Where each one leads
Subaru Outback
- Against cars of the same year, the Subaru Outback comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 11% less often than average) than the Volkswagen Tiguan (fails 3% less often than average).
- Fewer Subaru Outback cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (0.7% against 2.0%).
Volkswagen Tiguan
- New Volkswagen Tiguan cars registered in Europe in 2022 average 145 g/km of CO₂ on the WLTP test, against 193 for the Subaru Outback in 2022.
- Measured by the cars' own fuel meters, the petrol Volkswagen Tiguan uses 8.1 l/100 km on the road, the Subaru Outback 8.9.
Too close to call: MOT pass rate against cars of the same age; NHTSA overall safety rating; official combined fuel use, Canada (l/100 km).
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Subaru Outback | Volkswagen Tiguan | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1995–2026 | 2005–2026 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 38,661 (2010–2022) | 2,083,956 (2010–2022) |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 9,372 | 347,496 |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 858 | 94,315 |
| In traffic in Finland | 2,235 | 10,223 |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Subaru Outback | Volkswagen Tiguan | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 75% | 82% |
| … against cars of the same age | +6% | +5% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.4% | 1.2% |
| … against cars of the same year | −11% | −3% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 0.7% | 2.0% |
| US owner complaints | 9,776 | 2,326 |
| Most complaints about | Electrical system | Engine |
| Model year with most complaints | 2019 (1,036) | 2018 (287) |
| US recall campaigns | 71 | 39 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 6,038 | 10,719 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 10 | 19 |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Subaru Outback | Volkswagen Tiguan | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2025) | 5★ (2027) |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Subaru Outback | Volkswagen Tiguan | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 8.5 l/100 km (2026) | 8.5 l/100 km (2026) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 8.9 l/100 km | 8.1 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, diesel | — | 6.8 l/100 km |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | — | 7.2 l/100 km |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 193 g/km | 145 g/km |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 124 kW (166 hp) | 119 kW (159 hp) |
| Average mass in running order | 1,729 kg | 1,669 kg |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €65,096 | €43,330 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 106,000 km | 181,000 km |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).