Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Vauxhall Combo 2004: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 47 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2004 Vauxhall Combo were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Drive shaft joints and boots (front).

Summary

The 2004 Vauxhall Combo follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,384 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
47 in every 100
Did not pass first time
53 in every 100736 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
21 yearsabout 139,824 miles
First tests counted
1,384

What failed most often

  1. Drive shaft joints and boots (front)15 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)12 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)11 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 2004 Vauxhall Combo 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.

Steering

One fault: steering rack play, 21 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 668 of 736 failed first attempts (90.8%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like. 9.2% of failures are excluded because no mileage was recorded, so treat these shares as indicative for this model year.

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.

Steering rack play

Failed on 22 first tests21 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Excessive free play at the steering wheel rim, with a steering rack fitted, is Major, and Dangerous where the play is excessive to the extent that safe steering is affected. Play from wear or maladjustment must not be confused with apparent play from the way the mechanism is built, such as flexible joints.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 24 first tests, 8.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Suspension

Four faults. The strongest is the suspension sub-frame (front): 14 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension sub-frame (front)

Failed on 30 first tests14 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A suspension sub-frame insecurely attached to the chassis or axle is Major, and Dangerous when it is insecure and impairing directional stability. A sub-frame that is missing, likely to become detached, fractured or likely to fail is also Dangerous. Excessive damage or corrosion that seriously weakens it is Major.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 36 first tests, 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Coil spring (rear)

Failed on 53 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.

Coil spring (front)

Failed on 50 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.

Shock absorbers (rear)

Failed on 46 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Slight seepage that leaves a film of fluid on a shock absorber does not fail it. Severe leakage, or damage so that it does not function, is Major. A shock absorber missing or likely to become detached is graded Dangerous, though a missing one is only rejected if shock absorbers were fitted as standard.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Lamps and electrical

One fault: horn, 4.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Horn

Failed on 49 first tests4.1 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A horn that does not work, or is likely to be confused with an emergency vehicle siren, is graded Major. Gongs, bells, sirens and anything with more than one tone, which includes a horn that alternates between its notes, are not allowed, except a gong, bell or siren on vehicles first used before a set date. Sound defects are Minor for named cases such as a bell or harsh sound, and Major under a general row.

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

Noise, emissions and leaks

One fault: diesel emissions test (pre-reg turbo rules before 01/07/2008), 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Diesel emissions test (pre-reg turbo rules before 01/07/2008)

Failed on 43 first tests3.1 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

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

Body and structure

One fault: vehicle structure condition (rear), 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Vehicle structure condition (rear)

Failed on 23 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Structure that is fractured, deformed, corroded, modified or inadequately repaired is failed on rigidity only if the overall structural rigidity of the vehicle is significantly reduced. Structure that is likely to affect steering or braking adversely is graded Dangerous. Prescribed areas are not covered here, as they are checked under other sections, including brakes and steering.

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

Brakes

Two faults. The strongest is the rigid brake pipes (rear): 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 71 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 190 first tests, 2.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Handbrake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 24 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A parking brake that is inoperative on one side is Major. When tested on the road, the failure is the vehicle deviating excessively from a straight line. Vehicles whose parking brake was already tested as the secondary brake are not tested again for this.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

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. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Swivel pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 26 first tests4.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 70 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Non-component advisories (front)

Noted on 93 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

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
47in 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
44in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 46.8% of 1,384 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 55.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 9 fixed and the 44 not fixed make the 53 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

4060801002004201020152020Newer cars
406080100200420102020Newer 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, 46 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200248 in every 100361
200347 in every 1001,015
2004 This car47 in every 1001,384
200550 in every 1001,546
200646 in every 1002,438
200746 in every 1003,248
200848 in every 1003,965
200948 in every 1003,040
201053 in every 1005,390
201157 in every 1006,371
201251 in every 1002,424
201353 in every 1002,677
201455 in every 1004,193
201557 in every 1004,558
201658 in every 1004,647
201760 in every 1003,339
201866 in every 1002,772
201973 in every 10014,954
202074 in every 10012,793
202172 in every 10011,422
202274 in every 1006,161

FAQs

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

The 2004 Vauxhall Combo follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Drive shaft joints and boots (front), about 15 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 46.8% of 1,384 first MOTs on the 2004 Vauxhall Combo passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 55.9%. Among 736 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Steering rack play appears more often than on similar cars (3.3% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 21× 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 2004 Vauxhall Combo at the first attempt were Drive shaft joints and boots (front) (15.3%), Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (11.8%) and Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (11.1%), 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: Steering rack play (3.3% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 21× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Steering rack play shows up more often than on similar cars (3.3% of those tests; 22 observed failures; about 21× 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 2004 Vauxhall Combo include Steering rack play, Suspension sub-frame (front), Horn. 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 2004 Vauxhall Combo (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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