Vauxhall Signum 2003: MOT failure rate for its age

50.5% of 747 MOT tests of the Vauxhall Signum 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 106.1 (95% CI 95.4–116.8; 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 Signum built in 2003 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	50.5	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	747
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 95.4–116.8)	106.1	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	747
Rank among this model's 5 build years	4	of 5	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	747
Tested in 2024	53	tests	median 107,202 miles	2024	53

Built 2003 against Vauxhall Signum normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 16: 52.3% vs 50.4%; age 17: 46.2% vs 48.3%; age 18: 52.1% vs 40.1%; age 19: 44.7% vs n/a%; age 20: 35.6% vs n/a%; age 21: 41.5% vs n/a%. Axis from 0% to 60%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2003 Vauxhall Signum by registration · All Vauxhall Signum 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 Signum 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 Signum 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	363 (rough estimate)	52.3	47.2–57.4	50.4	103.8
17	221 (rough estimate)	46.2	39.7–52.7	48.3	95.5
18	163 (rough estimate)	52.1	44.5–59.7	40.1	130.1
19	114 (rough estimate)	44.7	35.9–53.9	not available	not available
20	73 (rough estimate)	35.6	25.6–47.1	not available	not available
21	53 (rough estimate)	41.5	29.3–54.9	not available	not available

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 987 (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 Signum?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2003 is lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment: 59.3 items per 100 first tests, against 42.2 across all build years of the Vauxhall Signum. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Vauxhall Signum built 2003 against the Vauxhall Signum in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2003, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	59.3	42.2	585
Brakes	39.9	33.6	394
Suspension	37.6	35.5	371
Body, chassis, structure	28.2	18.3	278
Tyres	15.9	15.4	157

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 987 (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 5 published build years of the Vauxhall Signum, 2003 ranks 4 (1 = fails least for its age). 2004: index 108.1.

Vauxhall Signum build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
2003	106.1	95.4–116.8	no different (rough estimate)	747
2004	108.1	102.2–114.0	worse (rough estimate)	2,468
2005	100.5	95.6–105.4	no different (rough estimate)	3,384
2006	95.0	91.4–98.7	better	5,837
2007	95.3	90.6–100.0	no different (rough estimate)	3,442

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 15,878 (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 Signum 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-signum/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.

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