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Vauxhall Antara

All generations and engines together · 17,624 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 48k

Reliability verdict
EBy miles

Graded against its peers

One of the worst small SUVs per mile driven. Watch emissions/leaks and suspension. A risky used buy. Check the MOT history for repeating emissions/leaks advisories before you go.

First-time failure at 50-60k miles
40.8%
Across 1,191 tests. The average for small SUVs is 21.1%.
Typical mileage at age 7
48k miles
How far the average car has gone by seven years old. Low-mileage models can look better by age than they are.

What owners report

Reported

Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.

Diesel timing chain rattle and turbo failure (2.2 CDTi)

Emerging

The 2.2 CDTi diesel, the engine in most Antaras sold new in the UK, is repeatedly reported to develop a rattly timing chain and premature turbo failure, typically somewhere between 50,000 and 100,000 miles. The giveaway is a loud rattle on a cold start, a noticeable drop in power, and dashboard warning lights; a turbo swap runs roughly £500-£1,500, more if the chain and guides need doing at the same time. No manufacturer recall or TSB has turned up for this, it is described as a wear pattern rather than an acknowledged defect.

Reported 50-100k miles · sources: Autozilla, Auto Express, Parkers

Notchy manual pre-2011, slipping automatic later on

Emerging

Early cars (2007-2011) came with a five-speed manual that road testers marked down as poor, before Vauxhall improved it at the 2011 facelift. On both manual and automatic cars, owners and repair guides describe rough gear changes, slipping under acceleration, or warning lights tied to low fluid or worn internals; AWD models can also pick up leaks and stiffness in the transfer box. A gearbox rebuild is a four-figure repair.

Worse on pre-2011 cars · sources: Parkers, Autozilla

Instrument cluster and general electrical gremlins

Emerging

Partial or full failure of the instrument cluster, meaning gauges or warning lights drop out, is a repeated complaint, alongside power window motors, central locking, and batteries draining from an alternator fault or a short somewhere in the loom. None of this shows up on an MOT until it happens to fail a specific test, but a duff cluster is not a cheap fix. Costs range from an auto-electrician sorting a connector to a full instrument panel swap.

sources: Autozilla, owner forums

Alarm siren goes off on its own

Disputed

Owners report the alarm triggering randomly, including when the car is locked normally rather than with the fob, in forum threads more than a decade apart. The usual explanation is the standalone backup battery inside the siren unit going flat or faulty, and some owners simply disconnect the siren rather than chase wiring; one owner instead blamed a spider setting off the sensor. It is an annoyance rather than something that strands you, but it points to a wider pattern of niggly electrics on this model.

Reported in threads from 2011 and 2023 · sources: Honest John forum

EGR valve clogging and engine warning lights

Partly in the MOT data

Owner reports point to a blocked EGR valve as a common cause of engine management lights and a loss of power, especially on cars used mostly for short trips where the diesel never gets properly hot. This lines up with the measured MOT data for this segment, where 'emissions/leaks' is the standout failure category, though the measured fault covers exhaust and fuel leaks too, not just a dirty EGR valve. Clearing or replacing the valve is a few hundred pounds; if it's been ignored, an emissions-related MOT fail is often the first sign anyone notices.

Sources: Autozilla; matches the measured small-SUV emissions/leaks signature

What to check on this car

Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.

Saveable checklist

From this model’s MOT record

The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.

Bushes and ball jointsRuns high on this model Drive slowly over broken tarmac with the windows down and listen for clonks from either end. Back at the car, have someone rock the steering wheel while you rest a hand on each front wheel; play you can feel through the tyre is a worn joint.Recorded on 24.7% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 5.9%
LeaksRuns high on this model Look at the ground where the car usually stands, then glance under the engine after your test drive. Fresh drips of oil or coolant are the cheapest warning you will ever get about a car.Recorded on 15.8% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.0%
DampersRuns high on this model Look for oil misting on the damper body behind each wheel, then push down hard on each corner of the car. It should settle in one bounce. A floaty or crashy ride on the test drive is the same fault felt from the driver's seat.Recorded on 12.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 2.3%
Lights and horn walkroundRuns high on this model With a helper, run every light: dipped, main beam, indicators, brake lights including the high-level one, reverse, fog, and the horn. On newer cars a dead LED section can mean replacing the whole lamp unit rather than a bulb.Recorded on 11.5% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.3%
Underneath, with a torchRuns high on this model Get down and look at the sills, the subframes and the rear suspension mounting points. Flaking scale and bubbling matter; light surface rust does not. On older cars this is the one check that finds the fault that scraps them.Recorded on 8.1% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 0.7%
Brake pipes underneathRuns high on this model Follow the metal brake lines with a torch where they run along the sills and over the rear axle. White crust or flaking metal means they are corroding, and the online MOT history usually shows the same advisory creeping up for years before the fail.Recorded on 8.0% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.9%
Coil springsRuns high on this model Look through the wheel spokes at the bottom coil of each spring; when springs snap it is usually there, and the break is visible. Step back and check the car sits level too. A dropped corner is often a broken spring.Recorded on 8.0% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.4%

Worth doing on any used car

These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.

Tyres, all four Check the tread across the full width of each tyre, inner edge included, and look for cracking and mismatched brands. A set of decent tyres is £500 or more on most cars, which makes this the easiest money to take off a price. If the pressure warning light is on, budget for sensors too.Recorded on 29.8% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 20.1%
Pads and discsRuns high on this model Look through the wheel spokes at the brake disc. A pronounced lip on its outer edge, or a rusty and scored face, means discs and pads are due all round, a few hundred pounds on most cars. A haggling point rather than a reason to walk away.Recorded on 18.6% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 8.7%
Windscreen and wipersRuns high on this model Scan the glass in daylight for chips, especially in the driver's line of sight where even a small one can fail the MOT. Run the washers and check the wipers clear without smearing.Recorded on 2.7% of tests at age 6-9 · class average 1.7%

Because of what owners report

Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.

Start the engine from cold and listen for a rattle before it settles. A loud rattle for the first 20-30 seconds points to timing chain wear on the CDTi diesel.
Accelerate hard briefly on a safe stretch and watch for smoke, whistle, or a flat spot. Turbo lag, smoke, or a dip in power suggests the turbo is on its way out.
Work through every gear at low speed, manual or automatic. Notchy changes or slipping under load means gearbox wear, worse on cars built before the 2011 facelift.
Test every power window, the central locking, and watch the instrument cluster for flickers or blank sections. Any of these dropping out points to the electrical gremlins this model is known for.
Ask the seller if the alarm has ever gone off on its own. A yes usually means the siren's backup battery needs replacing or disconnecting.
Check the MOT history for repeated emissions, exhaust, or fuel leak advisories. A pattern here matches both the EGR clogging owners report and the class-wide leak signature for this segment.
Ask how the car is mainly used, short local runs or longer trips. Short-journey-only cars are far more likely to have a clogged EGR or DPF on the diesel.

Open the saveable checklist, tick it off at the car

The MOT data

Measured

Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.

How this model wears

Vauxhall AntaraClass average, all tracked models

What testers flag

Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.

Faults with the car itself

The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 1,832 tests in this band.

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Advisory
24.7%class 5.9%
A suspension component excessively damaged or corroded
Advisory
15.9%class 1.3%
Fluid leaking excessively and likely to harm the environment or to pose a safety risk to other road users
Advisory
15.8%class 2.0%
A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage
Advisory
12.5%class 2.3%
A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
Fail
11.5%class 1.3%
Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
Fail
9.1%class 0.8%
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
Fail
8.5%class 0.9%
Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
Advisory
8.0%class 1.9%
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Fail
8.0%class 1.4%
A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
Advisory
7.4%class 1.3%

Wear, upkeep and luck

Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Advisory
33.5%class 22.9%
A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm
Advisory
18.6%class 8.7%
Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured
Advisory
13.7%class 10.1%
A tyre seriously damaged
Advisory
11.4%class 11.1%
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
Minor
9.9%class 1.2%
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
Fail
6.7%class 2.3%
Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn
Advisory
3.8%class 3.4%
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps
Fail
3.4%class 0.6%

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