Audi A7 MOT failures and reliability

In 2023 the Audi A7 took 16,847 MOT tests in Britain and passed 84% of them first time, above the national average of 71% for all cars. The figures below come from the DVSA's record of every test, so they show what testers actually found on these cars rather than what owners report.

MOT tests in 2023: 16,847
First-time pass rate: 84%
All cars: 71%

What the A7 fails on

Share of tests with at least one failure in each area, against the figure for all cars.

Tyres7.9% (all cars 6.4%)
Suspension2.5% (all cars 9.0%)
Lights and electrics2.4% (all cars 11.3%)
Brakes1.8% (all cars 6.8%)
Visibility1.6% (all cars 4.8%)
Exhaust and emissions1.4% (all cars 3.1%)
Body and structure0.7% (all cars 3.5%)
Number plates and VIN0.6% (all cars 0.4%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm 2.8%
Tyres, condition: has ply or cords exposed 1.8%
Tyres, condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords 1.7%
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction 1.2%
Tyres, condition: has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure 1.0%
Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn 0.9%
Tyres, condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure 0.9%
Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick 0.8%

Most common advisories

Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 17.3%
Brake pads: wearing thin 6.8%
Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement 5.8%
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 4.1%
Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 2.8%
Tyres, condition: has a cut but not deep enough to reach the ply or cords 2.7%
Brake discs: worn, but not excessively 2.1%
Non-component advisories: Nail in tyre 2.0%

Pass rate by year of registration

Older cars fail more often whatever the model, so compare a car with others of the same age.

First registered	Tests	Pass rate
2011	1,669	80%
2012	1,358	83%
2013	1,983	80%
2014	1,973	84%
2015	2,064	85%
2016	2,392	85%
2017	1,658	87%
2018	1,412	89%
2019	1,500	87%
2020	672	88%

Typical mileage by age

Average odometer reading at the MOT, by the car's age in years at the test.

Age at test	Average mileage
3 years	28,357 miles
4 years	39,874 miles
5 years	47,619 miles
6 years	57,884 miles
7 years	68,117 miles
8 years	76,987 miles
9 years	86,181 miles
10 years	97,597 miles
11 years	109,840 miles
12 years	114,230 miles
13 years	115,306 miles

Check a particular A7

Model figures tell you what to look out for. To see one car's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration.

Other Audi models

Source: Department for Transport, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023, cars and light vans, normal tests only. Pass rates are first-time passes; a pass after repair at the test station counts as a fail. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.