All generations and engines together · 178,525 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 73k
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.
Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.
The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 69,449 tests in this band.
Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
The 1.8 and 2.0 TFSI engines fitted to the B8 A4 (roughly 2010-2015) can burn through oil fast, in bad cases a litre every 250-300 miles rather than the 1 litre per 1,000 miles Audi itself calls acceptable. The cause is worn piston rings, and Audi has rebuilt affected engines with new pistons and con rods as a goodwill fix rather than a formal recall. Buyers should expect a low oil level warning to be the first sign, well before any smoke is visible.
Early and mid-generation EA888 2.0 TFSI units (found in B8 A4s from around 2008-2015) use a hydraulic timing chain tensioner with a check valve that can lose its seal, letting the chain go slack overnight. The giveaway is a metallic rattle from the front of the engine for a second or two on cold start, fading as oil pressure builds. Left unchecked it can jump timing and bend valves, a cylinder head job running well into four figures. No UK recall found, so treat any cold-start rattle as a walk-away unless a specialist has checked it.
The Multitronic CVT, fitted to non-quattro automatic A4s up to the B8, has a reputation for judder pulling away from cold, RPM flare where revs rise without matching acceleration, and eventually chain and pulley wear or friction plate burnout. Owners and specialists both flag it as needing its own fluid changed on schedule, something many owners never do because Audi long claimed it was sealed for life. Full transmission failure has been reported as early as two to three years on a neglected car; rebuilds run into four figures. Torque-converter autos and the later S tronic dual-clutch box are not affected by this specific issue.
Manual 2.0 TDI B8 A4s have a pattern of dual-mass flywheel failure, felt as a shudder or rattle through the clutch pedal at idle or pulling away, with some cars needing the DMF replaced more than once. Reported repair cost is around £1,000-£1,500 a time, and it has shown up as early as 20,000 miles on some cars, well inside what most buyers would expect from a wear item. Dealers sometimes dismiss early symptoms as normal diesel clatter, so a second opinion is worth getting.
TDI A4s (B8 and B9) used mainly for short trips struggle to get the exhaust hot enough to burn off soot, leading to a blocked DPF or a carbon-caked EGR valve. Symptoms are a DPF warning light, rough idle, hesitation, and a noticeable drop in economy. A forced regeneration or EGR clean runs roughly £150-£400, a full EGR valve and cooler replacement £600-£1,200, and DPF replacement £1,500-£2,500 if it's gone too far. One B9 owner reported EGR module failure and around £1,500 to fix at 60,000 miles.
Owners of B8-era A4s report front wheel bearings going at anywhere from 36,000 to 80,000 miles, well short of what you'd expect, plus the older B5 generation had a well-documented wishbone bush weakness (fixed on the line from late 1999) and a 1999 worldwide recall covering 560,000 cars for steering ball joints. Suspension is the fault that shows up most in this model's actual MOT records too, so the pattern is real. It's just not one single part: bearings, ball joints and bushes all take turns being the culprit depending on the year and mileage, rather than it being one dodgy component across the whole range.
Built from the two sections above.
Same segment (Saloons & estates), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.
Head to head with the other popular cars in its class on reliability and common faults.