2016 Vauxhall Zafira 1.6L Diesel · SD16 OVA

Front suspension wear and a cluster of tyre and emissions faults define this Zafira's recent record, marking a clear shift from an earlier run of clean passes. Between January 2021 and December 2023 the car passed four consecutive tests with no defects recorded at all, but the January 2025 test brought a failure for excessively worn rearmost bushes in both front suspension arms, a malfunctioning tyre pressure monitoring system, and exhaust emissions exceeding the manufacturer's specified limit. A retest the following day passed, but June 2025 brought another failure, this time for a nearside front tyre with a cut deep enough to reach the ply or cords, an offside front tyre worn close to the legal limit on its edge, and the TPMS fault still present. The car passed on 4 June 2025 with an advisory for deformation of the offside front outer integral body structure, though structural rigidity was assessed as not significantly reduced. The trend is therefore worsening: a previously unblemished record has given way to two failures within six months, a recurring TPMS fault across three tests, and a recurring registration plate lamp minor defect. Recorded mileage stands at 76,876 miles over roughly ten years, an average of about 7,700 miles per year, which is typical for a family vehicle of this age. The testing pattern shows annual winter tests from 2021 through 2023, then a shift to mid-2025 with two closely spaced test cycles in January and June, the latter pair only two days apart, suggesting prompt rectification work after each failure. There are no long gaps indicating the car was laid up, so the wear items flagged are consistent with normal accumulated use rather than deterioration through standing. At this mileage, wear to front suspension bushes, tyres, and emissions-related components is unremarkable in itself, but the concentration of faults in 2025 indicates several consumable and sensor items reached the end of their service life around the same period. A prospective buyer should focus first on the front suspension. Both front arm rearmost bushes were failed as excessively worn in January 2025 and presumably replaced for the retest, but on a test drive listen for knocking or clunking over bumps and uneven surfaces, and check for any vagueness or wandering in the steering, which would indicate the replacement bushes or adjacent components such as ball joints and drop links are again developing play. The offside front tyre being worn on its edge at the June test, combined with the earlier bush failures, raises the possibility of geometry issues; inspect the current tyres for uneven shoulder wear and confirm the car tracks straight without pulling, and consider a four-wheel alignment check. The body structure advisory warrants careful physical inspection: examine the offside front inner wing, suspension turret, and chassis leg area for creasing, rippling, fresh underseal, or mismatched paint that might indicate previous impact damage, and confirm panel gaps are even around the bonnet and front wing. The persistent TPMS malfunction, recorded at three consecutive tests, should be verified as repaired, since an illuminated warning is now an MOT failure item; similarly confirm the daytime running lamp and registration plate lamp faults are resolved. Finally, given the January 2025 emissions failure, ask what work was carried out to rectify it, and on the test drive check for smooth idle, absence of smoke under acceleration, and no hesitation, as a recurrence could point to lambda sensor, EGR, or injector issues on this engine.