2016 Ford Focus — MOT failures & pass rate
Across 363,800 MOT tests, the 2016 Ford Focus recorded an 87.9% pass rate. Against small family cars of a similar age (13.7% fail rate), the 2016 Focus comes out 1.6pp better. Failures cluster in lighting & signalling, tyres and brakes.
What the MOT record shows
No single area dominates — lighting & signalling (6.8%) and tyres (6.1%) are close, so failures are spread across several systems rather than one weak point.
At component level the recurring items are tread depth, headlamp aim and brake pads — tread depth alone was recorded 10,205 times.
Mileage is the strongest signal on the record: 6.4% of 0-30k cars fail, rising to 19.4% once past 150k — 3.0× the risk.
The petrol cars hold up better: 11.1% fail against 13.4% for diesel, a 2.3-point gap across 363,797 tests.
Tyres is the most common advisory, noted on 25.7% of tests — work that passed today but is likely due soon.
The trend is worsening — 9.5% of tests failed in 2021 against 14.9% in 2025, the usual pattern as a fleet ages.
How it compares
Top failure categories
| # | Category | % of tests affected | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lighting & signalling | 6.8% | 24,558 |
| 2 | Tyres | 6.1% | 22,067 |
| 3 | Brakes | 2.4% | 8,877 |
| 4 | Emissions & environmental | 1.8% | 6,595 |
| 5 | Visibility | 1.8% | 6,417 |
| 6 | Suspension | 1.1% | 4,110 |
Most common specific failures
The exact components most often recorded as failures — more specific than the categories above.
| # | Failure item | Times recorded |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tread depth | 10,205 |
| 2 | Headlamp aim | 9,447 |
| 3 | Brake pads | 6,122 |
| 4 | Side repeaters | 5,925 |
| 5 | Position lamp | 5,798 |
| 6 | Washers | 4,458 |
Top advisory categories
Advisories aren't failures, but they flag work likely needed soon — useful when budgeting.
| # | Category | % of tests with advisory | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tyres | 25.7% | 93,498 |
| 2 | Brakes | 12.3% | 44,760 |
| 3 | Other defects | 8.2% | 29,818 |
| 4 | Suspension | 6.7% | 24,374 |
| 5 | Visibility | 2.4% | 8,644 |
| 6 | Lighting & signalling | 1.8% | 6,670 |
Failure rate by mileage
Higher-mileage cars tend to fail more — often the most useful guide to real condition.
| Mileage band | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 48,508 | 6.4% |
| 30-60k | 160,482 | 10.2% |
| 60-90k | 106,525 | 14.8% |
| 90-120k | 35,016 | 17.5% |
| 120-150k | 9,217 | 18.5% |
| 150k+ | 3,936 | 19.4% |
Failure rate by age
By fuel type
| Fuel | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| Petrol | 215,146 | 11.1% |
| Diesel | 148,651 | 13.4% |
Trend over time
| Dataset year | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 72,270 | 9.5% |
| 2022 | 72,355 | 10.7% |
| 2023 | 72,637 | 11.8% |
| 2024 | 73,109 | 13.4% |
| 2025 | 73,429 | 14.9% |
What to check before buying a 2016 Focus
The failure pattern for this year is specific enough to inspect against: lighting & signalling accounted for 6.8% of tests. Start there.
- Lighting & signalling (6.8% of tests): Often a cheap bulb, but persistent issues can mean wiring or corrosion in the units. Typical repair: £10–£150.
- Tyres (6.1% of tests): Usually a quick, known-cost fix, but check tread, age and uneven wear (which can hint at alignment or suspension issues). Typical repair: £50–£120 per tyre.
- Brakes (2.4% of tests): Pads/discs are routine wear; binding, imbalance or corroded pipes are more serious — test for pulling under braking. Typical repair: £100–£350 per axle.
Repair costs are rough UK ballpark ranges to set expectations, not quotes — actual prices vary widely by car, parts and garage.
Frequently asked questions
How many 2016 Ford Focuss pass their MOT?
87.9% of the 363,800 2016 Ford Focus MOT tests in this dataset passed — a 12.1% fail rate.
What is the most common MOT failure on a 2016 Ford Focus?
Lighting & signalling, recorded in 6.8% of tests, followed by tyres (6.1%).
Does the 2016 Focus get worse with mileage?
Its MOT fail rate rises from 6.4% in the 0-30k band to 19.4% in the 150k+ band.
Methodology & source. Based on 363,800 MOT tests. 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.