Common problems

Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) common problems

What MOT testers find on the Hyundai Tucson (before 2015): the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 21,949 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025. These figures cover cars first used before 2015. Later cars sold under the same name are not included; see Hyundai Tucson cars first used 2015 or later.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 17 years, the most tested age

Suspension fails per 100 MOTs (n=4,645)24.1

All cars at 17 years (n=4,040,458)17.2

Suspension advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=4,645)39.8

All cars, same age (n=4,040,458)34.7

What stands out

Suspension fails show up on 24.1 of every 100 MOTs of a Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) at 17 years old (n=4,645), against 17.2 for all cars of that age (n=4,040,458).
The fail item testers record most often at 17 years: side/position light not working, on 6.9 per 100 MOTs (all cars 5.8).
The most common advisory or minor defect: tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge, on 19.9 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 17 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.

Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) at 17 years (n=4,645) against all cars at 17 years (n=4,040,458). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Suspension	24.1	17.2	39.8	34.7
Lights and electrics	20.9	21.0	24.1	16.9
Brakes	15.8	12.3	36.3	31.1
Body and structure	7.6	8.3	16.7	13.9
Tyres	6.5	7.3	26.9	28.1
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	6.5	7.1	5.1	6.0
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	6.3	6.5	15.8	13.2
Seat belts and airbags	6.1	2.5	1.7	1.2
Steering	4.3	3.6	9.8	5.1
Number plates and VIN	0.5	0.6	3.9	5.2
Road wheels	0.4	0.6	under 0.1	1.4

What testers fail most on the Tucson (before 2015) at 17 years

Fail items on the Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) at 17 years (n=4,645), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=4,040,458).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Side/position light not working	Lights and electrics	6.9	5.8	£10 to £47 per lamp
Suspension arm bush worn	Suspension	4.7	2.2	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Suspension ball joint worn	Suspension	4.4	2.4	£75 to £237 per side (rough guide)
Brake light not working	Lights and electrics	4.3	4.0	£10 to £47 per lamp
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm	Tyres	4.0	3.0	£88 to £145 per tyre
Exhaust system: has a major leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	3.6	1.9	£182 to £263 per section
Wipers not clearing screen	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	3.3	2.8	£15 to £30 per blade
Headlamp aim: projected beam image is obviously incorrect	Lights and electrics	3.3	3.6	£16 to £39 per car (rough guide)
Sub-frame: corroded and seriously weakened	Suspension	3.2	0.3
Linkage ball joint dust cover: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt	Suspension	3.1	1.8	£33 to £102 per link (rough guide)

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 17 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 Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) at 17 years (n=4,645), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=4,040,458).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	19.9	17.9	£88 to £145 per tyre
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	15.4	11.3	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Rigid brake pipes: corroded, covered in grease or other material	Brakes	14.4	10.5	£137 to £392 per car (rough guide)
Suspension arm pins and bushes: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement	Suspension	13.3	8.7	£92 to £237 per arm (rough guide)
Engine oil leaks: leak, but not excessive	Exhaust, emissions and leaks	12.8	11.7
Registration plate lamp(s): inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources	Lights and electrics	11.2	5.9
Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened	Suspension	9.0	5.3
Exhaust system: has a minor leak of exhaust gases	Body and structure	9.0	4.8	£182 to £263 per section
Brake pads: wearing thin	Brakes	7.5	6.6	£72 to £174 per axle (rough guide)
Headlamp: lens slightly defective	Lights and electrics	7.2	3.7

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 17 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Suspension	Lights and electrics	Brakes
13 years	1,139	16.5	14.1	15.8
14 years	1,828	16.8	17.0	13.5
15 years	3,071	21.7	18.0	15.6
16 years	4,284	22.6	18.2	15.9
17 years	4,645	24.1	20.9	15.8
18 years	3,690	24.5	20.8	15.3
19 years	2,259	25.4	21.0	15.3
20 years	1,033	25.6	22.2	13.7

Mileage

At 17 years, Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) cars showing 90,000 to 120,000 miles failed 49.1% of MOTs (n=1,751); the band that failed most, 120,000 to 150,000 miles, failed 53.0% (n=1,135). For pass and fail rates by age, see Hyundai Tucson MOT fail rates.

What to check on a viewing

On the Hyundai Tucson (before 2015), testers most often record side/position light not working; suspension arm bush worn; suspension ball joint worn. Look at these first, then the areas below.

Suspension

Listen for knocks or clonks over speed bumps and rough roads on the test drive.
Push down hard on each corner: the car should settle at once rather than keep bouncing.
Look behind the wheels for broken or heavily rusted coil springs and split rubber bushes.
Check that the car sits level and that no tyre is worn on one edge only.

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.

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.

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 Hyundai Tucson (before 2015)?

At 17 years, the age with the most MOT tests (4,645), the fail items testers record most often on the Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) are side/position light not working (6.9 per 100 MOTs), suspension arm bush worn (4.7 per 100 MOTs), suspension ball joint worn (4.4 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (19.9) and brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened (15.4).

Which parts of the Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) fail more often than on other cars?

At 17 years: suspension (24.1 per 100 MOTs against 17.2 for all cars); seat belts and airbags (6.1 per 100 MOTs against 2.5 for all cars); brakes (15.8 per 100 MOTs against 12.3 for all cars). Compared with 4,040,458 MOTs of all cars the same age.

Hyundai Tucson (before 2015) problems by area

Other Hyundai models

All Hyundai 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 Hyundai Tucson (before 2015)?

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