Is the Volkswagen Touareg reliable?

On MOT evidence the Volkswagen Touareg is well above average. It passes 79.4% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%, which ranks it 60 of 262 models with enough data for a fair comparison. This measures how often the car meets the MOT standard, not how often it breaks down or what a repair costs.

What is the most common MOT failure on a Volkswagen Touareg?

The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 40.9% of failed Volkswagen Touareg tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.

What do testers most often warn about on a Volkswagen Touareg?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 26.3% of all Volkswagen Touareg tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Volkswagen Touareg usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 94,545 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.

Which Volkswagen Touareg years are the most reliable?

Going by MOT pass rate, Volkswagen Touareg cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 91.5%, and those registered 2010 and earlier do worst at 64.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.

Does a Volkswagen Touareg get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 91.5% of Volkswagen Touareg tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 64.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Are most Volkswagen Touareg models petrol or diesel?

Of the Volkswagen Touareg cars tested, 96% are diesel, 4% are petrol. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

Model reliability file

Volkswagen Touareg MOT pass rate & common failures

From 36,808 recorded MOT tests of the Volkswagen Touareg, published by DVSA.

Data updated 29 July 2026

Quick answer

The Volkswagen Touareg passes 79.4% of MOT tests once results are adjusted for the age and mileage of the cars tested, against a national average of 72.3%. That is well above average, ranking it 60 of 262 models with enough data to compare fairly. Based on 36,808 tests. Its most commonly recorded failure is spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, which appears in 40.9% of failed tests. Cars of this model average 94,545 miles on the odometer when tested.

At a glance

Pass rate, adjusted for age and mileage

79.4%national average72.3%unadjusted77.3%range covered95%rank60 of 262

The Touareg is 7.1 percentage points above the national pass rate once age and mileage are accounted for, which is well above average. The unadjusted figure is 77.3%; the difference is what the age and mileage of this model’s fleet was hiding.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Volkswagen Touareg tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1.A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened40.9%
2,916 occurrencesRoad spring broken or fractured explained
2.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements13.0%
927 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
3.An obligatory rear fog lamp missing, or a front or rear fog lamp inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning12.5%
893 occurrencesLamp not working explained
4.A tyre seriously damaged9.6%
686 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
5.A tyre cords visible or damaged6.7%
477 occurrencesTyre ply or cord exposed, or the casing separating explained
6.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm6.3%
448 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
7.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn4.9%
350 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained
8.Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction4.7%
335 occurrencesEngine management light on, or not working explained
9.A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning4.5%
319 occurrencesLamp not working explained
10.An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction3.8%
268 occurrencesAirbag warning lamp on, or airbag missing explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Volkswagen Touareg tests carrying each advisory. The denominator differs from the failure list above because an advisory can be issued on a car that passed.

1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements26.3%
9,671 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
2.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm12.5%
4,596 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
3.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured8.5%
3,146 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
4.Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users8.1%
2,964 tests
5.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn6.7%
2,452 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained
6.A tyre seriously damaged4.4%
1,609 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
7.Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn4.1%
1,521 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
8.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements3.5%
1,303 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

The rest of the record

Everything else recorded on the Volkswagen Touareg

The 22 other defects testers recorded on this model, beyond the most common listed above. Each links to what it means and what it takes to put right.

Known faults

Volkswagen Touareg common problems, by part and by year

The same failure record read the way a buyer asks the question: which parts wear out on a Touareg, when they start, and how each registration year compares — including the steps that mark a generation change.

Touareg common problems and results by year

How wear changes the picture

Touareg pass rate by age and registration year

How often the Volkswagen Touareg passes at each age, with the years those cars were first registered. Tests are from 2025, so a car aged 3 to 5 was first used in 2020–2022.

3–5 yrsreg. 2020–202292%

6–8 yrsreg. 2017–201981%

9–11 yrsreg. 2014–201678%

12–14 yrsreg. 2011–201376%

15+ yrsreg. 2010 and earlier64%

Read this as an age curve rather than a verdict on particular model years. Nearly every car passes less often as it gets older, so a newer Touareg outscoring an older one says more about wear than about how that year’s cars were built. Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The Touareg fleet

Average mileage recorded at test: 94,545
Fuel mix of tested cars: Diesel95.7%
Petrol4.0%

Trim names grouped into this model (9)

Recorded exactly as DVSA holds them. Trim-level names are rolled up so one model is not split across a dozen thin pages.

TOUAREG TDI
TOUAREG V6 BLACK EDITION TDI A
TOUAREG V6 BLACK EDITION TSI A
TOUAREG V6 R TSI PHEV AUTO
TOUAREG V6 R-LINE TECH + TDI A
TOUAREG V6 SE TDI AUTO
TOUAREG V6 SEL TECH TDI AUTO
TOUAREG V6 SEL TECH TSI AUTO
TOUAREG V6 TDI

Check a specific Volkswagen Touareg

A model average tells you the pattern. Its own MOT record tells you the car.

Compare within the range

Other Volkswagen models

Volkswagen Golf — 78.3% adjusted
Volkswagen Polo — 67.5% adjusted
Volkswagen Transporter — 73.7% adjusted
Volkswagen Tiguan — 77.3% adjusted
Volkswagen Passat — 77.9% adjusted
Volkswagen Caddy — 72.1% adjusted
All Volkswagen models

Similar test volumes

Compare against other makes

Isuzu D-Max — 72.3% adjusted, ranked 142
Fiat 500X — 75.2% adjusted, ranked 108
Peugeot 5008 — 64.0% adjusted, ranked 228
Kia Sorento — 72.2% adjusted, ranked 146

Common questions

Is the Volkswagen Touareg reliable?: On MOT evidence the Volkswagen Touareg is well above average. It passes 79.4% of tests once age and mileage are accounted for, against a national average of 72.3%, which ranks it 60 of 262 models with enough data for a fair comparison. This measures how often the car meets the MOT standard, not how often it breaks down or what a repair costs.
What is the most common MOT failure on a Volkswagen Touareg?: The item recorded most often is "A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened", which appears in 40.9% of failed Volkswagen Touareg tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.
What do testers most often warn about on a Volkswagen Touareg?: The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 26.3% of all Volkswagen Touareg tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.
What mileage does a Volkswagen Touareg usually have at its MOT?: The average odometer reading recorded at test is 94,545 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.
Which Volkswagen Touareg years are the most reliable?: Going by MOT pass rate, Volkswagen Touareg cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 91.5%, and those registered 2010 and earlier do worst at 64.4%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.
Does a Volkswagen Touareg get harder to pass as it ages?: Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 91.5% of Volkswagen Touareg tests pass. By fifteen years or more, that falls to 64.4%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.
Are most Volkswagen Touareg models petrol or diesel?: Of the Volkswagen Touareg cars tested, 96% are diesel, 4% are petrol. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

How this was worked out

Method and limits

Figures come from the DVSA anonymised MOT testing dataset, published under the Open Government Licence. Only class 4 initial tests are counted: retests are excluded so a car appears once, and abandoned tests are excluded entirely. The adjusted rate is directly standardised across twenty-five age and mileage bands and reweighted onto the national distribution, so this model is compared against cars that have lived a similar life rather than against a younger or lighter-used fleet.

An MOT measures whether a car met a legal standard on the day. It is not a breakdown record, a service history or a running-cost estimate, and a pass rate is a property of a fleet rather than a prediction about one car.