Model Reports 5 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Volkswagen Touran 2011: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 66 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2011 Volkswagen Touran were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front).

Summary

A 2011 Volkswagen Touran passed first time about 4 in every 100 more often than the average of the 2010 and 2012 model years.

At a glance

How 5,484 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
66 in every 100
Did not pass first time
34 in every 1001,862 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
14 yearsabout 119,608 miles
First tests counted
5,484

What failed most often

  1. Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Tyre condition (rear)10 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)9 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 2011 Volkswagen Touran vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

Four faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear): 4.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 1,861 of 1,862 failed first attempts (99.9%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

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.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Failed on 50 first tests4.7 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 96 first tests, 5.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension arm (rear)

Failed on 61 first tests3.9 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a suspension arm. A component that is fractured, missing or likely to fail is graded Dangerous, and one excessively damaged or corroded is Major. On some vehicles, some highly stressed parts are thin pressed steel, and many of those have hollow box sections or up-facing areas that can collect road dirt and salt, so they get special attention.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 159 first tests, 3.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)

Failed on 203 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension joint dust cover that is severely deteriorated is Minor. It becomes Major once it is missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, so what matters is whether it still keeps dirt out. DVSA words this for any suspension joint dust cover, and files it here under anti-roll bars.

Anti-roll bar ball joint dust cover (front)

Failed on 68 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing anti-roll bar ball joint dust cover is Major, and so is one that no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. A cover that is only severely deteriorated is Minor. DVSA uses one wording for the dust cover on any suspension joint.

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

Brakes

Two faults. The strongest is the anti-lock braking system (ABS): 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 99 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

ABS is failed as removed only where it has obviously been removed, because not every vehicle in the age range where removal is not permitted has ABS. A warning lamp that does not light or shows an ABS fault is Major, as is a missing or excessively damaged wheel speed sensor. Every failure row for this component is Major.

Electronic stability control

Failed on 51 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

An ESC warning lamp is failed only when the tester is certain it indicates an ESC malfunction, because the lamp takes various forms and the owner's handbook may need checking. The system is also called ESP, VDC or DSC, among many other names. Every failure row is Major, covering the lamp, wheel speed sensors, wiring, other components and the switch.

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.

Anti-roll bar ball joint (rear)

Noted on 23 first tests7.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Seat belt condition (rear)

Noted on 57 first tests4.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 204 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension sub-frame (rear)

Noted on 250 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)

Noted on 398 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Tyre tread depth

Noted on 26 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

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
66in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
5in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
29in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 66.0% of 5,484 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 71.2%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 5 fixed and the 29 not fixed make the 34 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as tested
Diesel4,586126,722 miles65
Petrol89875,631 miles71

Figures are in every 100 first tests.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002005201120152020Older carsNewer cars
40608010020112020Older carsNewer cars

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

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200453 in every 1001,266
200553 in every 1002,004
200652 in every 1002,921
200756 in every 1004,385
200855 in every 1004,134
200956 in every 1004,540
201057 in every 1004,410
2011 This car66 in every 1005,484
201267 in every 1005,401
201368 in every 1005,168
201472 in every 1004,764
201572 in every 1003,658
201679 in every 1003,486
201780 in every 1004,122
201881 in every 1003,523
201986 in every 1002,614
202088 in every 1002,111
202190 in every 100925
202287 in every 100368

If you are buying one

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

Mileage matters most on a 2011 Touran.

Of 2011 Touran vehicles with under 86,000 miles, 74 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 154,000 miles or more, 60 in every 100 did.

Under 86,0001,104 tests
74
86,000–109,0001,071 tests
66
109,000–130,000 Typical car1,138 tests
65
130,000–154,0001,063 tests
64
154,000 and over1,105 tests
60

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 86,000109,000–130,000154,000 and over
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front)3.43.63.0
Tyre condition (rear)2.43.23.5
Suspension arm pins and bushes (front)1.43.25.0
Coil spring (rear)1.73.02.6
Tyre tread depth (front)1.22.22.9

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

When a car fails

35in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

37in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

10in 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.

A 2011 Volkswagen Touran passed first time about 4 in every 100 more often than the average of the 2010 and 2012 model years. In 2025, 66.0% of 5,484 first MOTs on the 2011 Volkswagen Touran passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 71.2%. Among 1,862 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (2.7% of those tests; 50 observed failures; about 4.7× 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 2011 Volkswagen Touran at the first attempt were Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (front) (10.9%), Tyre condition (rear) (9.8%) and Suspension arm pins and bushes (front) (9.5%), 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: Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) (2.7% of those tests; 50 observed failures; about 4.7× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (2.7% of those tests; 50 observed failures; about 4.7× 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 2011 Volkswagen Touran include Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear), Suspension arm (rear), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover (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 2011 Volkswagen Touran (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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