Vauxhall Frontera 2003: MOT failure rate for its age

44.0% of 1,170 MOT tests of the Vauxhall Frontera first registered in 2003 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 94.8 (95% CI 86.6–103.0; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2003 build year is no different from other years of the same model at the same age. This is a rough estimate from a smaller sample.

Vauxhall Frontera built in 2003 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	44.0	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	1170
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 86.6–103.0)	94.8	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	1170
Rank among this model's 2 build years	2	of 2	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	1170
Tested in 2024	141	tests	median 107,994 miles	2024	141

Built 2003 against Vauxhall Frontera normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 16: 44.1% vs 47.9%; age 17: 43.9% vs 44.3%; age 18: 44% vs n/a%; age 19: 44.3% vs n/a%; age 20: 35.2% vs n/a%; age 21: 39% vs n/a%. Axis from 0% to 50%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2003 Vauxhall Frontera by registration · All Vauxhall Frontera MOT statistics · Download the build-year table (CSV)

Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · full dataset (v5).

How does the 2003 Vauxhall Frontera fail at each age?

Cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21 between 2019 and 2024. Each row compares their first-time failure share with what this model normally shows at that age, after allowing for the overall failure level of each test year.

Vauxhall Frontera built 2003: first-time MOT failure by age, against the model's normal rate at that age (2019–2024)
Age	Tests	Failed, %	95% interval	Normal for this model at that age, %	Index (100 = normal)
16	692	44.1	40.4–47.8	47.9	92
17	478 (rough estimate)	43.9	39.5–48.4	44.3	99.2
18	366 (rough estimate)	44	39–49.1	not available	not available
19	262 (rough estimate)	44.3	38.4–50.3	not available	not available
20	182 (rough estimate)	35.2	28.6–42.3	not available	not available
21	141 (rough estimate)	39	31.3–47.2	not available	not available

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,121 (initial tests) · Method: normal rate = this model's first-time failure share at that age across its build years (cells of 400+ tests), adjusted for each test year's overall level; cells of 30+ tests, under 500 marked rough · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

What fails most on the 2003 Vauxhall Frontera?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2003 is brakes: 41.2 items per 100 first tests, against 36.6 across all build years of the Vauxhall Frontera. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Vauxhall Frontera built 2003 against the Vauxhall Frontera in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2003, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Brakes	41.2	36.6	874
Body, chassis, structure	41.1	36.6	871
Suspension	34	36.2	721
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	28.1	29.4	595
Visibility	10.9	13.5	232

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,121 (initial tests of this build year) · Method: failure items grouped by DVSA's top-level defect groups, per 100 initial tests; groups with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How does 2003 compare with the years around it?

Among the 2 published build years of the Vauxhall Frontera, 2003 ranks 2 (1 = fails least for its age). 2004: index 89.7.

Vauxhall Frontera build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
2003	94.8	86.6–103.0	no different (rough estimate)	1,170
2004	89.7	74.5–104.9	no different (rough estimate)	338

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,508 (initial tests) · Method: observed failures against those expected for the same model at the same ages, test-year level adjusted; verdict follows the printed one-decimal bound · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How to cite this page

MOT Risk Index (2026). Vauxhall Frontera 2003 MOT statistics (data release dvsa-2024-v2; full dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22975051), updated 30 September 2026. motriskindex.co.uk/cars/vauxhall-frontera/2003/

How every figure is calculated: methodology. Age, test year and build year are tied together (age = test year − build year), so the test-year level is taken as observed, not estimated.

Other pages for this model