Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 40,365 tests

Pass rate climbs 2.2 points across the cohorts — newer A7 examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 32,036

Pass

87.6%

Fail

10.0%

PRS

2.0%

Avg mileage at test

90,947 mi

2018–2020 cohort 7,263

Pass

91.8%

Fail

6.3%

PRS

1.2%

Avg mileage at test

50,575 mi

2021+ cohort 1,066

Pass

89.8%

Fail

8.6%

PRS

0.6%

Avg mileage at test

31,252 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

Generations on file · 2

Audi A7 · UK market

Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.

The picture

Audi A7: solid MOT record across 18,563 tests

The Audi A7 is an executive five-door liftback produced by Audi since 2010. The coupé variant of the Audi A6 saloon/estate, the Audi A7 features a sloping roofline with a steeply raked rear window and integrated boot lid, and four frameless doors.

MOT data from 18,563 tests puts this car on an 85.6% first-time pass rate, well above the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 77,818 miles. The most common fail item is tyre tread below the legal limit, followed by cracked or discoloured windscreen.

A model described as a four-door coupe designed to be a more practical alternative to the Audi A8 and a rival to the likes of the Mercedes-Benz CLS. 4,970mm long x 1,910mm wide. Up to 1,390 litres luggage capacity.

For used buyers, the A7's pass rate suggests it clears the MOT with fewer surprises than most — but the top failure items above are still worth a pre-purchase inspection, particularly on higher-mileage examples.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 36–48

A high-group car — insurance costs will be significantly above average. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

36–48

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

987 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
02

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

785 occurrences · 1.9% of tests
03

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

461 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
04

A tyre cords visible or damaged

459 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
05

A tyre seriously damaged

424 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
06

Wiper blade defective

229 occurrences · 0.6% of tests
07

A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated

219 occurrences · 0.5% of tests
08

A tyre seriously damaged

218 occurrences · 0.5% of tests
09

A tyre seriously damaged

209 occurrences · 0.5% of tests
10

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

185 occurrences · 0.5% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures

£200–£430

If every one of this A7's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

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Build your own retest budget.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 4.2-point gap between bands means the year you buy Audi A7 has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

91.8%

2018–2020 registration

the 2018–2020 band climbs to 91.8% — a 4.2-point improvement. Tests in this band average 50,575 miles — roughly 40K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. The stricter post-2018 MOT test rules meant manufacturers had to tighten up emissions and electrical checks, but this band still shows far fewer major failures on suspension and bodywork than the older fleet.

Band to be cautious about

87.6%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 87.6% pass rate against a fleet average of 91.8% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, and pin or bush excessively worn. Average mileage on test for this band is 90,947 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (91.8% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (87.6% pass). That's a 4.2-point spread across 32,036 older tests and 7,263 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Summit

Summit ADRG-215 Audi Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass RHS

£9.89

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Summit

Summit ADRG-216 Audi Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass LHS

£14.29

View at My Motor World →

Draper Expert

Draper Expert Oil Filter Socket for Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and VW

£18.69

View at My Motor World →

Draper Expert

Draper Expert Audi/VW Drain Plug Key, 1/2" Sq. Dr.

£21.99

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

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Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

What's good

Recall history

14 UK recalls on record.

The A7 has 14 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping an A7?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own an A7 and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.