Ford Auto Trail MOT failures and reliability

The Ford Auto Trail is one of the stronger cars at the MOT: 89% of its 1,241 tests in 2025 were passed first time, 17 points better than the 72% for all cars. Half the Ford Auto Trail cars tested were registered in 2022 or later, and younger cars pass more often. That ranks it 3rd of the 32 Ford models we cover. Every figure here comes from the DVSA's record of each Ford Auto Trail MOT, so it shows what testers found rather than what owners report.

MOT tests in 2025: 1,241
First-time pass rate: 89%
All cars: 72%

Ford Auto Trail MOT strengths and weak spots

The Ford Auto Trail fails less often than the average car in every area of the test we measure.

It does best on suspension, where 1.0% of Ford Auto Trail tests failed against 9.1% for all cars.

At 12 years old the average Ford Auto Trail had covered 32,027 miles, about 2,700 a year.

The single most common failure on the Ford Auto Trail was headlamp aim: too high, on 2.7% of tests.

What the Ford Auto Trail fails on

Share of Ford Auto Trail tests with at least one failure in each area, beside the figure for all cars.

Lights and electrics8.1% (all cars 10.7%)
Brakes2.3% (all cars 6.3%)
Visibility1.2% (all cars 4.4%)
Suspension1.0% (all cars 9.1%)
Exhaust and emissions0.6% (all cars 3.1%)
Tyres0.5% (all cars 6.3%)
Body and structure0.2% (all cars 3.3%)
Steering0.2% (all cars 2.0%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

Headlamp aim: too high 2.7%
Position lamp: not working 1.5%
Stop lamp: not working 1.1%
Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively 1.0%
Outline marker lamp: not working 1.0%
Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements 0.6%
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction 0.6%
Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements 0.6%

Most common advisories

Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 5.6%
Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 4.2%
Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement 2.7%
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material 2.0%
Pipes and hoses: slightly corroded 1.4%
Brake pads: wearing thin 1.2%
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 0.8%
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 0.7%

Typical mileage by age

Average Ford Auto Trail odometer reading at the MOT, by age in years at the test.

Age at test	Average mileage
3 years	10,201 miles
4 years	13,087 miles
5 years	14,597 miles
11 years	28,909 miles
12 years	32,027 miles

Check a particular Ford Auto Trail

The figures above tell you what to look out for on any Ford Auto Trail. For one Ford Auto Trail's own MOT history, mileage and tax, enter its registration for a free MOT check.

Other Ford models

Source: Department for Transport, Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2025, 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.