Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 396,918 tests

Pass rate climbs 12.0 points across the cohorts — newer Vivaro examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 354,661

Pass

65.8%

Fail

28.6%

PRS

4.8%

Avg mileage at test

126,898 mi

2018–2020 cohort 42,149

Pass

74.9%

Fail

20.1%

PRS

3.9%

Avg mileage at test

76,842 mi

2021+ cohort 108

Pass

77.8%

Fail

18.5%

PRS

2.8%

Avg mileage at test

35,585 mi

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

Generations on file · 3

Vauxhall Vivaro · UK market

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

The picture

Vauxhall Vivaro: challenging MOT record across 275,795 tests

The Opel Vivaro, a light commercial vehicle, which is also sold in the United Kingdom as the Vauxhall Vivaro, may refer to:The Opel Vivaro A, based on the second-generation Renault Trafic, and was produced between 2001 and 2014 The Opel Vivaro B, based on the third-generation Renault Trafic, and was produced between 2014 and 2019 The Opel Vivaro C,.

MOT data from 275,795 tests puts this van on a 66.6% first-time pass rate, well below the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 115,925 miles. The most common fail item is steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play, followed by cracked or discoloured windscreen.

Lower models lack spec. Smaller than some rivals. Only one roof height.

The Vivaro'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 van trips on most.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 20–30

Around the UK fleet average for insurance cost. 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 →

20–30

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

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

01

A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play

28,753 occurrences · 7.2% of tests
02

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

21,916 occurrences · 5.5% of tests
03

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

14,405 occurrences · 3.6% of tests
04

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

12,403 occurrences · 3.1% of tests
05

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

10,449 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
06

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

10,420 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
07

Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement

10,039 occurrences · 2.5% of tests
08

Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded

9,870 occurrences · 2.5% of tests
09

A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

9,675 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
10

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

8,641 occurrences · 2.2% 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

£248–£755

If every one of this Vivaro'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 →

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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 12.0-point gap between bands means the year you buy Vauxhall Vivaro has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

77.8%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 77.8% — a 12.0-point improvement. Tests in this band average 35,585 miles — roughly 91K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: inoperative in the case of a single…, does not clear the windscreen effectively — 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

65.8%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 65.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 77.8% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: ball joint has excessive play, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, and ball joint excessively worn. Average mileage on test for this band is 126,898 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (77.8% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (65.8% pass). That's a 12.0-point spread across 354,661 older tests and 108 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

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

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Summit

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

£10.99

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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

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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

Good to drive. Useful load area. Strong payload

Recall history

33 UK recalls on record.

The Vivaro has 33 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping a Vivaro?

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 a Vivaro 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.