Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Vauxhall Vivaro 2002: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 45 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test).

Summary

With 575 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro differs from the model years either side.

At a glance

How 575 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
45 in every 100
Did not pass first time
55 in every 100317 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
23 yearsabout 156,442 miles
First tests counted
575

What failed most often

  1. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)21 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Suspension arm ball joint (front)18 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Windscreen washers16 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 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro 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

Four faults. The strongest is the brake efficiency below minimum (roller test): 5.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 314 of 317 failed first attempts (99.1%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

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.

Brake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 36 first tests5.4 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Service brake efficiency below the minimum requirement is Major, and efficiency less than half of the required value is graded Dangerous. On a roller brake tester, if more than half of the wheels of a brake system lock, the efficiency requirement for that system counts as met.

Brake performance (roller test, front)

Failed on 26 first tests4.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A wheel with no recorded braking effort on the roller test is graded Dangerous. Inadequate effort, a brake grabbing severely, abnormal lag and excessive fluctuation in effort are each Major. So is significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied, which indicates a binding brake.

Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 67 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

Brake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 21 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A wheel with no recorded braking effort on the roller test is graded Dangerous. Inadequate effort, a brake grabbing severely, abnormal lag and excessive fluctuation in effort are each Major. So is significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied, which indicates a binding brake.

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

Suspension

Three faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front): 4.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 30 first tests4.1 times as often as similar carsLikely 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.

Suspension mounting area (front)

Failed on 21 first tests3.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

The load bearing structure within a set distance of a sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting is a prescribed area. Major applies when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Dangerous applies when it is so weakened that control of the vehicle is likely to be adversely affected.

Suspension arm ball joint (front)

Failed on 57 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A suspension arm ball joint is failed under the general suspension pin, bush or joint wording. Excessively worn is Major, and likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

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

Visibility

One fault: windscreen washers, 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Windscreen washers

Failed on 50 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Windscreen washers that are not working, or do not provide sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen, are graded Major. They must provide enough fluid for the wipers to clear the windscreen effectively. Vehicles with an opening windscreen, or some other adequate view to the front, left and right, are not inspected for washers.

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

Seat belts and restraints

One fault: airbag warning light, 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Airbag warning light

Failed on 22 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

The airbag warning lamp (SRS MIL in DVSA's wording) is failed only if it indicates a system malfunction, which is Major. A lamp lit to show the passenger airbag is disabled is not to be regarded as a defect. Dashboard messages are not a defect in their own right, though they can help the tester confirm a malfunction.

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

Lamps and electrical

One fault: number plate lights, 2.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Number plate lights

Failed on 24 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Registration plate lamps must light up the rear registration plate and operate at the same time as the position lamps. A missing or inoperative lamp is Major when the plate has only one lamp or all its lamps are not working, and Minor when the plate has several lamps or light sources and not all have failed. A lamp throwing direct white light to the rear is also Minor.

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.

Shock absorbers (front)

Noted on 32 first tests2.8 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Non-component advisories

Noted on 47 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake discs (rear)

Noted on 56 first tests2.1 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
45in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
8in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
47in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 44.9% of 575 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 52.9%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 47 not fixed make the 55 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

40608010020022005201020152020Newer cars
406080100200220102020Newer 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, 47 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2002 This car45 in every 100575
200349 in every 1001,502
200449 in every 1003,016
200547 in every 1004,422
200646 in every 1005,531
200747 in every 1006,600
200847 in every 1006,650
200945 in every 1003,306
201044 in every 1005,520
201146 in every 1009,118
201245 in every 1007,619
201348 in every 1009,127
201451 in every 10011,595
201556 in every 10020,260
201660 in every 10017,638
201761 in every 10011,448
201865 in every 10010,688
201972 in every 1009,709
202075 in every 1009,356
202172 in every 10010,801
202273 in every 1008,667

FAQs

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

With 575 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro differs from 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, 44.9% of 575 first MOTs on the 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 52.9%. Among 317 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Brake efficiency below minimum (roller test) appears more often than on similar cars (11.5% of those tests; 36 observed failures; about 5.4× 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 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro at the first attempt were Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (21.3%), Suspension arm ball joint (front) (18.2%) and Windscreen washers (15.9%), 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: Brake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (11.5% of those tests; 36 observed failures; about 5.4× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Brake efficiency below minimum (roller test) shows up more often than on similar cars (11.5% of those tests; 36 observed failures; about 5.4× 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 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro include Brake efficiency below minimum (roller test), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front), Brake performance (roller test, 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 2002 Vauxhall Vivaro (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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