Ford Focus C MAX MOT failures and reliability

In 2023 the Ford Focus C MAX took 18,497 MOT tests in Britain and passed 52% of them first time, below 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: 18,497
First-time pass rate: 52%
All cars: 71%

What the Focus C MAX fails on

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

Lights and electrics25.9% (all cars 11.3%)
Suspension21.6% (all cars 9.0%)
Brakes10.8% (all cars 6.8%)
Tyres10.5% (all cars 6.4%)
Body and structure8.5% (all cars 3.5%)
Exhaust and emissions7.4% (all cars 3.1%)
Visibility7.2% (all cars 4.8%)
Steering3.3% (all cars 1.8%)

Most common failure items

Share of tests on which each item was recorded.

Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect 8.6%
Position lamp: not working 5.7%
Coil spring: fractured or broken 5.4%
Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm 4.1%
Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn 4.1%
Joints: constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt 4.1%
Tyres, condition: has ply or cords exposed 4.0%
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction 3.8%

Most common advisories

Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge 27.8%
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened 14.5%
Suspension arms, pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement 13.8%
Coil spring: corroded 11.4%
Brake pads: wearing thin 11.0%
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive 9.9%
Tyres, condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing 9.8%
Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened 9.3%

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
2004	3,295	50%
2005	4,265	50%
2006	5,749	51%
2007	3,674	54%
2008	718	53%

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
12 years	96,022 miles
13 years	86,521 miles
14 years	92,781 miles
15 years	101,763 miles
16 years	104,699 miles
17 years	106,141 miles
18 years	110,449 miles
19 years	115,463 miles
20 years	109,091 miles

Check a particular Focus C MAX

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

Other Ford 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.