Vauxhall Astra
From 979,744 MOT tests. Average for its class.
Common MOT failure categories
Pass rate by registration year
Newer Astras fare better: 2021 models pass at 90.9% vs 71.5% for 1994.
Pass rate by fuel type
What goes wrong?
The most common MOT failure reasons are a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn and tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements. The top issue, a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, caused 36,821 failures in 2024. Checking tread depth (1.6mm legal minimum, 3mm recommended) before your test can save an unnecessary fail. You can check prices at Black Circles if you need replacements. If you need repairs before retesting, sites like BookMyGarage let you compare local prices.
| a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened | 36,821 |
| a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn | 32,455 |
| tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements | 23,949 |
| a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | 21,387 |
| the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements | 20,656 |
| a tyre seriously damaged | 18,973 |
| windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen | 17,440 |
| exhaust system leaking or insecure | 16,727 |
| a lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning | 14,374 |
| a tyre cords visible or damaged | 13,041 |
How serious are these failures?
Not all MOT failures are equal. 24.8% of Astra failures could actually strand you: fractured springs, engine faults, exhaust problems. Another 39.8% are safety issues where the car still drives but shouldn't, such as worn brakes, corroded brake pipes, and steering wear. When it does fail, the average repair bill is around £125.
The warranty question
A 3-year-old Astra passes its MOT 89.3% of the time. By 7 years old that drops to 80.4%, a 8.9 percentage point fall, right as the manufacturer warranty runs out. At 10 years it's down to 74.3%. With an average repair bill of £125 when things go wrong, an extended warranty can make sense on a Astra that's past its third birthday.
Fuel type matters
Diesel versions pass at 72.8% while LP versions pass at 61.8%, a 11 percentage point gap.
Vauxhall Astra on UK roads
The fleet is shrinking: 60,075 scrapped or exported in the past year with only 4,777 newly registered, a net loss of 55,298. At this rate, roughly 12.1 years until none remain. Now at 53% of its peak (1,266,402 in 2008 Q4).
Quarterly breakdown
| Quarter | On road | SORN | New | Gone | Net |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Q3 | 569,398 | 101,400 | +637 | -14,144 | -13,507 |
| 2025 Q2 | 584,034 | 100,271 | +819 | -15,593 | -14,774 |
| 2025 Q1 | 599,088 | 99,991 | +1,533 | -15,021 | -13,488 |
| 2024 Q4 | 612,780 | 99,787 | +1,788 | -15,317 | -13,529 |
| 2024 Q3 | 626,985 | 99,111 | +2,125 | -15,705 | -13,580 |
| 2024 Q2 | 640,928 | 98,748 | +2,246 | -14,274 | -12,028 |
| 2024 Q1 | 653,671 | 98,033 | +3,647 | -14,704 | -11,057 |
| 2023 Q4 | 666,433 | 96,328 | +2,190 | -11,853 | -9,663 |
20 variants on the road
| Variant | Fuel | Licensed | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Astra Sri | Petrol | 45,574 | 19% |
| Astra Sri Turbo | Gas | 18,967 | 8% |
| Astra Design | Petrol | 18,231 | 8% |
| Astra Excite | Petrol | 17,825 | 7% |
| Astra Active | Petrol | 15,248 | 6% |
| Astra Sri Cdti S/S | Diesel | 14,072 | 6% |
| Astra Sxi | Gas | 11,340 | 5% |
| Astra Elite | Petrol | 11,011 | 5% |
| Astra Energy | Petrol | 9,909 | 4% |
| Astra Elite Cdti S/S | Diesel | 9,822 | 4% |
| Astra Design Cdti Ecoflex S/S | Diesel | 8,125 | 3% |
| Astra Sri Nav Turbo | Petrol | 7,916 | 3% |
| Astra Gtc Sri Cdti S/S | Diesel | 7,751 | 3% |
| Astra Gs Turbo | Petrol | 7,024 | 3% |
| Astra Exclusiv 113 | Petrol | 6,618 | 3% |
| Astra Elite Nav Turbo | Petrol | 6,518 | 3% |
| Astra Sri Cdti | Diesel | 6,494 | 3% |
| Astra Se | Petrol | 6,467 | 3% |
| Astra Exclusiv 98 | Petrol | 6,235 | 3% |
| Astra Sri Auto | Diesel | 5,757 | 2% |
Source: DfT vehicle licensing statistics, 2025 Q3. Crown copyright, OGL v3.0.
By registration year
| Year | Pass rate | Top failures |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 90.9% | a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, engine mil illuminated indicating a malfunction |
| 2020 | 89.3% | engine mil illuminated indicating a malfunction, a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm |
| 2019 | 86.1% | a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, a tyre seriously damaged |
| 2018 | 84.1% | a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, a tyre seriously damaged |
30 earlier years
| 2017 | 82.7% | a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, a tyre seriously damaged |
| 2016 | 80.4% | a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, a tyre pressure monitoring system malfunctioning or obviously inoperative |
| 2015 | 76.1% | a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm |
| 2014 | 74.7% | a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements |
| 2013 | 74.3% | a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements |
| 2012 | 73.1% | a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements |
| 2011 | 71% | a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn |
| 2010 | 69.2% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened |
| 2009 | 67% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened |
| 2008 | 66.1% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened |
| 2007 | 64.9% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened |
| 2006 | 64.2% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements |
| 2005 | 63.2% | a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements |
| 2004 | 64.8% | the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn |
| 2003 | 65.5% | the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded |
| 2002 | 63.9% | the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded |
| 2001 | 65.7% | brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements |
| 2000 | 65.3% | the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 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 |
| 1999 | 63.6% | 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, the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements |
| 1998 | 64.3% | 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, brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded |
| 1997 | 69.4% | 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, a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn |
| 1996 | 68.5% | 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, the strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any seat belt anchorage (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired |
| 1995 | 69.4% | 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, 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. |
| 1994 | 71.5% | brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, 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 |
| 1993 | 76.6% | 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, a transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc |
| 1992 | 80.3% | brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, the aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements |
| 1991 | 86.8% | brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded, windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen |
| 1990 | 82.1% | emissions levels exceed default limits, service brake efficiency below minimum requirement |
| 1989 | 75.7% | significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake, a transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc |
| 1988 | 94.3% | - |
Typical mileage
Half of all Astras tested had between 49,579 and 94,655 miles on the clock.
At 68,928 median miles, the Astra has 0.04 failures per 10,000 miles driven.
Other Vauxhall models
| Vauxhall Corsa | 70.9% |
| Vauxhall Vivaro | 67.2% |
| Vauxhall Mokka | 76.7% |
| Vauxhall Insignia | 75.3% |
| Vauxhall Zafira | 69.9% |
Common questions
What is the Vauxhall Astra MOT pass rate?
The Vauxhall Astra has a 72.5% MOT pass rate based on 979,744 real MOT tests. This is around the national average.
What are common MOT failures on a Vauxhall Astra?
The most common MOT failure on the Vauxhall Astra is a spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, which caused 36,821 failures. Other common issues include a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn.
How many Vauxhall Astras are on UK roads?
There are 569,398 Vauxhall Astras currently licensed on UK roads, with 101,400 on SORN.
What is the typical mileage of a Vauxhall Astra at MOT?
The median mileage at MOT for a Vauxhall Astra is 68,928 miles. The middle 50% of vehicles tested have between 49,579 and 94,655 miles.
Buying a used Astra?
Start with the free tools. Look up the specific vehicle's MOT history on GOV.UK The mileage at each test will show if it's been wound back, and the advisory history tells you what's wearing. Cross-reference that against the typical failures above to see if anything looks unusual for this model.
The free data won't tell you about outstanding finance, theft markers, or write-off history. For that, you need a vehicle history check This is especially important on a private sale where you have fewer legal protections.
With a 72.5% pass rate and an average repair bill of £125 when things go wrong, budget accordingly.
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MOT data from DVSA anonymised test results, 2024 test year. Fleet data from DfT vehicle licensing statistics. Crown copyright, OGL v3.0. MOT pass rates are statistical summaries of test outcomes, not assessments of individual vehicle safety or condition. Always inspect a vehicle and check its full MOT history before purchasing. See terms of use.