Audi A1 Common Faults in the UK
first generation 2010–2018 and second generation 2018–on — premium supermini. Updated 9 November 2026.
This guide covers the first generation 2010–2018 and second generation 2018–on. For any other version of the A1, see how to check any car for known faults.
The Audi A1 has had no DVSA recall of 10,000 or more vehicles; its one recall is an airbag and seat belt tensioner fault on cars built May to October 2016 (R/2017/078, 2,622 cars). What Car? calls the 2010–2018 car generally reliable and ranks the 2018-on car 10th of 28 small cars at 96.4% (page updated 27 October 2026), but ranks Audi 29th of 30 brands. A1s registered 2013–2022 pass the MOT above all cars registered those years in 1 of 10 years, below in 2 (2016 and 2017) and level in 7.
Largest DVSA recall for the A1: R/2017/078, 2,622 vehicles in the whole recall — Airbag/belt tensioners may not trigger in event of an accident.
79.6% of Audi A1s pass the MOT first time — level with cars of the same age nationally. Counted from 24,971 DVSA tests on cars registered 2011–2022; a pass with rectification at the station counts as a pass here, and as a failure in DVSA's own initial-test measure.
Source: DVSA MOT Anonymised Data 2025 (Open Government Licence v3.0), a sample of the 2025 file (about one test in ten, from nine months). Class 4 tests in Great Britain, test type NT (a normal annual test), retests excluded. A pass, or a pass with rectification at the station, counts as a pass here (passed on the day); DVSA's own initial-test measure counts a rectified pass as a failure and so reports a lower figure. Testing in Northern Ireland is run separately by the DVA under its own rules. Compared against cars of the same registration years, because pass rates otherwise mostly measure how old a model's surviving fleet is.
See it by registration year and by mileage ↓The asking-price figures above are the middle 80% and the median of what sellers were asking on Autoza on 11 November 2026 — not what buyers pay — for Audi A1 cars registered from 2010. They are worked out from the cars on sale when this page is generated, and none is shown when fewer than 10 cars qualify. The road tax line comes from GOV.UK's vehicle tax rate tables (2026/27 rates). The fuel economy tile names the source it rests on or says there is no sourced figure, and the insurance tile gives no figure. We do not publish a UK price index, and no figure here should be quoted as one.
Best and worst years to buy
We name a year as a best or worst buy only where the DVSA MOT table further down does not rate it the other way.
DVSA’s MOT table rates no A1 registration year as a standout: 2014 is the only year above all cars registered that year (by 2.7 points), 2016 and 2017 are below, and the other seven are level. What Car? ranks the 2018-on A1 10th of 28 small cars at 96.4% (its page, updated 27 October 2026).
No year is named as one to avoid. DVSA’s MOT table rates 2016 and 2017 registrations 2.0 and 2.5 points below all cars registered those years (2,792 and 2,518 tests), the only A1 years it rates below, but the sources we read give no cause for such a small gap, so it is a reason to check those cars harder, not a verdict on them. The airbag and belt tensioner recall R/2017/078 covers cars built 1 May to 31 October 2016, so check a 2016 or 2017 car by registration. MOT results measure roadworthiness at the test, not engine or electronics reliability.
Known faults — Audi A1 first generation 2010–2018 and second generation 2018–on
How to read this list. Items marked Safety recall are DVSA safety recalls, shown with DVSA’s own reference. Whether a particular car is affected depends on when it was built: check it by registration through GOV.UK’s vehicle recall check. Everything else in this list is owner-reported: what the UK publication named on each card reports from its owner surveys and tests. Those are worth checking on a viewing, but we hold no count of how many cars have each one, other than any survey share a card itself quotes. Treat an owner-reported item as a question to ask, not a fault this car has.
Airbag and seat belt pretensioner may not trigger (2016 builds)
- Symptoms
- DVSA wording: due to an error in the manufacturing process the air bag and/or seat belt pretensioner may not trigger in the event of a collision. The air bag assembly and seat belt pretensioner are replaced where necessary.
- Years affected
- A1 built 1 May 2016 to 31 October 2016
- Indicative repair (UK)
- Free under recall
- What to check before buying
- Check this one by registration through GOV.UK’s vehicle recall check (gov.uk/check-vehicle-recall) before you buy — an outstanding recall is free to put right and a completed one should be on the service record. On a 2016 or 2017 car, ask for the Audi dealer record showing the airbag and pretensioner work was done or was not needed.
Diesel particulate filter on town-driven diesels (first generation)
- Symptoms
- What Car? says the 1.6-litre diesel has a diesel particulate filter and, as the A1 is a town car, few have had the long runs that let it clear; a clogged filter can be costly to replace. If it is shut off partway through clearing, fuel can contaminate the oil, the oil level rises over time and the engine can be damaged. Its page is updated 3 September 2026.
- Years affected
- First generation 2010–2018 diesels
- What to check before buying
- On a diesel, ask how the car has been driven, check the oil level and condition, and ask for the service history.
Timing chain and turbocharger (first generation, high mileage)
- Symptoms
- Autocar says that on high-mileage cars the timing chain can stretch and wear out early, with a whine when the engine is cold or climbing a hill, and budgets around £600 for a replacement. It says the 1.4 TSI is a good engine but its turbocharger has been known to fail, at around £2,000 to replace, with black smoke or a loud whistle under load as the signs. Its page is published 17 June 2024.
- Years affected
- First generation 2010–2018, higher mileages
- What to check before buying
- Listen for a whine on a cold start, watch the exhaust for black smoke under load, and ask whether the chain or turbocharger has been replaced.
Electrics, sensors and infotainment
- Symptoms
- Autocar says its writer’s own A1 had occasional electrical problems with the alarm and parking sensors, and that infotainment can lose its connection to a phone (its page is published 17 June 2024). What Car? says some first-generation owners report the Bluetooth misbehaving, with some niggly electrical faults but nothing major (updated 3 September 2026), and that some owners of the 2018-on car report minor electrical faults and faulty sensors that trigger dashboard warning lights, including one costly parking sensor unit (updated 27 October 2026).
- Years affected
- First and second generation
- What to check before buying
- Pair a phone over Bluetooth, test every parking sensor, and check no warning light stays on after start-up.
S tronic automatic — jerky pulling away (second generation)
- Symptoms
- What Car? says some owners of the 2018-on car find the S tronic automatic gearbox a little jerky pulling away from a junction or onto a roundabout, and that in its experience this is common to most Audi models that use it. Its page is updated 27 October 2026.
- Years affected
- Second generation 2018-on, S tronic cars
- What to check before buying
- On an automatic, test pulling away gently and in traffic, and ask for the service record of the gearbox.
Audi A1 MOT results by year and mileage
Measured from DVSA’s own MOT test records for tests carried out in 2025, not from owner reports.
By registration year
Against all cars registered in the same year, the MOT pass rate for the A1 was higher in 1, lower in 2 and level in 7 of the 10 registration years from 2013 to 2022 with enough tests to measure. The widest gap below is 2017 registrations: 79.7% against 82.2% for all cars registered that year. The widest gap above is 2014 registrations: 77.0% against 74.3%.
Pass rate here: passed on the day, cars fixed during the test included. Rows: every Audi A1 DVSA tested in 2025, by registration year (2013–2022), all engines and fuels together.
| Registered | A1 | All cars that year | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20221,514 tests | 90.9% | 91.2% | −0.3 level |
| 20211,337 tests | 90.8% | 90.1% | +0.7 level |
| 20201,259 tests | 88.8% | 88.7% | +0.1 level |
| 20192,086 tests | 87.5% | 86.9% | +0.6 level |
| 20182,124 tests | 83.1% | 84.5% | −1.4 level |
| 20172,518 tests | 79.7% | 82.2% | −2.5 lower |
| 20162,792 tests | 77.4% | 79.4% | −2.0 lower |
| 20152,572 tests | 78.0% | 76.7% | +1.3 level |
| 20142,473 tests | 77.0% | 74.3% | +2.7 higher |
| 20132,400 tests | 70.8% | 71.9% | −1.1 level |
By mileage at the test
Against cars of the same age on the same mileage, the pass rate for the A1 was lower in 1 and level in 3 of the 4 mileage bands with enough tests. How other models compare at the same mileage.
Show the table by mileage (4 bands)
| Mileage | A1 | Same age and mileage | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20k–40k4,976 tests | 87.8% | 88.7% | −0.9 level |
| 40k–60k5,986 tests | 81.5% | 82.6% | −1.1 lower |
| 60k–80k5,364 tests | 77.0% | 76.6% | +0.4 level |
| 80k–100k3,635 tests | 71.9% | 71.7% | +0.2 level |
Only a major or dangerous defect fails an MOT. A minor defect is recorded on the certificate and the car still passes, and an advisory is not a failure at all.
We don’t give a recall count for the Audi A1: whether a recall applies depends on the individual car. Check the one you are looking at by entering its registration on GOV.UK’s vehicle recall checker, and see how to check a car for known faults for the other free checks.
Source: DVSA MOT Anonymised Data 2025 (Open Government Licence v3.0), a sample of the 2025 file (about one test in ten, from nine months) (3,459,000 tests). Class 4 tests in Great Britain, test type NT (a normal annual test), retests excluded. A pass, or a pass with rectification at the station, counts as a pass here (passed on the day); DVSA's own initial-test measure counts a rectified pass as a failure and so reports a lower figure. Odometer readings below 100 or above 400,000 miles are discarded as misreadings, and cars under three years old are excluded because no MOT is yet due. Sampled from nine months of 2025 (January, February, April, May, July, August, September, October and November). Testing in Northern Ireland is run separately by the DVA under its own rules. Registration years shown are cars 3 to 12 years old when tested; the smallest rests on 1,259 tests. A gap is called level when it is under one percentage point or inside the 95% sampling margin for that number of tests. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
What fails at the MOT: DVSA 2025 results
Across 235,805 Audi A1 MOT tests in 2025 (all versions together), these defects turned up most often. This guide covers the first generation 2010–2018 and second generation 2018–on; the figures are for every Audi A1 tested, of any generation.
Where it stands out
The parts groups where Audi A1 tests carried a defect more often than cars of the same age and mileage:
- Seat belts and SRS. 0.8% of tests, against 0.6% for cars of the same age and mileage (1.4 times the rate).
- Suspension. 9.1% of tests, against 7.1% for cars of the same age and mileage (1.3 times the rate).
What is found most often
The five defects found most often on Audi A1 tests, each compared with cars of the same age where it stands out:
- Suspension pin or bush excessively worn. On 3.4% of Audi A1 tests, 3.2 times the rate for cars of the same age.
- Coil spring: fractured or broken. On 3.3% of Audi A1 tests, 1.5 times the rate for cars of the same age.
- Tyre tread below the 1.6mm legal minimum. On 2.5% of Audi A1 tests.
- Brake pads worn below 1.5mm. On 2.0% of Audi A1 tests.
- Tyre cut deep enough to reach the cords. On 1.6% of Audi A1 tests.
Less common, but well above the rate for cars of the same age:
- Reversing lamps: inoperative. On 0.4% of Audi A1 tests, 3.4 times the rate for cars of the same age.
- Track rod end dust cover damaged or deteriorated. On 0.8% of Audi A1 tests, 2.1 times the rate for cars of the same age.
- Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. On 1.2% of Audi A1 tests, 2.1 times the rate for cars of the same age.
The MOT checks safety and emissions items, not the engine, clutch or gearbox, so this is one measure of how each car holds up rather than a full reliability verdict. These figures describe the model, all its versions together, not this particular car.
From DVSA’s 2025 MOT results. See the full analysis
Who this car suits — and who should look elsewhere
City drivers who want a premium small car and will check the particulate filter history on a diesel and the recall record on a 2016 car.
Anyone buying a diesel that has only done short town trips without asking how the filter has been looked after.
Alternatives to consider
If the Audi A1 doesn't suit, these comparable models are worth a look in the UK market:
Audi A1: questions buyers ask
What are the most common faults on a used Audi A1 in the UK?
The Audi A1 has had no DVSA recall of 10,000 or more vehicles; its one recall is an airbag and seat belt tensioner fault on cars built May to October 2016 (R/2017/078, 2,622 cars). What Car? calls the 2010–2018 car generally reliable and ranks the 2018-on car 10th of 28 small cars at 96.4% (page updated 27 October 2026), but ranks Audi 29th of 30 brands. A1s registered 2013–2022 pass the MOT above all cars registered those years in 1 of 10 years, below in 2 (2016 and 2017) and level in 7.
What is the best year to buy a used Audi A1 in the UK?
Best-buy years: no single year stands out. DVSA’s MOT table rates no A1 registration year as a standout: 2014 is the only year above all cars registered that year (by 2.7 points), 2016 and 2017 are below, and the other seven are level. What Car? ranks the 2018-on A1 10th of 28 small cars at 96.4% (its page, updated 27 October 2026).
What years of Audi A1 should I avoid in the UK?
No specific year of the first generation 2010–2018 and second generation 2018–on Audi A1 is generally avoided. No year is named as one to avoid. DVSA’s MOT table rates 2016 and 2017 registrations 2.0 and 2.5 points below all cars registered those years (2,792 and 2,518 tests), the only A1 years it rates below, but the sources we read give no cause for such a small gap, so it is a reason to check those cars harder, not a verdict on them. The airbag and belt tensioner recall R/2017/078 covers cars built 1 May to 31 October 2016, so check a 2016 or 2017 car by registration. MOT results measure roadworthiness at the test, not engine or electronics reliability.
How much does a used Audi A1 cost in the UK in 2026?
What sellers were asking on Autoza on 11 November 2026, for Audi A1 cars registered from 2010: £4,995–£13,495, median £8,677 — the range is the middle 80% of asking prices. Those are asking prices, not what buyers paid, and not a UK price index. Prices vary by mileage, region and trim, so compare several adverts of the same year and mileage band before negotiating.
What is the road tax (VED) on a Audi A1 in the UK?
Annual road tax (VED): £200/year standard rate from the second year, hybrids included — the alternative-fuel discount ended on 1 April 2025. A car registered from April 2017 with a list price over £40,000 when new adds the £440/year Expensive Car Supplement in years 2–6 (£640 in all). Cars registered 2001–2017 pay a CO2 band, roughly £20–£790/year (2026/27 rates).
What real-world fuel economy does a Audi A1 achieve on UK roads?
No sourced real-world figure for the A1, so none is printed: the official lab figure depends on the engine and on the test cycle the car was approved under, so use the figure for the exact version you are looking at.
How does a Audi A1 compare to its rivals?
Strong alternatives in the UK: Audi A3, Volkswagen Polo, MINI Cooper, Ford Fiesta. Choose based on dealer network in your area, parts availability, and your priorities (running cost vs. cabin quality vs. badge).
Who is the Audi A1 most suitable for?
City drivers who want a premium small car and will check the particulate filter history on a diesel and the recall record on a 2016 car.
Who should NOT buy a Audi A1?
Anyone buying a diesel that has only done short town trips without asking how the filter has been looked after.
Are there safety recalls on the Audi A1?
DVSA lists 1 safety recall for the Audi A1 that this guide shows or names, the largest first: R/2017/078 (2,622 vehicles in the whole recall, built between 1 May 2016 and 31 October 2016): Airbag/belt tensioners may not trigger in event of an accident. Whether a particular car is affected depends on its build date and VIN, so check its registration on GOV.UK (gov.uk/check-vehicle-recall) before you buy.
Is the Diesel particulate filter on town-driven diesels (first generation) on the Audi A1 a serious problem?
Owner-reported, frequency unknown: Diesel particulate filter on town-driven diesels (first generation) is reported by What Car? for the Audi A1, but how often it happens is not known, so treat it as a question to ask rather than a fault every car has. Symptoms: What Car? says the 1.6-litre diesel has a diesel particulate filter and, as the A1 is a town car, few have had the long runs that let it clear; a clogged filter can be costly to replace. If it is shut off partway through clearing, fuel can contaminate the oil, the oil level rises over time and the engine can be damaged. Its page is updated 3 September 2026. Years affected: First generation 2010–2018 diesels. What to check before buying: On a diesel, ask how the car has been driven, check the oil level and condition, and ask for the service history.
Is the Timing chain and turbocharger (first generation, high mileage) on the Audi A1 a serious problem?
Owner-reported, frequency unknown: Timing chain and turbocharger (first generation, high mileage) is reported by Autocar for the Audi A1, but how often it happens is not known, so treat it as a question to ask rather than a fault every car has. Symptoms: Autocar says that on high-mileage cars the timing chain can stretch and wear out early, with a whine when the engine is cold or climbing a hill, and budgets around £600 for a replacement. It says the 1.4 TSI is a good engine but its turbocharger has been known to fail, at around £2,000 to replace, with black smoke or a loud whistle under load as the signs. Its page is published 17 June 2024. Years affected: First generation 2010–2018, higher mileages. What to check before buying: Listen for a whine on a cold start, watch the exhaust for black smoke under load, and ask whether the chain or turbocharger has been replaced.
Check these next
The guide above is about the Audi A1 as a model. These are about the car in front of you.
- Browse Audi A1 listings on AutozaEvery one listed now.
- Check any car by its registrationFree: its MOT history, tax status and any open recall, from a number plate.
- Work out the road tax for the A1Vehicle tax (VED) by registration date, CO2 and list price.
- Work out the monthly payment on a £8,677 A1The median asking price on Autoza on 11 November 2026, not what buyers pay: change it to the car you are looking at.
- What is your A1 worth?A price range from dealers' asking prices for comparable cars.
More checks on a Audi A1
A fault list tells you what goes wrong; these tell you about the car in front of you.
Looking to buy a Audi A1 in the UK?
Search Autoza listings filtered by year, mileage, and region. Every dealer page shows the business name, address and contact details, so you can check the business before you enquire.