All generations and engines together · 108,732 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 67k
Middling for its age among SUVs, and better than most per mile driven. Watch suspension and corrosion. A fair used buy, provided its MOT history has no repeating suspension advisories.
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
The 7-speed S tronic dual-clutch box fitted to most pre-2017 Q5s (commonly referred to by its DL382 code) can suffer clutch pack wear and mechatronic unit failure, showing up as jerky pull-away, hesitation, or in bad cases a loss of reverse. Owners and garages report it turning up anywhere from the mid-20,000s to mid-80,000 mile mark. A proper fix, new clutch packs plus a mechatronic unit, runs from around £4,000 up to £11,500 at a main dealer. Manual cars and the torque-converter tiptronic fitted to bigger-engined models are not affected.
The EA888-family 2.0 TFSI petrol used across the Q5 range is a known oil burner on higher-mileage examples, sometimes getting through a litre every 1,000-1,500 miles with no visible leak or smoke, so the level needs checking by hand rather than trusting the gauge. On the same engine, a worn timing chain tensioner can let the chain rattle on cold start-up from around the 100,000 mile mark, and carbon builds up on the back of the intake valves (there's no fuel wash to keep them clean with direct injection), bringing on a rough idle and misfires that need a walnut-blasting clean. None of this shows on an MOT until it's serious; a full engine rebuild can run into five figures.
On the 2.0 and 3.0 TDI versions, owners report AdBlue system faults that can stop the car restarting once the additive tank reads empty or the sensor plays up, plus EGR valve problems that have followed emissions-related software updates. Symptoms range from a warning light and reduced power to, at worst, a car that won't start. The bill varies hugely, from a sensor and a top-up of fluid to a four-figure EGR valve and clean if it's been left too long.
The Q5 has always had a firm ride, and owners regularly report creaks, clonks and knocks from bushes, drop links and top mounts on higher-mileage cars, with reviewers separately noting that cars on the optional adaptive air suspension can clunk over sharp bumps rather than absorb them. Suspension is also the fault that shows up most in this model's measured MOT data, so the owner folklore and the test-lane results are pointing at the same area, even if it's usually the bushes and links rather than the springs, dampers or air struts themselves making the noise. Budget a few hundred pounds for bushes and links, well over a thousand if an air suspension strut or compressor has actually failed.
On the second-generation Q5, the MMI infotainment system can freeze or lag, sometimes needing a reboot before the sat-nav or reversing camera comes back. Reviewers have also flagged the touch-sensitive climate and steering-wheel controls as fiddly, and the door-release touch pad sits right where your hand naturally grips the door, so it gets knocked by accident. Whether that counts as a fault or just poor ergonomics is something owners argue about; a dealer software update sometimes helps but not always, and it rarely costs money to fix, just patience.
Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.
Saveable checklistThe physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.
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. 44,288 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.
Same segment (Family & large SUVs), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.
Head to head with the other popular cars in its class on reliability and common faults.