Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Volkswagen Sharan 2018: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 83 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2018 Volkswagen Sharan were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Tyre condition (rear).

Summary

The 2018 Volkswagen Sharan follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 2,662 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
83 in every 100
Did not pass first time
17 in every 100452 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
7 yearsabout 67,909 miles
First tests counted
2,662

What failed most often

  1. Tyre condition (rear)21 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)14 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2018 Volkswagen Sharan vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

One fault: suspension arm pins and bushes (front), 5.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 452 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Failed on 62 first tests5.2 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Pins and bushes on suspension arms fail as Major when they are excessively worn. They are graded Dangerous when likely to become detached. DVSA uses the same wording for a suspension joint.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 76 first tests, 3.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Tyres

One wear pattern: tyre condition (rear), 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Tyre condition (rear)

Failed on 94 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Exposed or damaged ply or cords are graded Dangerous. A cut in excess of the requirements and deep enough to reach the ply or cords is Major, and testers may open the cut with a blunt instrument to check its depth. A tyre contacting the vehicle through flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; fouling fails only at the time of test.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Non-component advisories

Noted on 25 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
83in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
3in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
14in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 83.0% of 2,662 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 86.4%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 3 fixed and the 14 not fixed make the 17 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as tested
Diesel2,12974,440 miles82
Petrol53349,949 miles86

Figures are in every 100 first tests.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

4060801002005201020152018Older carsNewer cars
40608010020102018Older cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200552 in every 100437
200650 in every 100430
200749 in every 100489
200850 in every 100416
200950 in every 100363
201055 in every 100568
201167 in every 1002,005
201267 in every 1001,945
201368 in every 1002,027
201471 in every 1002,551
201575 in every 1002,773
201678 in every 1002,683
201779 in every 1002,828
2018 This car83 in every 1002,662
201985 in every 1004,526
202086 in every 1001,428
202184 in every 1001,050

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2018 Sharan.

Of 2018 Sharan vehicles with under 45,000 miles, 90 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 122,000 miles or more, 82 in every 100 did.

Under 45,000536 tests
90
45,000–59,000511 tests
82
59,000–78,000 Typical car552 tests
79
78,000–122,000527 tests
82
122,000 and over535 tests
82

What to check at your mileage

How often each fault turned up on a failed first test, by the car's mileage. Read it as: what is likely to need looking at on a car like the one in front of you.

Under 45,00059,000–78,000122,000 and over
Tyre condition (rear)2.85.12.6
Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)1.33.31.9

Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.

When a car fails

47in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

24in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

6in every 100

of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).

Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

The 2018 Volkswagen Sharan follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Tyre condition (rear), about 21 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 83.0% of 2,662 first MOTs on the 2018 Volkswagen Sharan passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 86.4%. Among 452 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) appears more often than on similar cars (13.7% of those tests; 62 observed failures; about 5.2× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2018 Volkswagen Sharan at the first attempt were Tyre condition (rear) (20.8%) and Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (13.7%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (13.7% of those tests; 62 observed failures; about 5.2× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (13.7% of those tests; 62 observed failures; about 5.2× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2018 Volkswagen Sharan include Suspension arm pins and bushes (front). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2018 Volkswagen Sharan (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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