87.2%
Audi A8 pass rate
Used Audi A8 buying guide
In 2025, Audi A8 cars passed 87.2% of 11,123 initial MOT tests, 14.9 points above the 72.3% UK average. Here is where it fails and what to check before you buy.
Looking at a specific A8? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.
Audi A8 MOT record in brief
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded.
72.3%
UK average, all cars
+14.9
percentage points above average
Ranked on pass rate the A8 sits 87th of 575 models in the data. Audi as a brand averaged 78.5%, so this model runs 8.7 points ahead of its own brand. Audi A8 cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 93% of MOT tests in 2025; for examples aged 11 years and over that fell to 82.2%.
A pass rate is not a reliability score. The full Audi A8 MOT record has the pass rate by age, every common failure and how the A8 compares with similar cars.
A8 fuel types
Diesel made up 78% of Audi A8 MOT tests in 2025, against 39.3% across all models in this data. Most used examples you look at will be diesels.
Where the A8 fails its MOT
Where Audi A8 cars that failed their 2025 MOT were marked down, as a share of all recorded failure items.
The specific items testers recorded most often were tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (6.3%), pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (6.2%) and condition has ply or cords exposed (5.8%). See every common A8 MOT failure.
These are DVSA failure records across every Audi A8 that failed, not a claim that every A8 has these problems.
What should you check when buying a used A8?
The areas above, most common first, and what an MOT tester looks at in each.
1
Tyres
Check tread depth across the full width of every tyre (the legal minimum is 1.6mm), and look for cuts, bulges and uneven wear. 21.1% of A8 failure items.
2
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Walk round with every light on: headlights, brake lights, indicators, fog lights and the number plate lamp. Check no warning lights stay on after starting. 18% of A8 failure items.
3
Suspension
Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters. 16.2% of A8 failure items.
4
Brakes
Make sure the pedal feels firm, the car stops in a straight line, the handbrake holds on a slope and no brake warning light is showing. 14.2% of A8 failure items.
5
Visibility
Check the windscreen for chips or cracks in the driver's view, and that the wipers and washers clear it properly. 10.2% of A8 failure items.
None of this replaces the car's own record. Run a free MOT history check on the registration to see every test, advisory and recorded mileage for that car.
What the MOT record doesn't tell you
Knowing Audi A8 failures cluster around tyres and lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment tells you what to inspect. It tells you nothing about whether the car is safe to buy. An MOT does not show money still owed on the car, a write-off, a theft record or a clocked odometer.
Check the exact A8 you are looking at. One £15 report, instant results, backed by a £30,000 data guarantee. More on the Audi history check.
- Outstanding finance
- Write-off records
- Stolen markers
- Mileage history
- Previous keepers
Other used Audi models
The most-tested Audi models in 2025, with how their MOT pass rate compares with the A8.
Used Audi A8 FAQs
Is the Audi A8 reliable?
MOT data does not measure reliability. It records whether a car met the roadworthiness standard on the day of its test. What it does show is an 87.2% first-time pass rate for the Audi A8 across 11,123 tests in 2025, above the 72.3% average for all cars.
Do older Audi A8 cars fail their MOT more often?
Audi A8 cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 93% of MOT tests in 2025; for examples aged 11 years and over that fell to 82.2%. On an older example, the car's own MOT history tells you more than the model average.
What should I check before buying a used Audi A8?
On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: tyres, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and suspension. Then check the individual car's history: outstanding finance, insurance write-off records, stolen markers, mileage and previous keepers. None of these appear in the MOT record or on the V5C.
How do I check an Audi A8's history?
Enter the registration of the specific car. A Carpeep car history check reports outstanding finance, write-off category, stolen markers, mileage history, previous keepers, MOT and tax status, import and export markers and scrapped status in one £15 report.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.