Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 1,150,896 tests

Pass rate climbs 19.1 points across the cohorts — newer Astra examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 1,077,958

Pass

71.6%

Fail

22.3%

PRS

5.4%

Avg mileage at test

92,739 mi

2018–2020 cohort 69,966

Pass

85.0%

Fail

11.0%

PRS

3.5%

Avg mileage at test

45,837 mi

2021+ cohort 2,972

Pass

90.7%

Fail

6.7%

PRS

2.3%

Avg mileage at test

27,423 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

Generations on file · 7

Vauxhall Astra · UK market

Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.

The picture

Vauxhall Astra: mixed MOT record across 879,968 tests

The Vauxhall Astra is a petrol-powered car sold in the UK market across multiple generations, covering a broad date range in the test population.

MOT data from 879,968 tests puts this car on a 71.8% first-time pass rate, below the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 86,061 miles. The most common fail item is fractured or weakened suspension spring, followed by failed number plate light.

Honest John owner records point to brake component wear as the recurring problems to check before buying used.

The Astra's pass rate warrants caution in the used market. Factor in likely first-test remedial work on the common failure items and get a pre-purchase inspection that covers the specific items this car trips on most.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 10–26

Below the fleet average — generally reasonable to insure. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

10–26

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

40,261 occurrences · 3.5% of tests
02

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

31,832 occurrences · 2.8% of tests
03

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

26,334 occurrences · 2.3% of tests
04

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

24,944 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
05

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

20,858 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
06

Exhaust system leaking or insecure

16,677 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
07

Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

16,304 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
08

A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

15,460 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
09

The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements

15,298 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
10

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

14,589 occurrences · 1.3% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 4 failures

£228–£530

If every one of this Astra's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 19.1-point gap between bands means the year you buy Vauxhall Astra has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

90.7%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 90.7% — a 19.1-point improvement. Tests in this band average 27,423 miles — roughly 65K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: less than 1.5 mm thick, has a cut in excess of the… — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

71.6%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 71.6% pass rate against a fleet average of 90.7% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: fractured or broken, inoperative in the case of multiple lamps…, and tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm. Average mileage on test for this band is 92,739 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme. Honest John records: "Report of clutch pedal sticking down in 2017 Vauxhall Astra 1.6CTDI bought used (ex Motability) at 16,800 miles and now with 24,800 miles. Required a toe underneath to raise it.…"

Best band to buy: 2021+ (90.7% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (71.6% pass). That's a 19.1-point spread across 1,077,958 older tests and 2,972 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Item 03 · Amazon UK

Brake pad measurement gauge

Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Summit

Summit ADRG-13 Vauxhall Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass RHS

£9.89

View at My Motor World →

Summit

Summit ADRG-25 Vauxhall Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass LHS

£10.99

View at My Motor World →

Summit

Summit ADRG-32 Vauxhall Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass LHS

£12.09

View at My Motor World →

Summit

Summit ADRG-43 Vauxhall Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass RHS

£12.09

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

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Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

What's good

Solid all-rounder that’s good in all areas, cheap to run, excellent value as a used car and loads around, five star Euro NCAP rating.

Recent owner-reported faults

3 Mar 2021
Report of navigation screen failing for the second time on a 2019 Astra. Replaced under warranty.
5 Feb 2021
Report of gearbox failure on 2020 Astra 1.2 petrol. Gear changes are perfectly smooth except when changing up from first to second. This particular change can result in a crunch being heard (as the driver moves the gear stick into second). Vauxhall dealership was able to replicate the symptom and agreed there is definitely a fault. But having found no quick fix adjustment, the vehicle remains stuck at the dealership pending authorisation from Vauxhall to undertake more extensive warranty work.
3 Jun 2020
Report of piston failure on 2016 Vauxhall Astra 1.4T. Car has a full dealer service history and developed an engine misfire, which the dealer thinks is due to a cracked piston.
20 Nov 2019
Report of 2016 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 CDTi 136 Start/Stop Elite Nav 5dr Estate Manual going in to the dealer for a brake recall in August 2019. While there the deraler carried out a software undate which, after 3 miles of driving, puts up the message low oil level, service.
2 Oct 2019
Report of 2016 Vauxhall Astra 1.6CDTi 136 going in for emissions update and on the way home the low level oil warning message came up on the small info screen. Driver stopped the car and dipped the engine oil, it was full. The message still comes up approx twice a journey despite the engine oil being on the top mark of the dip stick. Perhaps it's really indicatiing a malfunction of the diesel post injection system that is supposed to fire off active regenerations but is instead sinking to the sump and this is a high oil warning rather than a low oil warning.
22 Aug 2019
Report of 2016 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 CDTi 136 Start/Stop Elite Nav manual Estate at 13k miles going to Vauxhall dealer for clutch and brake recall. Owner objected to the emissions recall but dealer said if he didn't have the emissions software update they would not do the recall repairs. No recall repair no MoT. Whilst it was in they MoTd the car (first MoT) and it had a major fail: the steering column. They repaired this under warranty.
12 Aug 2019
Report of engine overheating on longer journeys in 2015 Vauxhall Astra GTC 1.4 turbo petrol, engine type B14NET. Vauxhall dealer diagnosed an 'Engine flow error' and fitted a new water pump and thermostat.
30 Jul 2019
Report of failure of turbo on 2016 Vauxhall Astra 1.6 turbodiesel at 47,000 miles.
4 Jul 2019
Report of 'long block' of Vauxhall Astra 1.4T being replaced under warranty.
3 Jul 2019
Another report of engine failure in an Astra 1.4T. " My Vauxhall astra 1.4t 66 plate suffered engine faliure (pistons) under warranty. After 5 weeks my car I've been told is finally ready to collect from the dealership." Owner then questioned the future reliability of his engine.
25 Jun 2019
Report of failure of engine of 2016/66 Vauxhall Astra 1.4T automatic. Has now been with the dealer for more than a month and dealer cannot give a date when warranty replacement of engine can be carried out. Dealer says has 3 more Astras with the same issue.
3 Jun 2019
Report of piston failure in engine of 2016/66 Vauxhall Astra 1.4T automatic at 29k miles. Driving school car but fully serviced on time and Vauxhall is repairing under warranty, but taking a long time depriving the owner of income.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 23 reports indexed, top 12 shown

Recall history

14 UK recalls on record.

The Astra has 14 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping an Astra?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own an Astra and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.