Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 133,362 tests

Pass rate climbs 17.5 points across the cohorts — newer Touran examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 119,827

Pass

72.8%

Fail

21.7%

PRS

4.8%

Avg mileage at test

115,880 mi

2018–2020 cohort 11,537

Pass

87.2%

Fail

10.3%

PRS

2.2%

Avg mileage at test

43,670 mi

2021+ cohort 1,998

Pass

90.3%

Fail

7.9%

PRS

1.1%

Avg mileage at test

29,588 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

Generations on file · 2

Volkswagen Touran · UK market

Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.

The picture

Touran at 72% — CV Boots and Springs at 107k Miles

By the time most Tourans reach their MOT, average mileage stands at 107,190 — the highest in this batch — and only 72.9% pass first time across 98,917 tests. CV joint boot deterioration, cracked windscreens, and fractured springs all feature in the top three failures. Owner reports on 1.5 TSI EVO DSG variants describe kangarooing on pull-away and constant downshifting on inclines. One 2015 1.6 TDI suffered persistent 1.9-amp battery drain even while driving, leading to multiple RAC callouts. At this mileage, CV boot condition and windscreen integrity should be the first checks — and confirm the DSG fluid has been changed at the recommended interval.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 18–26

Around the UK fleet average for insurance cost. 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 →

18–26

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

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

01

A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated

5,180 occurrences · 3.9% of tests
02

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

3,977 occurrences · 3.0% of tests
03

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

3,713 occurrences · 2.8% of tests
04

A tyre cords visible or damaged

3,506 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
05

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

3,413 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
06

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

3,178 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
07

A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc

3,111 occurrences · 2.3% of tests
08

A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc

2,876 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
09

A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

2,827 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
10

A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

2,363 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

£148–£370

If every one of this Touran'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.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 17.4-point gap between bands means the year you buy Volkswagen Touran has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

90.3%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 90.3% — a 17.4-point improvement. Tests in this band average 29,588 miles — roughly 86K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: less than 1.5 mm thick, has a cut in excess of the… — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

72.8%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 72.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 90.3% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: constant velocity boot severely deteriorated, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, and inoperative in the case of multiple lamps…. Average mileage on test for this band is 115,880 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme. Honest John records: "Rattling from offside rear of 2018 Volkswagen Touran 1.4 TSi 150 BlueMotion Start/Stop SEL 5dr manual resolved by dealer who says he "removed the O/S/R wheel & arch + under…"

Best band to buy: 2021+ (90.3% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (72.8% pass). That's a 17.4-point spread across 119,827 older tests and 1,998 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

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

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

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Volkswagen Shadow Blue Metallic 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Volkswagen Reflex Silver Metallic 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Volkswagen Black 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Volkswagen Mars Red 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

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.

Get a quote →

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

Owner reports (7 entries) flag recurring issues with DSG/gearbox.

Recent owner-reported faults

3 Sep 2019
Report of 'kangarooing' when pulling away since new by April 2019 by VW Touran 1.5 TSI EVO DSG. Also "dreadfully sluggish going up hills, frequently requiring changing down into first gear. It sometimes stalls on hills and struggles to get going again without a huge number of revs. The straw that broke the camel’s back was a week or so ago, when it stalled as I was driving round a sharp bend on a steep country lane and wouldn’t start again. After several attempts... I ended up having to reverse down the hill about 50 metres, reverse into someone’s drive and go back the way I came."
4 Aug 2019
Problem reported of battery of 2015 VW Touran 1.6TDI Bluemotion (bought from an independent dealer) constantly discharging, even while driving. On owner's third RAC call out he was told there was a drain of 1.9 amps but by the time he had returned the car to the dealer it had cured itself. Dealer has now had the car for 2 weeks. Probably needs an expensive new stop/start battery.
15 Jul 2019
Ongoing issues with the 1.5 TSI engine with no resolution from Volkswagen.
22 Dec 2018
Rattling from offside rear of 2018 Volkswagen Touran 1.4 TSi 150 BlueMotion Start/Stop SEL 5dr manual resolved by dealer who says he "removed the O/S/R wheel & arch + under trays, hoovered, fuel tank and fitted damper rings to block, fuel line. Rebuilt & tested no noise heard." But rattling noise is still emanating from the dash on the drivers side.
27 Nov 2018
Report of prospective purchaser ordering a new VW Touran on 13th July 2018. It finally arrived at the dealership on 14th November. They can't register it with the DVLA as they claim there are issues between the DVLA and VW over the new engine emission certificates. We received a similar srory the same day concerning a VW Golf estate. We guess VW must be producing and delivering cars on spec that they can get them through WLTP testing. This is what I told the other reader: "WLTP certification is causing a catastrophe for German manufacturers. It's not just the straight certification. It's because WLTP tests show a much more honest level of CO2 compared to the old NEDC tests, and where a manufacturer's corporate average CO2 is above the level set for the manufacturer it has to pay an EC fine of 95 Euros for every gram over the limit for every car. So, unless the manufacturer can increase its prices to cover that, it starts to lose money and that's why the Germans are testing and re-testing and testing again to try to get their cars through WLTP at lower levels of CO2. If you are not prepared to put up with this nonsense, cancel the deal and try to find a car that can actually be registered."
25 Jul 2018
Report of high pitched metallic rattling, noise from engine of 2018 VW Touran 1.4TSI 150. Dealer says noise is coming from high pressure fuel pump and within acceptable limits. Owner is worried.
25 Jan 2016
City Stop system of new Touran found not to be working. When the dealer checked, Front Assist, along with City Stop and ACC were not working. Diagnostics showed there were parts missing from the system.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 7 reports indexed

Buying or keeping a Touran?

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 Touran 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.