The picture

Tiguan Match Tdi: a strong MOT record by UK norms

Across 3,825 MOT tests, the Tiguan Match Tdi returns 87.9% first-time pass — comfortably ahead of the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is tyre tread under the limit. Brake pads worn below 1.5 mm and windscreen damage round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 35,487, 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.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 23–36

Above average — worth comparing quotes before buying. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

23–36

out of 50

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Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

100 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
02

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

70 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
03

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

68 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
04

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

66 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
05

A tyre seriously damaged

53 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
06

Wiper blade defective

32 occurrences · 0.6% of tests
07

Excessive fluctuation in brake effort through each wheel revolution.

27 occurrences · 0.5% of tests
08

Engine MIL illuminated indicating a malfunction

25 occurrences · 0.5% of tests
09

An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction

20 occurrences · 0.4% of tests
10

Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

18 occurrences · 0.3% 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

£220–£495

If every one of this Tiguan Match Tdi'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 →

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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

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Brake pad measurement gauge

Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

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£6.59

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Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Volkswagen Mars Red 12.5ml

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Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

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Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

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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.

What's good

The 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan is an upmarket alternative to SUVs like the Nissan Qashqai and Ford Kuga. It boasts a classy and spacious interior, and is comfortable and easy to drive.

Where it falls short

Looks expensive alongside the very similar SEAT Ateca or Skoda Karoq. Not the most exciting SUV to look at. Other than the R version, not particularly thrilling to drive.

Recent owner-reported faults

30 Mar 2023
Reader reported several software faults with their Volkswagen Tiguan Allspace. On start up the main dash display changes configuration from previous layout. The set speed of the cruise control jumps 2 or 3mph, up or down, without driver intervention. Sometimes the volume control will work but at other times volume cannot be changed. Although both hands are on the steering wheel a message a message appears reminding the driver to put both hands on the steering wheel.
11 Oct 2021
Gearbox control unit failure reported on 2017 Tiguan. Owner quoted £1100 for repair.
11 May 2021
Problems with 2021 Tiguan 1.5TSI 150 Elegance DSG7. Within a week the owner noticed that when driving along with the adaptive cruise control and associated driver assistance systems engaged (lane keeping assist, road sign recognition etc) the display and nav switched to a European speed limit of 110kph.
25 Aug 2020
Infotainment system failure on 2016 Tiguan. Car was four months outside of its warranty and the dealer is willing to pay just 10% towards the £1950 repair cost.
7 Feb 2020
Report of failure of touchscreen function of media infotainment system of contract hired 2016 VW Tiguan at 37,000 miles and three and a half years old. User couldn’t input a destination to the sat nav or change the radio station. Sometimes it would freeze entirely or randomly switch between functions.
1 Dec 2019
Report of 2018 VW Tiguan TDI in for a service and dealer phoning owner to tell him they needed to "drop the gearbox" because he had detected an oil leak due to a loose bolt. Being fixed under warranty, but taking a week.
8 Nov 2019
Report of hesitation and kangarooing from June 2019 VW Tiguan 1.5TSI with DQ381 7-speed wet clutch DSG, now at 1,800 miles.
9 Sep 2019
Report of auto braking of 2017 Volkswagen Tiguan being spuriously triggered.
1 Sep 2019
Report of 2018 VW Tiguan 2.0 TDi BMT 150 4Motion SEL 5dr DSG failing to start on a couple of occasions. Turns over, but does not start. Suspect glowplugs. Suggested owner turns key to first stop, counts to ten to give the glowplugs time tyo heat up, then turns the key to engage the starter.
30 Aug 2019
Report that new VW Tiguan (awaiting details of engine, transmission, drivetrain) could not be registered on a 69 because VW UK has not received the derogation codes from the the VCA so cannot register any cars that are non RDE compliant for 69 plate. This car was built before 31-5-2019 but cannot be registered on a 19 plate either because apparently the period for registering on a 19 had passed already, one day early.
24 Aug 2019
Regarding problems with 1.5TSI engines, owner of Tiguan 1.5TSI wrote, "if you turn off the auto hold and the stop start you will not get the kangarooing or the car switching on and off if you coast the last few yards to a stop with the clutch depressed."
30 Jul 2019
Report of July 2019 VW Tiguan 1.5TSI pulling unevenly (kangarooing) from a cold start. Dealer applied a software update on 26th July but it does not seem to have resolved the issue. We recommended trying running it in superunleaded that the engine is optimised for. See 'Good' 27-7-2019.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 30 reports indexed, top 12 shown

Buying or keeping a Tiguan Match Tdi?

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 Tiguan Match Tdi 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.