Škoda Karoq vs Volkswagen Tiguan

Buying a used Škoda Karoq or Volkswagen Tiguan? Compare their MOT pass rates, common problems, mileage and how they hold up as they get older.

Already found one of them? Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.

MOT pass rate head to head

Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. The UK average across all cars is 72.3%.

89%

Škoda Karoq

81.4%

Volkswagen Tiguan

7.6

percentage point gap in the Škoda Karoq's favour

That is a wide gap by the standards of this data, and worth weighing. The figures come from 61,412 tests of the Škoda Karoq and 255,819 of the Volkswagen Tiguan. The Volkswagen Tiguan also arrives at test with roughly 26,198 more miles on average, which usually says more about who buys it and what they use it for than about how long it lasts.

A pass rate is not a reliability score. It records whether cars met the roadworthiness standard on test day.

Which one holds up better with age?

A headline pass rate mixes three-year-old cars with fifteen-year-old ones. Split by age, you can see what each model does over time.

Age at testKaroqTiguan
3 to 5 years 88.5% 88.8%
6 to 10 years 88.2% 82.1%
11 years and over No tests 66.2%

There are not enough tests in every age group to compare the two fairly across all ages.

What each one fails on

The areas testers recorded most often across every failed 2025 test for each model, as a share of recorded failure items.

Škoda Karoq

  • Tyres33.9%
  • Suspension18.4%
  • Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment16.4%
  • Brakes15.9%
  • Visibility7.3%

Full Škoda Karoq failure detail

Volkswagen Tiguan

  • Suspension31.5%
  • Tyres22.7%
  • Brakes13.3%
  • Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment12.9%
  • Visibility6.7%

Full Volkswagen Tiguan failure detail

The Škoda Karoq fails most often on tyres, the Volkswagen Tiguan on suspension. Two different things to check on a viewing, and two different conversations to have with the seller. These are recorded failure categories, not faults every car has.

The specific items testers wrote down

One level deeper than the category: the individual defects recorded most often on each model.

Škoda Karoq

  • Condition has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords
  • Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak
  • Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick

Volkswagen Tiguan

  • Tread depth tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm
  • Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn
  • Coil spring fractured or broken

What this comparison can't tell you

Everything above describes two models across the whole UK fleet. It says nothing about the one car in the advert. Two Karoqs of the same year and mileage can be worth thousands apart because of finance, a write-off, a theft record or a clocked odometer, none of which appear in MOT data.

Check the car you are about to buy. One £15 report, instant results, backed by a £30,000 data guarantee.

  • Outstanding finance
  • Write-off records
  • Stolen markers
  • Mileage history
  • Previous keepers

Škoda Karoq vs Volkswagen Tiguan FAQs

Is the Škoda Karoq or the Volkswagen Tiguan more likely to pass its MOT?

The Škoda Karoq passed 89% of its initial MOT tests in the DVSA 2025 data against 81.4% for the Volkswagen Tiguan, a gap of 7.6 percentage points. That is a fleet-wide average, not a prediction about the specific car you are looking at.

Does a higher MOT pass rate mean a more reliable car?

No. An MOT records whether a vehicle met the roadworthiness standard on the day it was tested. It does not test the engine, clutch or gearbox, and it does not measure how often a car breaks down. Pass rates are useful for comparing how two models are holding up across the whole UK fleet, and nothing more than that.

Which is cheaper to keep on the road, the Škoda Karoq or the Volkswagen Tiguan?

This data does not price servicing or repairs, so it cannot answer that directly. What it does show is what each model most often fails on, which is a fair guide to where the money goes. The Škoda Karoq fails most often on tyres. The Volkswagen Tiguan fails most often on suspension.

Which one has covered more miles by MOT time?

The average Volkswagen Tiguan arrived at its 2025 MOT on 67,943 miles, against 41,745 for the Škoda Karoq. That usually reflects who buys each car and what they use it for rather than how long it will last.

How do I check the actual Škoda Karoq I have found?

Enter its registration. A Carpeep car history check reports outstanding finance, insurance write-off markers, stolen markers, the mileage recorded at every MOT, previous keepers, tax and MOT status, import and export markers and scrapped status in one £15 report. None of that appears in model-level MOT statistics.

MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.