Which parts of the Subaru Legacy fail more often than on other cars?

At 18 years: exhaust, emissions and leaks (11.1 per 100 MOTs against 6.8 for all cars). Compared with 3,261,622 MOTs of all cars the same age.

Subaru Legacy problems by area

Other Subaru models

All Subaru models · Common problems by make

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

The all cars figures cover all class 4 vehicles (cars and light vans) tested at the same age.

Looking at a Subaru Legacy?

These figures describe the model, not the car in front of you. Found one you might buy? See what the VetTheCar Buying Report covers, or use the tools that work without a registration.

See a sample report Car tools · MOT fail rates by model · Compare models by MOT record

Repair estimates: ONS consumer price quotes for local garage labour (09/2025 to 08/2026), the MOT inspection manual for defect wording, and estimated labour hours and parts bands. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ONS.

Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 28 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources