2025 MOT results
Kia Sportage common problems
The most common reason a Kia Sportage fails its MOT is worn brake pads, on 13.4% of its 69,027 failed tests in 2025. Against other cars of the same age, 5 faults stand out, the widest gaps being: a braking fault at 4.0% of failures against 1.1% expected; a weak handbrake at 7.2% of failures against 2.6% expected; a worn steering or suspension joint at 6.4% of failures against 2.9% expected.
- Tests in 2025 300,420 Cars aged three and over
- Failed first time 23.0% 69,027 tests
- Found a dangerous defect 7.7% Unsafe to drive away
- Ended with an advisory 48.9% A problem to watch, not a failure
What fails a Kia Sportage MOT
Each bar is the share of failed Kia Sportage 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 |
|---|---|
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | 13.4% |
| Tyres: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | 12.7% |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | 9.5% |
| Parking brake efficiency below requirements Brakes | 7.2% |
| Track rod end: ball joint has excessive play Steering | 6.4% |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | 6.1% |
| Tyres: cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | 5.4% |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Visibility | 4.9% |
| Headlamp aim: too high Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 4.3% |
| Suspension arms: ball joint excessively worn Suspension | 4.2% |
| Parking brake performance: inoperative on one side Brakes | 4.0% |
| Headlamp: not working on dipped beam Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 3.7% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
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Worn brake pads
13.4% of failures 7.7% expected 1.7 times as often
Friction material worn under 1.5mm, thinner than the point most manufacturers call the limit.
Look through the wheel spokes at the pad against the disc; wear indicators squeal before they get this far.
-
Tyre worn below the legal limit
12.7% of failures 9.2% expected somewhat more often
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.
-
Wiper blades that do not clear the screen
9.5% of failures 7.7% expected somewhat more often
Wiper blades that leave the windscreen smeared or streaked across the area the driver looks through.
Look for split or hardened rubber, and lift each blade to see whether it still sits flat.
-
Weak handbrake
7.2% of failures 2.6% expected 2.8 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
6.4% of failures 2.9% expected 2.2 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.
-
Worn suspension bushes
6.1% of failures 3.9% expected 1.6 times as often
Worn rubber bushes in a suspension arm, letting the arm move under load.
Perished or cracked rubber at the inner ends of the lower arms, visible with the wheel turned.
Which parts of the car fail
Brakes is the area that most often fails a Kia Sportage, on 34.2% of failed tests. That is also where it differs most from cars of the same registration years, which record 19.4%.
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 |
|---|---|
| Brakes | 34.2% |
| Tyres | 25.3% |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 22.5% |
| Suspension | 21.8% |
| Visibility | 18.1% |
| Steering | 9.3% |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 8.2% |
| Body, chassis, structure | 3.6% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
What testers warn about
48.9% of Kia Sportage tests ended with at least one advisory: a fault the tester found that did not fail the test. On Kia Sportages, 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 | 19.0% |
| Brake pads: wearing thin Brakes | 12.8% |
| Tyres: slightly damaged or cracking or perishing Tyres | 8.1% |
| Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened Brakes | 8.1% |
| Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement Suspension | 5.8% |
| Child seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt Non-component advisories | 3.9% |
| Brake discs: worn, but not excessively Brakes | 3.4% |
| Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | 2.5% |
| Engine oil leak, but not excessive Noise, emissions and leaks | 2.2% |
| Track rod end: ball joint has slight play Steering | 2.0% |
| Service brake performance: binding but not excessively Brakes | 1.7% |
| Registration plates: deteriorated but not likely to be misread Identification of the vehicle | 1.6% |
Source:DVSA,UK Motoring analysis 2025 Updated
What changes as a Kia Sportage gets older
A 2022 Kia Sportage failed 11.3% of its MOT tests in 2025; a 2010 one failed 43.3%. What fails changes as much as how often, and these are the two years themselves rather than an average across them.
2022 Kia Sportage 11.3% failed, from 29,121 tests
- Wiper blades that do not clear the screen 34.4%
- Cut tyre 16.3%
- Headlamp aim set too high 10.5%
- Tyre worn below the legal limit 9.4%
- Engine management light on 4.5%
- Weak handbrake 4.4%
2010 Kia Sportage 43.3% failed, from 3,624 tests
- Sidelight out 12.5%
- Tyre worn below the legal limit 11.4%
- Broken coil spring 11.3%
- Worn suspension bushes 11.3%
- Worn steering or suspension joint 11.1%
- Brake light out 9.6%
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.
Kia Sportage problems: common questions
What is the most common problem with a Kia Sportage?
Of the faults that fail an MOT, “Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick” is the most common: it appears on 13.4% of failed Kia Sportage tests. Across categories, brakes is the area that most often fails one, on 34.2% of failed tests.
How often does a Kia Sportage fail its MOT?
23.0% of Kia Sportage tests in 2025 were not passed first time, from 300,420 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 47 out of 100, where 50 is as expected.
Does anything fail more often on a Kia Sportage than on other cars?
Yes. “Parking brake performance: inoperative on one side” appears on 4.0% of its failures against 1.1% for cars of the same age, and “Parking brake efficiency below requirements” appears on 7.2% of its failures against 2.6% 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 Kia Sportage 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 | 300,420 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.