Common problems

Isuzu Trooper common problems

What MOT testers find on the Isuzu Trooper: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 4,538 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 21 years, the most tested age

Body and structure fails per 100 MOTs (n=1,193)17.9

All cars at 21 years (n=1,321,417)9.3

Suspension advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=1,193)37.7

All cars, same age (n=1,321,417)35.0

What stands out

Body and structure fails show up on 17.9 of every 100 MOTs of a Isuzu Trooper at 21 years old (n=1,193), against 9.3 for all cars of that age (n=1,321,417).
Lights and electrics fails are less common: 16.2 per 100 MOTs against 20.6 for all cars at the same age.
The fail item testers record most often at 21 years: driveshaft CV boot split, on 7.6 per 100 MOTs (all cars 3.0).
The most common advisory or minor defect: engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive, on 24.1 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 21 years

How many of every 100 MOTs found a fail, or an advisory or minor defect, in each area. A test with faults in two areas counts in both.

Isuzu Trooper at 21 years (n=1,193) against all cars at 21 years (n=1,321,417). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Body and structure	17.9	9.3	30.8	16.0
Brakes	16.6	13.3	36.7	33.7
Lights and electrics	16.2	20.6	7.2	16.7
Suspension	15.2	15.9	37.7	35.0
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	8.0	7.5	7.1	6.5
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	7.0	7.1	26.5	16.4
Seat belts and airbags	5.5	3.1	3.6	1.6
Tyres	2.9	6.0	15.5	25.2
Steering	2.1	4.2	10.5	6.6
Number plates and VIN	1.4	0.7	6.2	6.6
Road wheels	0.1	0.4

What testers fail most on the Trooper at 21 years

Fail items on the Isuzu Trooper at 21 years (n=1,193), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=1,321,417).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Driveshaft CV boot split	Body and structure	7.6	3.0	£88 to £196 per boot (rough guide)
Side/position light not working	Lights and electrics	5.7	4.9	£10 to £47 per lamp
Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	4.9	2.2	£182 to £263 per section
Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded	Brakes	4.2	2.5	£137 to £392 per car (rough guide)
Wipers not clearing screen	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	3.9	3.5	£15 to £30 per blade
Seat belt prescribed areas: prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced	Seat belts and airbags	3.4	1.1
Suspension ball joint worn	Suspension	3.3	2.2	£75 to £237 per side (rough guide)
Brake light not working	Lights and electrics	2.8	3.9	£10 to £47 per lamp
Component mounting prescribed areas: prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength	Suspension	2.8	3.2
Handbrake too weak	Brakes	2.4	2.7

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 21 years

Advisories and minor defects are recorded, but the car still passes. Across all cars, a part with an advisory or minor defect failed at the next MOT 5.5 times in 100 (n=88,666,940 pairs of consecutive MOTs), against 0.3 times in 100 when the same part had none (n=12,936,860,350).

Advisories and minor defects on the Isuzu Trooper at 21 years (n=1,193), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=1,321,417).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	24.1	14.8
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material	Brakes	23.2	15.9	£137 to £392 per car (rough guide)
Wheel bearings: has slight play	Suspension	12.4	1.8	£103 to £276 per wheel (rough guide)
Drive shaft joints: constant velocity boot severely deteriorated	Body and structure	8.7	3.8
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	8.5	14.8	£88 to £145 per tyre
Chassis condition: is corroded but structural rigidity is not significantly reduced	Body and structure	8.3	2.0
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	7.7	10.4	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	7.3	5.5	£182 to £263 per section
Linkage ball joints: ball joint has slight play	Suspension	6.9	2.2	£33 to £102 per link (rough guide)
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing	Tyres	6.7	10.4	£88 to £145 per tyre

Repair estimates are a guide for an independent garage: labour at the national median local garage rate (median £78 an hour from 65 garages, ONS price quotes) times estimated labour hours, plus a parts band. Labour hours and most parts bands are estimates, not quotes, and prices vary by model, engine and region. A warning light fault shows the cost of the diagnosis only.

How problems change with age

Fails per 100 MOTs in the three most common areas at 21 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Body and structure	Brakes	Lights and electrics
20 years	1,186	17.9	15.8	16.4
21 years	1,193	17.9	16.6	16.2
22 years	1,110	18.3	15.2	15.1
23 years	1,049	16.7	14.2	16.1

What to check on a viewing

On the Isuzu Trooper, testers most often record driveshaft CV boot split; side/position light not working; exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases. Look at these first, then the areas below.

Body and structure

Look underneath at the sills, floor, subframes and jacking points for corrosion, or for fresh underseal that may hide it.
Check that doors, bonnet and boot open, close and latch properly.
Look for loose trim, sharp edges or damage around the bumpers and wheel arches.

Brakes

On the test drive the car should stop in a straight line without pulling, juddering or grinding.
Look at the discs through the wheels for a deep lip, heavy rust or scoring.
Check that the handbrake or electronic parking brake holds the car on a slope.
Ask when the pads, discs and brake fluid were last changed, and for the receipts.

Lights and electrics

With someone outside, try every light: dipped and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and number plate lamps.
Check that the warning lights come on with the ignition and go out once the engine runs.
Look for misted, cracked or yellowed headlamp lenses.

Ask for the car's MOT history and service record: advisories that repeat from one year to the next show what has been left. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the most common problems on the Isuzu Trooper?

At 21 years, the age with the most MOT tests (1,193), the fail items testers record most often on the Isuzu Trooper are driveshaft CV boot split (7.6 per 100 MOTs), side/position light not working (5.7 per 100 MOTs), exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases (4.9 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive (24.1) and rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material (23.2).

Which parts of the Isuzu Trooper fail more often than on other cars?

At 21 years: body and structure (17.9 per 100 MOTs against 9.3 for all cars); brakes (16.6 per 100 MOTs against 13.3 for all cars); seat belts and airbags (5.5 per 100 MOTs against 3.1 for all cars). Compared with 1,321,417 MOTs of all cars the same age.

Isuzu Trooper problems by area

Other Isuzu models

All Isuzu models · Common problems by make

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

The all cars figures cover all class 4 vehicles (cars and light vans) tested at the same age.

Looking at a Isuzu Trooper?

These figures describe the model, not the car in front of you. Found one you might buy? See what the VetTheCar Buying Report covers, or use the tools that work without a registration.

See a sample report Car tools · MOT fail rates by model · Compare models by MOT record

Repair estimates: ONS consumer price quotes for local garage labour (09/2025 to 08/2026), the MOT inspection manual for defect wording, and estimated labour hours and parts bands. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ONS.

Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 28 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources