Ford Freda: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The Ford Freda fails its first MOT more often than the average UK car, by 21.2 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 878 individual Ford Freda tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 55.5% first-time pass rate means roughly 45 in every 100 Ford Fredas presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is worse than average, so budget for remedial work and treat a fresh 12-month MOT as a genuine selling point rather than a given. The average Ford Freda tested had covered 141,155 miles and was built around 2004.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a Ford Freda bought as a repairable salvage, assume the mechanical side needs more than the visible accident damage, and pad your repair estimate accordingly.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific Ford Freda rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged Ford Fredas actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a Ford Freda

1. Vehicle structure corroded to the extent that the rigidity of the assembly is seriously reduced, 16.5% of tests (45.25x the national rate for this defect)
2. The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired, 29.6% of tests (35.59x the national rate for this defect)
3. An obligatory rear fog lamp missing, or a front or rear fog lamp inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning, 7.2% of tests (21.44x the national rate for this defect)
4. Body, cab or chassis excessively corroded at a mounting point, 3.1% of tests (15.57x the national rate for this defect)
5. Emissions levels exceed default limits, 3% of tests (10.43x the national rate for this defect)
6. Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 3.7% of tests (6.61x the national rate for this defect)
7. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 6.9% of tests (5.09x the national rate for this defect)
8. Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, 3.7% of tests (4.87x the national rate for this defect)
9. Exhaust system leaking or insecure, 3.7% of tests (4.81x the national rate for this defect)
10. A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED, 4% of tests (4.5x the national rate for this defect)

From 1,313 DVSA-tracked Ford Freda tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 3.22% of these flagged Ford Freda defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

Ford Freda by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel Ford Freda - 54.4% first-time pass, 570 tests
• Petrol Ford Freda - 60.3% first-time pass, 282 tests

Other Ford models

• Ford Fiesta - 71.7%
• Ford Focus - 74.4%
• Ford Transit - 67.6%
• Ford Kuga - 82.4%
• Ford Mondeo - 72.2%
• Ford Ka - 72.2%
• Ford Transit Connect - 72%
• Ford Ranger - 76.9%

Models with a similar pass rate

• Chevrolet Lacetti - 56.2%
• Renault Espace - 56.2%
• Kia Cerato - 55.8%
• Proton Savvy - 55.5%
• Fiat Multipla - 55.4%
• Citroen C15 - 55.2%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate