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MOT fail rates

Kia Sorento MOT fail rate by age

How often the Kia Sorento fails its MOT at each age, compared with all cars of the same age, and what it fails on. From 147,328 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated

At 8 years, the most tested age

MOT fail rate at age 8 (n=13,235)22.9%
All cars at 8 years (n=10,440,457)23.8%
Median mileage at test68,992
All cars, median mileage60,745

184 of 315 model groups with enough tests fail less often at 8 years.

What stands out

  • At 3 years the Kia Sorento fails 13.0% of MOTs (8,615 tests), 1.0 points above the 12.1% for all cars that age. At 20 years it fails 47.9% (1,450 tests), 5.1 points above the 42.8% average.
  • The gap is widest at 20 years: 5.1 points above all cars.
  • Its most common structural or mechanical fail item at 8 years: Steering track rod end: ball joint play, at 2.8 per 100 MOTs.

MOT fail rate by age

3 years 20 years 52.7%

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

Kia Sorento: share of MOT tests that failed, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
AgeMOT fail rateTests (n)All carsDifferenceMedian mileage
3 years13.0%8,61512.1%+1.0 pts26,074 miles
4 years14.2%9,27213.4%+0.8 pts33,890 miles
5 years16.4%9,86515.3%+1.1 pts41,913 miles
6 years18.3%11,82917.8%+0.5 pts50,916 miles
7 years19.7%13,06420.6%−1.0 pts60,423 miles
8 years22.9%13,23523.8%−0.8 pts68,992 miles
9 years27.6%12,28927.1%+0.4 pts77,408 miles
10 years31.4%11,05430.3%+1.1 pts86,672 miles
11 years36.6%8,75733.3%+3.3 pts94,228 miles
12 years39.6%7,73736.0%+3.6 pts101,429 miles
13 years42.3%7,00238.3%+4.1 pts104,784 miles
14 years44.6%6,04640.3%+4.3 pts106,781 miles
15 years44.3%5,92241.6%+2.7 pts108,723 miles
16 years47.2%6,59142.6%+4.6 pts109,770 miles
17 years47.3%6,13043.1%+4.2 pts112,920 miles
18 years47.9%5,11543.3%+4.6 pts114,561 miles
19 years47.3%3,35543.2%+4.1 pts114,591 miles
20 years47.9%1,45042.8%+5.1 pts113,186 miles

Most common fail items at 8 years

Split into structural or mechanical items and wear items. Wear items (tyres, brake pads, wipers, bulbs) say more about upkeep than about the design.

Structural and mechanical

Fail itemPer 100 MOTs
Steering track rod end: ball joint play Major2.8
Suspension arm bush worn Major2.7
Suspension ball joint worn Major1.5
Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction Major1.4

Out of 13,235 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Wear and upkeep

Fail itemPer 100 MOTs
Brake pads under 1.5 mm Dangerous4
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Dangerous2.7
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Major2
Wipers not clearing screen Major1.9
Tyre with cords exposed Dangerous1.8
Headlamp aim: too low Major1.3

Out of 13,235 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Other models at 8 years

ModelMOT fail rateTests (n)All cars
Kia Sportage22.5%114,12323.8%
Kia Picanto22.3%54,35423.8%
Kia Ceed25.4%41,05223.8%

MOT fail rate by first-use year

Each year has its own page: the fail rate for cars first used that year at each MOT from 2022 to 2025 with at least 1,000 tests, the most common faults at that age, and the car tax and ULEZ rules for that year.

First-use year data updated .

Latest MOT age with at least 1,000 tests for each first-use year.
First usedAge at testMOT fail rateTests (n)All cars
200518 years in 202346.7%1,30743.3%
200619 years in 202545.5%1,24843.2%
200717 years in 202446.3%1,19543.1%
200815 years in 202347.4%1,12341.6%
200916 years in 202545.0%1,05042.6%
201015 years in 202540.6%1,65941.6%
201114 years in 202543.5%1,47640.3%
201213 years in 202543.2%1,76938.3%
201312 years in 202536.7%2,04536.0%
201411 years in 202532.8%2,84333.3%
201510 years in 202527.8%3,92730.3%
20169 years in 202525.3%3,13327.1%
20178 years in 202520.8%3,11023.8%
20187 years in 202517.5%2,72020.6%
20196 years in 202518.0%2,76317.8%
20205 years in 202517.2%1,16715.3%
20214 years in 202513.1%2,47113.4%

More on the Kia Sorento

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.

Looking at one Kia Sorento?

These are figures for the model, not for one car. The VetTheCar Buying Report looks at a single car: its MOT tests, defects, advisories and mileage readings.

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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 22 September 2026.

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