Repair costs · Audi A1

Audi A1 suspension arm bush replacement: MOT fails on these items more often than other cars of the same age

At MOT, the Audi A1 fails on items fixed by suspension arm bush replacement at least 2.8 times as often as cars of the same ages and fuel. From 865,891 MOT tests at 13 ages (3 to 15 years), DVSA data 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

Audi A1, at least, per 100 MOTs (n=865,891)2.84

Cars of the same ages and fuel, per 100 MOTs0.98

Times as often≥ 2.8

Ages compared13

What this shows

These are MOT fail items that suspension arm bush replacement fixes, as testers found them on the day of the test. Repairs done between MOTs never show up in MOT data, and mileage is not taken into account, so this is not how often owners pay for the repair.

By age

Fail items fixed by suspension arm bush replacement, per 100 MOT tests, against cars of the same age and the same fuel mix. The model figure is a floor: DVSA data lists each model’s 25 most recorded items per age, and an item outside that list is counted as zero. The comparison figure is a ceiling: an item too rare to be listed for a fuel is counted at its highest possible value.

Audi A1: ages with at least 1,000 tests.
Age	Audi A1 per 100	Same age and fuel per 100	Tests (n)
3 years	0	0.060	64,380
4 years	0.18	0.10	68,542
5 years	0.98	0.22	77,150
6 years	2.34	0.41	89,609
7 years	3.72	0.65	92,946
8 years	4.01	0.93	95,968
9 years	3.96	1.19	95,113
10 years	3.69	1.48	87,857
11 years	3.56	1.77	80,837
12 years	3.76	2.04	58,890
13 years	3.93	2.29	36,045
14 years	4.13	2.50	17,199
15 years	5.02	2.60	1,355

How we decide: a page exists only when the main generation’s rate, weighted to its own mix of ages and fuels, is at least 1.5 times the rate of cars of the same ages and fuel, from at least 50,000 tests at 3 or more ages, with at least 100 expected items.

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

What garages charge

Prices are national. They are not specific to the Audi A1.

No public source records the price of this whole job, and the time it takes varies from car to car, so we do not publish a single figure. Garages charge by the hour, so ask for a quote that lists labour time and parts. The rates below are what UK garages charge per hour.

Local garage labour, per hour (65 shops)£78

Local garage, middle half£70 to £96

Main dealer labour, per hour (62 shops)£156

Main dealer, middle half£144 to £174

Median hourly rate charged for car repairs, from 1,058 local garage and 953 main dealer price quotes collected by the ONS, September 2025 to August 2026. The same shops are priced each month, so the number of shops is the real sample.

Suspension arm bush replacement: garage rates and all models

MOT defects this repair fixes

Suspension arm pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement4.92 per 100, all cars
Suspension arm pin or bush excessively worn1.19 per 100, all cars
Suspension arm corroded but not seriously weakened1.08 per 100, all cars
Anti-roll bar pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement0.37 per 100, all cars
Anti-roll bar pin or bush excessively worn0.098 per 100, all cars
Suspension arm corroded and seriously weakened0.097 per 100, all cars

Other models that fail on these items more often

Model	Times as often	Tests (n)
Fiat 500	at least 4.1	1,394,433
Skoda Rapid	at least 3.9	89,648
London Taxis International TX4	at least 3.5	53,539
Skoda Kodiaq	at least 3.5	134,246
Volkswagen Caddy	at least 3.1	587,699
SEAT Alhambra	at least 3.1	110,632
Fiat 500L	at least 3.0	85,411
Volkswagen CC	at least 2.8	56,184
SEAT Ibiza	at least 2.8	775,282
Volkswagen Sharan	at least 2.7	145,752

Looking at a Audi A1?

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Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025, and the MOT inspection manual published on GOV.UK. Prices: ONS consumer price inflation price quotes, September 2025 to August 2026, UK.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026. Prices updated 22 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA or the Office for National Statistics. How we calculate these figures · Data sources