Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Vauxhall Tigra 2007: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 50 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2007 Vauxhall Tigra were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test).

Summary

The 2007 Vauxhall Tigra follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,023 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
50 in every 100
Did not pass first time
50 in every 100508 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
18 yearsabout 77,283 miles
First tests counted
1,023

What failed most often

  1. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)21 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Drive shaft joints and boots (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Tyre condition (front)10 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 2007 Vauxhall Tigra 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.

Brakes

Three faults. The strongest is the handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test): 3.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 497 of 508 failed first attempts (97.8%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like. 2.2% 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.

Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 102 first tests3.5 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A parking brake with efficiency below the minimum requirement is Major, and graded Dangerous where efficiency is less than half of the required value. On a roller brake tester, the requirement counts as met if more than half of the wheels of a brake system lock. The check applies only to vehicles whose parking brake was not already tested as the secondary brake.

Rigid brake pipes (front)

Failed on 21 first tests3.0 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.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 37 first tests2.8 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.

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

Suspension

One fault: anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front), 2.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 26 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

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.

Exhaust system

Noted on 74 first tests3.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Rigid brake pipes

Noted on 31 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 32 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake performance (roller test, front)

Noted on 21 first tests2.0 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
50in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
6in 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 50.3% of 1,023 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 56.0%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 6 fixed and the 44 not fixed make the 50 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020052006200720082009Older carsNewer cars
40608010020052006200720082009Older carsNewer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200551 in every 100561
200657 in every 1001,088
2007 This car50 in every 1001,023
200851 in every 100953
200952 in every 1001,242

FAQs

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

The 2007 Vauxhall Tigra follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test), about 21 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 50.3% of 1,023 first MOTs on the 2007 Vauxhall Tigra passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 56.0%. Among 508 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) appears more often than on similar cars (20.5% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 3.5× 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 2007 Vauxhall Tigra at the first attempt were Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (20.5%), Drive shaft joints and boots (front) (10.7%) and Tyre condition (front) (10.1%), 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: Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (20.5% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 3.5× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) shows up more often than on similar cars (20.5% of those tests; 102 observed failures; about 3.5× 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 2007 Vauxhall Tigra include Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test), Rigid brake pipes (front), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front). 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 2007 Vauxhall Tigra (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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