2025 MOT results
Hyundai i30 common problems
The most common reason a Hyundai i30 fails its MOT is a brake light out, on 15.2% of its 36,090 failed tests in 2025. Against other cars of the same age, 6 faults stand out, the widest gaps being: a braking fault at 7.0% of failures against 1.7% expected; a weak handbrake at 13.3% of failures against 3.9% expected; a worn steering or suspension joint at 11.8% of failures against 4.2% expected.
- Tests in 2025 102,060 Cars aged three and over
- Failed first time 35.4% 36,090 tests
- Found a dangerous defect 10.0% Unsafe to drive away
- Ended with an advisory 58.6% A problem to watch, not a failure
What fails a Hyundai i30 MOT
Each bar is the share of failed Hyundai i30 tests with that defect. Where we can compare it with cars of the same registration years, the marker shows what an average car of those ages records (12 of the 12 items below).
Most common reasons for failure
A test can fail for more than one defect, so shares add up to more than 100%.
| Defect | Share of failed tests |
|---|---|
| Stop lamp: not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 15.2% |
| Parking brake efficiency below requirements Brakes | 13.3% |
| Track rod end: ball joint has excessive play Steering | 11.8% |
| Position lamp: not working Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 10.1% |
| Headlamp: not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 9.3% |
| Tyres: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | 8.5% |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | 7.1% |
| Parking brake performance: inoperative on one side Brakes | 7.0% |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | 5.7% |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | 5.0% |
| Service brake performance: excessively binding Brakes | 4.8% |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Visibility | 4.8% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
-
Brake light out
15.2% of failures 6.7% expected 2.3 times as often
A brake light not working, from a bulb, a poor earth, or the switch on the pedal.
Reverse up to a wall or window at dusk and press the pedal to see all three lamps light.
-
Weak handbrake
13.3% of failures 3.9% expected 3.4 times as often
The handbrake cannot hold the car to the efficiency the test requires, usually from a stretched cable or seized rear callipers.
On a hill, the handbrake should hold the car with a couple of clicks left in the lever.
-
Worn steering or suspension joint
11.8% of failures 4.2% expected 2.8 times as often
Play in a steering or suspension joint, where a worn ball and socket lets the wheel move where it should not.
A knock at low speed over rough ground, or vague steering, is the usual warning.
-
Sidelight out
10.1% of failures 9.0% expected about as expected
A sidelight, also called a position lamp, not working. It marks the width of the car at night.
Walk round the car with the lights on and the hazards going; these are the cheapest failures to avoid.
-
Headlamp out
9.3% of failures 5.4% expected 1.7 times as often
A headlamp out on dipped beam, which is the beam the test checks.
Both bulbs age at the same rate, so a pair usually goes within months of each other.
-
Tyre worn below the legal limit
8.5% of failures 8.2% expected about as expected
A tyre worn past the 1.6mm legal minimum across the middle three quarters of the tread.
A 20p coin in the main grooves: if the outer band of the coin is visible, the tyre is close to the limit.
Which parts of the car fail
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment is the area that most often fails a Hyundai i30, on 45.1% of failed tests. The widest gap against cars of the same registration years is brakes, on 33.7% against 21.5% expected.
Failure categories
DVSA's own sections of the test. The marker is what cars of the same registration years record.
| Defect category | Share of failed tests |
|---|---|
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 45.1% |
| Brakes | 33.7% |
| Suspension | 27.2% |
| Tyres | 20.3% |
| Steering | 16.4% |
| Visibility | 14.2% |
| Body, chassis, structure | 5.9% |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 5.3% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
What testers warn about
58.6% of Hyundai i30 tests ended with at least one advisory: a fault the tester found that did not fail the test. On Hyundai i30s, these are the items to ask about on a car you are viewing, because they are what the last tester expected to go next.
Most common advisories
Share of all tests, passes included.
| Advisory | Share of tests |
|---|---|
| Tread depth: worn close to legal limit or worn on edge Tyres | 20.9% |
| Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened Brakes | 12.0% |
| Tyres: slightly damaged or cracking or perishing Tyres | 9.4% |
| Brake pads: wearing thin Brakes | 9.2% |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Suspension | 8.1% |
| Coil spring: corroded Suspension | 5.3% |
| Sub-frame: corroded but not seriously weakened Suspension | 5.0% |
| Service brake performance: binding but not excessively Brakes | 4.2% |
| Suspension arm: corroded but not seriously weakened Suspension | 4.1% |
| Engine oil leak, but not excessive Noise, emissions and leaks | 4.1% |
| Track rod end: ball joint has slight play Steering | 3.2% |
| Registration plates: deteriorated but not likely to be misread Identification of the vehicle | 3.2% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
What changes as a Hyundai i30 gets older
A 2019 Hyundai i30 failed 13.5% of its MOT tests in 2025; a 2008 one failed 49.1%. What fails changes as much as how often, and these are the two years themselves rather than an average across them.
2019 Hyundai i30 13.5% failed, from 4,148 tests
- Tyre worn through to the cords 14.1%
- Cut tyre 11.6%
- Tyre worn below the legal limit 10.5%
- Wiper blades that do not clear the screen 10.3%
- Worn brake pads 6.6%
- Bulge in a tyre 5.2%
2008 Hyundai i30 49.1% failed, from 2,111 tests
- Sidelight out 17.2%
- Worn steering or suspension joint 15.6%
- Headlamp out 14.6%
- Weak handbrake 12.5%
- Brake light out 11.8%
- Weak or uneven footbrake 8.6%
Shares are of each year's failed tests. Every MOT a particular car has had, with the defects and advisories written at each test, is on GOV.UK's MOT history service from the registration, free.
Hyundai i30 problems: common questions
What is the most common problem with a Hyundai i30?
Of the faults that fail an MOT, “Stop lamp: not working” is the most common: it appears on 15.2% of failed Hyundai i30 tests. Across categories, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment is the area that most often fails one, on 45.1% of failed tests.
How often does a Hyundai i30 fail its MOT?
35.4% of Hyundai i30 tests in 2025 were not passed first time, from 102,060 tests of cars aged three and over. Allowing for the age and mileage of the cars tested, that gives it a UK Motoring Reliability Score of 41 out of 100, where 50 is as expected.
Does anything fail more often on a Hyundai i30 than on other cars?
Yes. “Parking brake performance: inoperative on one side” appears on 7.0% of its failures against 1.7% for cars of the same age, and “Parking brake efficiency below requirements” appears on 13.3% of its failures against 3.9% for cars of the same age. Where an item is missing from the national figures for a year, we use the smallest share those figures show, so the comparison never overstates the difference.
Are these the same as breakdowns or known faults?
No. These are the items a tester recorded at the MOT, which covers condition and safety: lamps, brakes, tyres, suspension, corrosion and emissions. A gearbox that is unpleasant, an infotainment screen that has died, or a car that will not start on a cold morning are not part of the test, so they are not in these figures.
Where do the figures come from?
Every normal MOT test of a Hyundai i30 aged three and over in Great Britain in 2025, from DVSA's anonymised MOT results. Retests are excluded, and the same fault on more than one wheel counts once.
Data stories to read next
Data sources and methodology
| Figures | Source | Period | Records | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| MOT defects and advisories | Anonymised MOT tests and results Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency Derived statistics UK Motoring | 2025 | 102,060 MOT tests | 19 September 2026 |
- Shares for defects are of failed tests; shares for advisories are of all tests. A test can carry several defects, so shares add to more than 100%.
- The expected share is what an average car of the same registration years records, weighted by where this model’s failures fall. Where an item is outside the national figures for a year, the smallest share those figures show is used in its place, which is an upper bound, so the comparison never overstates a model’s problems. No expectation is published where less than 80% of the model’s failures can be compared.
- Great Britain only: DVSA does not run MOT testing in Northern Ireland. Cars under three years old are not tested.
- The descriptions of what each part does are general and the same on every model. Every figure comes from the MOT data.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.