Does the Ford Sierra fail the MOT on brakes more than it should?
The Ford Sierra records 8.15 brakes failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 20.35 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−12.20, 95% interval −12.86 to −11.53). It ranks 682 of 712 models on brakes (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on brakes · check a Ford Sierra by registration
What exactly fails on brakes?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Ford Sierra is “Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake”, recorded 201 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake | 201 | 1.14 |
| Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement | 162 | 0.92 |
| Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded | 125 | 0.71 |
| Brakes imbalance across an axle such that the braking effort from any wheel is less than 70% of the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle. | 116 | 0.66 |
| A brake hose ferrule excessively corroded | 67 | 0.38 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 17,679 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Ford Sierra gets a brakes advisory, how often does it fail next time?
9.3% of Ford Sierra MOTs with a brakes advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.2 months and 416 miles later (1,434 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,434 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Ford Sierra by postcode area · Ford Sierra body, chassis and structure failures · Ford Sierra vehicle identification failures · Ford Sierra lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Ford Sierra noise, emissions and leaks failures · Ford Sierra road wheels failures · Ford Sierra seat belts and airbags failures · Ford Sierra steering failures · Ford Sierra suspension failures · Ford Sierra tyres failures · Ford Sierra visibility failures