Audi S5, Buying guide, MOT record and UK numbers
11,532 Audi S5s are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 82% of initial MOT tests, 9.7 points above the 72.3% UK average.
Looking at a specific S5? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.
Audi S5 at the MOT
82% of 2,171 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the S5 171st of 575 models. Audi S5s aged 3 to 5 years passed 89.7% of MOT tests in 2025; for examples aged 11 years and over that fell to 76.8%.
First-time pass rate, 2025
Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.
Pass rate by age at test
Audi S5 tests in 2025.
Where S5s fail
Share of all failure items recorded on Audi S5 tests in 2025.
The items testers recorded most often were pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (7.6%), condition has ply or cords exposed (7.2%) and coil spring fractured or broken (5.7%).
The MOT page lists every common S5 MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.
What to look at on a viewing
The S5's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.
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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.22.9% of S5 failure items
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Suspension
Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters.21% of S5 failure items
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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.17.9% of S5 failure items
Audi S5s in the UK
11,532 were licensed at the end of June 2026. The number licensed has grown 208% since the end of 2014.
- Change since 2014
- +208%from 3,747 licensed
- Typical year of first use
- 2017half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 2017 or earlier
- First registered in 2025
- 779against 3,824 in 2017
- Declared off the road
- 8086.5% of those registered, under SORN
Licensed Audi S5s since 2014
Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.
Show the figures
| Date | Licensed |
|---|---|
| End of 2014 | 3,747 |
| End of 2015 | 4,454 |
| End of 2016 | 5,153 |
| End of 2017 | 8,575 |
| End of 2018 | 11,004 |
| End of 2019 | 10,631 |
| End of 2020 | 10,729 |
| End of 2021 | 10,753 |
| End of 2022 | 10,903 |
| End of 2023 | 10,932 |
| End of 2024 | 10,863 |
| End of 2025 | 11,345 |
| End of June 2026 | 11,532 |
How old they are
Licensed Audi S5s by year of first use.
- Licensed at the end of 2025
- First registered that year
Show the figures
| First used | Licensed, end 2025 | First registered that year |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 740 | 779 |
| 2024 | 140 | 149 |
| 2023 | 217 | 236 |
| 2022 | 250 | 265 |
| 2021 | 193 | 203 |
| 2020 | 257 | 276 |
| 2019 | 79 | 92 |
| 2018 | 2,222 | 2,476 |
| 2017 | 3,261 | 3,824 |
| 2016 | 745 | 838 |
| 2015 | 694 | 810 |
| 2014 | 389 | |
| 2013 | 288 | |
| 2012 | 213 | |
| 2011 | 454 | |
| 2010 | 466 | |
| 2009 | 100 | |
| 2008 | 349 | |
| 2007 | 254 |
694 S5s first used in 2015 were still licensed at the end of 2025, roughly 86% of the 810 first registered that year.
S5 engines and fuel
3.0 litre engines made up 56% of Audi S5 MOT tests in 2025, followed by 4.2 litre at 44%. Petrol accounts for 92% of licensed S5s and diesel for 8%.
Engine size at MOT, 2025
Share of 2,170 initial MOT tests in 2025.
Fuel type, licensed S5s
DfT licensing statistics, June 2026.
| Fuel | Licensed | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | 10,607 | 92% |
| Diesel | 925 | 8% |
Audi S5 FAQs
How many Audi S5s are there in the UK?
11,532 Audi S5s were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 808 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.
Is the Audi S5 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 82% first-time pass rate for the Audi S5 across 2,171 tests in 2025, above the 72.3% average for all cars.
What should I check before buying a used Audi S5?
On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: tyres, suspension and lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment. Then check the individual car's own records. Outstanding finance, insurance write-offs and police stolen markers are not part of the MOT record, so they take a history check.
How do I check an Audi S5'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.
Already found an S5?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Across the 1,389 vehicles of every make Carpeep has checked since November 2025, 19% had outstanding finance recorded and 13% an insurance write-off. More on the Audi history check. To confirm a car's identity, see the Audi VIN check.
- Outstanding finance
- Write-off records
- Stolen markers
- Mileage history
- Previous keepers
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), which also gives the engine sizes. Licensed, SORN, fuel and registration figures are from the Department for Transport vehicle licensing statistics (VEH0120, VEH0124, VEH0160). Government data is used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability. History-check findings are anonymous counts from reports bought on Carpeep, each vehicle counted once, and are published only where at least 100 vehicles returned an answer.