Ford Focus MOT Reliability & Buying Guide

68.0%

MOT pass rate

Hatchback / estate

Segment

Petrol, diesel

Fuel types available

Source: DS Auto Labs analysis of DVSA's anonymised 2025 MOT test results (Open Government Licence v3.0): 886,912 first-time tests of Ford Focus cars of all ages (test class 4, cars and light vans). A pass means a clean first-time pass; a car that failed and was repaired at the test station before passing counts as not passed, and aborted tests are excluded. Age is the car's age at the 2025 test.

What to know

In 2025, Ford Focus cars passed their MOT first time 68.0% of the time, across 886,912 tests. That is 0.7 points below Ford's overall brand average of 68.7% and 4.4 points below the national average of 72.4%.

Age explains much of the difference between models. Pass rates fall steeply as cars get older, for every make, so a model with many old cars on the road looks worse than it is, and a recent model looks better. This compares the Ford Focus with the typical UK car of the same age.

MOT pass rate by vehicle age, 2025 first-time tests
Car age	Ford Focus	All UK cars	Tests
3-5 years	87.5%	87.2%	74,675
6-9 years	80.1%	79.3%	228,963
10-13 years	65.3%	67.9%	280,546
14+ years	56.4%	59.3%	301,587

Allowing for the age mix of the cars tested, a typical UK car would be expected to pass about 69.6% of the time. The Ford Focus passed at 68.0%, which is 1.6 points below that expected rate.

A model average says little about one particular car, so check its own MOT history for repeated advisories, past failures and mileage.

Check a specific Focus's MOT history, tax status, and advisories by registration number.

Check MOT history

See how the Ford range compares overall, with model-by-model pass rates.

View Ford brand page