Common problems

Vauxhall Astra electrical and lighting problems

How often MOT testers find lights and electrics faults on the Vauxhall Astra at each age, against all cars of the same age, and which items come up most. From 2,724,083 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 12 years, the most tested age

Lights and electrics fails per 100 MOTs (n=218,927)13.3

All cars at 12 years (n=7,303,151)15.4

Lights and electrics advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=218,927)8.5

All cars, same age (n=7,303,151)9.3

What stands out

At 12 years, 13.3 of every 100 MOTs of the Vauxhall Astra found a lights and electrics fail (n=218,927), against 15.4 for all cars of that age (n=7,303,151).
It is above the all-car rate at 17 of the 23 ages with at least 1,000 tests.
The gap is widest at 24 years: 21.2 per 100 MOTs against 17.2 for all cars.
The lights and electrics fail item recorded most often at 12 years: side/position light not working, on 3.4 per 100 MOTs.
The most common lights and electrics advisory or minor defect: registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources, on 4.2 per 100 MOTs.

Lights and electrics fails by age

Solid line: this model. Dashed line: all cars at the same age.

Vauxhall Astra: lights and electrics fails and advisories per 100 MOTs, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
3 years	37,394	3.2	2.9	0.5	0.7
4 years	64,768	4.1	3.1	0.8	1.0
5 years	105,212	5.1	3.7	1.3	1.3
6 years	156,300	5.8	4.7	2.0	1.9
7 years	182,741	6.9	5.8	3.0	2.5
8 years	205,573	8.1	7.3	4.1	3.4
9 years	218,838	9.3	9.2	5.3	4.5
10 years	215,952	10.7	11.2	6.8	5.9
11 years	216,250	12.2	13.3	7.7	7.5
12 years	218,927	13.3	15.4	8.5	9.3
13 years	197,340	14.7	17.0	9.3	10.8
14 years	186,790	16.8	18.3	10.2	12.2
15 years	181,492	18.3	19.5	12.1	13.7
16 years	153,429	20.6	20.4	15.3	15.3
17 years	125,477	21.9	21.0	18.5	16.9
18 years	89,709	23.6	21.4	20.9	17.8
19 years	58,909	24.2	21.5	21.1	17.9
20 years	40,355	23.8	21.2	19.1	17.4
21 years	27,192	23.2	20.6	16.9	16.7
22 years	19,128	23.3	19.7	16.3	15.5
23 years	11,904	22.3	18.6	15.4	14.2
24 years	6,538	21.2	17.2	14.1	12.5
25 years	3,865	19.9	16.3	12.7	11.1

Lights and electrics fail items at 12 years

Lights and electrics fail items on the Vauxhall Astra at 12 years (n=218,927), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=7,303,151).
Item	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Side/position light not working	3.4	4.1	£10 to £47 per lamp
Brake light not working	2.1	2.8	£10 to £47 per lamp
Dipped headlight not working	1.9	2.1	£18 to £86 per lamp
Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect	1.7	1.5	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)
Headlamp aim: too low	1.5	1.5	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps	1.4	1.7	£10 to £47 per lamp
Headlight aimed too high	1.2	1.0	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)

Lights and electrics advisories and minor defects at 12 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).

Lights and electrics advisories and minor defects on the Vauxhall Astra at 12 years (n=218,927), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=7,303,151).
Item	Per 100 MOTs	All cars
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources	4.2	4.6
Position lamp: with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning	2.1	0.4

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.

What to check on a viewing

On the Vauxhall Astra, the lights and electrics items testers fail most are side/position light not working; brake light not working; dipped headlight not working.

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: a lights and electrics advisory that repeats from year to year has not been fixed. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the common electrical and lighting problems on the Vauxhall Astra?

At 12 years (218,927 MOTs), the lights and electrics fail items testers record most often are side/position light not working (3.4 per 100 MOTs), brake light not working (2.1 per 100 MOTs), dipped headlight not working (1.9 per 100 MOTs). The most common lights and electrics advisories or minor defects are registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.2) and position lamp: with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning (2.1).

Does the Vauxhall Astra have more electrical and lighting problems than other cars?

At 12 years it has 13.3 lights and electrics fails per 100 MOTs against 15.4 for all cars of the same age (2.1 fewer). It is above the all-car rate at 17 of the 23 ages with enough tests.

What does a lights and electrics repair cost on the Vauxhall Astra?

For side/position light not working, an independent garage estimate is £10 to £47 per lamp. This is a guide built from the national median garage labour rate and estimated labour hours, not a quote.

Electrical and lighting problems on other Vauxhall models

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 Vauxhall Astra?

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