Audi A3 vs Ford Focus

On MOT-testable defects the Audi A3 comes out ahead: 17.3% of its tests record a failure against 20.6% for the Ford Focus, a 3.3-point gap. The biggest single difference is lighting & signalling, where the Focus records failures noticeably more often.

17.3%
A3 fail rate
20.6%
Focus fail rate
3.26pp
Difference

Side by side

MOT figures compared
MetricAudi A3Ford Focus
MOT tests analysed2,507,5636,079,104
Pass rate82.7%79.4%
Fail rate17.3%20.6%
Fail rate compared (lower is better) Audi A3 17.3% Ford Focus 20.6%
Overall MOT fail rate across comparable model years.

Where they differ

Failure-area share, by category
CategoryA3Focus
Lighting & signalling6.8%12.5%
Suspension7.2%9.1%
Visibility2.6%3.6%
Brakes4.5%4.5%
Tyres6.3%6.3%

Methodology & source. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-27. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.

See the full data