Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Vauxhall Antara 2011: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 51 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2011 Vauxhall Antara were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

With 661 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2011 Vauxhall Antara differs from the model years either side.

At a glance

How 661 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
51 in every 100
Did not pass first time
49 in every 100323 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
14 yearsabout 99,755 miles
First tests counted
661

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)16 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2011 Vauxhall Antara vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Suspension

One fault: anti-roll bar linkage (rear), 12 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 323 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Anti-roll bar linkage (rear)

Failed on 20 first tests12 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

An anti-roll bar linkage is graded Dangerous when a suspension component is missing, likely to become detached, fractured or likely to fail. Insecure attachment that impairs directional stability is graded Dangerous too. Excessive damage or corrosion that seriously weakens the part is Major, and so is plain insecure attachment to the chassis or axle.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Lamps and electrical

One fault: brake light, 2.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake light

Failed on 31 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

All stop lamps missing or not working is graded Dangerous, and so is a stop lamp that stays on when the brakes are released. A stop lamp that is missing or not working is Major. On some vehicles with LED rear lamps, part of the stop lamp can go out when the rear fog lamp is lit, which is not regarded as a defect.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail.

Seat belt condition (front)

Noted on 25 first tests9.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension arm (rear)

Noted on 42 first tests5.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 39 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Rigid brake pipes (front)

Noted on 22 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Engine oil leaks

Noted on 81 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake pads (rear)

Noted on 29 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
51in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
9in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
40in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 51.1% of 661 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 60.1%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 9 fixed and the 40 not fixed make the 49 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

406080100201120122013201420152016Newer cars
406080100201120122013201420152016Newer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 52 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2011 This car51 in every 100661
201251 in every 1004,803
201354 in every 1005,783
201453 in every 1002,352
201554 in every 1001,907
201656 in every 100754

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

With 661 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2011 Vauxhall Antara differs from the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 16 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 51.1% of 661 first MOTs on the 2011 Vauxhall Antara passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 60.1%. Among 323 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Anti-roll bar linkage (rear) appears more often than on similar cars (6.2% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2011 Vauxhall Antara at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (16.4%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Anti-roll bar linkage (rear) (6.2% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Anti-roll bar linkage (rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (6.2% of those tests; 20 observed failures; about 12× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2011 Vauxhall Antara include Anti-roll bar linkage (rear), Brake light. These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2011 Vauxhall Antara (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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