MOT cost .
Subaru Forester
MOT 2023
Wikimedia

Subaru

Forester

18,786 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where Foresters pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.

That's 2.2 points below the UK fleet average across our 1,988 tracked models — buyers should expect more first-time fails than the typical UK car.

Pass

73.5%

Pass-after-fix

4.9%

Fail

20.8%

Avg miles

93,545

Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%

The picture

Forester: middle-of-the-pack on first-time pass

Across 18,786 MOT tests, the Forester returns 73.5% first-time pass — below the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is a number-plate lamp out. Windscreen damage and a defective headlamp lens round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 93,545, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.

Top ten reasons for rejection.

  1. 01

    A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

    775 occurrences · 4.1% of tests

  2. 02

    Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

    672 occurrences · 3.6% of tests

  3. 03

    Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

    668 occurrences · 3.6% of tests

  4. 04

    The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired

    626 occurrences · 3.3% of tests

  5. 05

    A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

    576 occurrences · 3.1% of tests

  6. 06

    A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

    491 occurrences · 2.6% of tests

  7. 07

    A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

    430 occurrences · 2.3% of tests

  8. 08

    a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

    378 occurrences · 2.0% of tests

  9. 09

    A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

    357 occurrences · 1.9% of tests

  10. 10

    Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction

    335 occurrences · 1.8% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures

£98–£355

If every one of this Forester's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Headlight restoration kit

Yellowed lenses fail the light-output test. A restoration kit lifts the haze in an afternoon for £20.

Search Amazon UK

Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

Where it falls short

One last point - if your circumstances change, make sure your inform your insurer, too. If your details don't match what an insurer has on record, that could lead to problems with claims and future renewals.

Buying or keeping a Forester?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own a Forester and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.