2013 Subaru Forester X Boxer Diesel 2.0L Diesel · SN13 WEX

The Subaru Forester passed its most recent MOT on 20 October 2025 at 113,833 miles, but the record reveals a maintenance pattern that is stable rather than improving. The tester flagged corrosion on both nearside and offside rear parking brake shoe back plates, along with slight play in the nearside rear upper suspension arm ball joint. These are not new failures, yet they indicate ongoing deterioration of rear-end components that a diligent owner would typically address before they reach advisory status. The vehicle has remained roadworthy, but the trend suggests reactive rather than preventative upkeep. At thirteen years old with 113,833 recorded miles, the Forester has covered roughly 8,756 miles per year, which sits squarely within the UK average for a diesel family SUV. The mileage progression is clean and consistent, with no sudden jumps or suspicious gaps between annual tests. The 2024 test recorded 109,067 miles, the 2023 test 98,787 miles, and the 2022 test 90,105 miles, showing a steady annual accumulation of around 8,000 to 10,000 miles. This regularity supports the conclusion that the car has been driven consistently rather than sitting idle for long periods, which in turn means wear on consumables and mechanical components has been distributed evenly rather than concentrated. A buyer should focus their physical inspection on the rear suspension and braking system, where the MOT history shows persistent issues. The rear anti-roll bar bushes have worn repeatedly, appearing as advisories in 2022, 2023, and 2024, and the 2025 test introduced a new advisory for the nearside rear upper suspension arm ball joint. Combined with the corroded rear parking brake back plates flagged in the most recent test, this points to a rear end that has been neglected over multiple test cycles. The 2022 failure also noted corroded brake back plates, suggesting the corrosion issue has been present for at least four years. A thorough check of the rear subframe, brake back plates, and suspension mounting points for structural corrosion is essential, particularly given the age of the vehicle and the diesel powertrain's susceptibility to moisture-related rust. The front suspension has also drawn attention, with worn wishbone rear bushes flagged in 2022 and a missing offside front ball joint dust cover noted in the same year's failure. While these did not reappear in subsequent tests, they may have been replaced without further comment, or they may have deteriorated to a point where the dust cover was refitted but the underlying wear persists. A buyer should inspect the front wishbone bushes and ball joint boots for splits or contamination, and test-drive the vehicle over rough surfaces to listen for clunking from the rear suspension that would confirm the advisories have worsened since October 2025. The rear parking brake mechanism itself deserves close attention, as corroded back plates can lead to uneven braking effort or binding calipers, both of which compromise the handbrake's holding ability on gradients.