Pass rate
88.9%
Above average — 15.8 pts ahead of the 73.1% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 81 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £36–£109
2008 Audi S8 MOT pass rate
- 2008
- typical 102,899 mi
Only 81 tests of this exact model and year are in the DVSA data, below the 100 we ask for before a page goes in the index. The figures are still shown, because they are the only ones there are.
Most common fault
Tyres
23.8% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Which year to buy
- Best 2020 94.4% pass
- Avoid 2002 78.8% pass
Across the 5 years on record, a spread of 15.6 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 87.5%
- Typical mileage
- 103k mi
The 2008 Audi S8 MOT pass rate is 88.9% of its MOT tests — 15.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 23.8% of what testers record.
Check your postcode
MOT pass rates are national — type your postcode to see how Audi S8 does in your corner of the country.
Expert verdict
Body & chassis: 2.5× the national share
Body & chassis accounts for 13.8% of everything recorded on the 2008 Audi S8, against 5.6% nationally — 8.2 points above. Tyres are still the single largest share at 23.8%, but at 19.8% nationally that one is ordinary. Look underneath for corrosion near the jacking points and suspension mounts; surface rust is normal, flaking metal is not.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 73.1% and this one manages 88.9% — 15.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- Based on a small sample. 81 tests back this page. That is enough to publish and to index, not enough to treat the decimal places as precise — read the pattern, not the second digit.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a Audi S8? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2008 Audi S8 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.1%, so this figure is 15.8 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 87.5%. The median 2008 Audi S8 in this dataset had covered 102,899 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 88.4% of the time, April–September 89.5%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt", noted on 3.70% of tests.
- 81 recorded tests behind this page.
- 88.9% overall pass rate, 87.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Audi S8, the average is 86.0% — best year 2020 (94.4%), worst 2002 (78.8%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 81
- Typical mileage (median)
- 102,899 mi
- Make and model
- Audi S8
- Updated
- 2026-11-05
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Body Panel Repair
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
Does mileage affect the S8 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 76% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the S8
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| Yorkshire | 16 | 81.3% |
| East of England | 15 | 93.3% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2008 S8
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2008 S8
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the wipers and washers 3.7% of tests
“washers provides insufficient washer liquid”
Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.
-
Check the lights 2.5% of tests
“anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an ABS fault”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
-
Check the exhaust and emissions 1.2% of tests
“emissions not tested unable to be completed”
Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2008 S8 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £36–£109 — and 41% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £36–£109
- Cheapest common item: srs malfunction indicator lamp warning lamp…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot split or…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 60%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 41%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 81 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the S8, side by side
5 model years on record, from 2002 to 2020. Across them the pass rate runs from 78.8% to 94.4% — a spread of 15.6 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2002 78.8% position lamp with a multiple…
- 2006 90.0% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2007 82.7% joints constant velocity boot…
- 2008 88.9%joints constant velocity boot…
- 2020 94.4% chassis condition is fractured…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2008 Audi S8 with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2008 cars with a similar record
- Porsche Boxster 89.4%
- BMW M3 90.0%
- Porsche 911 91.0%
- Mercedes-Benz Sl 86.7%
- Bentley Continental 91.4%
- Toyota Estima 84.8%
Closest pass rates among 2008 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2008 Audi S8 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 79 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 19 | 23.80% | 19.76% | +4.04 |
| Brakes | 15 | 18.80% | 20.89% | −2.09 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 11 | 13.80% | 5.57% | +8.23 |
| Suspension | 8 | 10.00% | 20.98% | −10.98 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 7 | 8.80% | 5.52% | +3.28 |
| Visibility | 7 | 8.80% | 4.97% | +3.83 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 6 | 7.50% | 12.21% | −4.71 |
| Non-component advisories | 3 | 3.80% | 4.18% | −0.38 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 2 | 2.50% | 0.82% | +1.68 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 1 | 1.20% | 1.76% | −0.56 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Body, chassis, structure | Major | 3.7% | £80–250 |
| Washers provides insufficient washer liquid Visibility | Rectified | 3.7% | £5–15 |
| Anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an ABS fault Brakes | Major | 2.5% | £3–15 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 2.5% | £45–95 |
| Srs malfunction indicator lamp warning lamp indicates a fault Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Major | 2.5% | £3–12 |
| Bonnet cannot be secured in the closed position Visibility | Major | 1.2% | £20–80 |
| Catch deteriorated so the door cannot be readily opened or closed Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 1.2% | £80–250 |
| Decelerometer (sp) efficiency less than 50% of the required value Brakes | Major | 1.2% | £45–110 |
| Emissions not tested unable to be completed Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.2% | £60–250 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 1.2% | £45–120 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 12.3% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 9.9% | £45–110 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 8.6% | £40–150 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 6.2% | £200–700 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Advisory | 6.2% | £45–120 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 6.2% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 1 | 100.0% | 29,213 mi |
| 30-60k | 12 | 91.7% | 44,810 mi |
| 60-90k | 22 | 95.5% | 76,769 mi |
| 90-120k | 27 | 85.2% | 108,583 mi |
| 120k+ | 19 | 84.2% | 140,801 mi |
Source: 81 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2008 S8 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2008 Audi S8?
88.9% of the 81 2008 Audi S8 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.1% for cars first used in 2008. First-attempt pass rate: 87.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2008 Audi S8?
The three most recorded items are joints constant velocity boot split or insecure, no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (3.70%), washers provides insufficient washer liquid (3.70%), anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an abs fault (2.47%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2008 Audi S8 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 84.2% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2008 Audi S8 in this dataset had covered 102,899 mi.
Does the season affect the 2008 Audi S8 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 88.4% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 89.5%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.