Kia Niro MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Kia Niro MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Kia Niro passed on its first attempt in 91.4%, and its overall record sits +11.0 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Kia Niro in the 2023–2025 data: 240,757 tests across 10 model years (2016–2025). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.

Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.

Most Common Kia Niro MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Kia Niro, the Visibility section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.

Shares are over the Kia Niro's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Kia Niro DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Kia Niro, each with how many of the model's 240,757 tests it was noted on.

• "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively" (Major) — noted on about 5,433 Kia Niro tests, 2.3% of the model's MOT record.
• "Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords" (Major) — noted on about 3,749 Kia Niro tests, 1.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Wipers blade defective" (Minor) — noted on about 3,318 Kia Niro tests, 1.4% of the model's MOT record.
• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 3,141 Kia Niro tests, 1.3% of the model's MOT record.
• "Has ply or cords exposed" (Major) — noted on about 2,906 Kia Niro tests, 1.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm" (Major) — noted on about 2,435 Kia Niro tests, 1.0% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Kia Niro Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Kia Niro model year on record is 2025 (100.0% across 80 tests), and the weakest is 2016 (88.5%). The gap between them is 11.5 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Kia Niro reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.6 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.

Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for Kia Niro Owners

These checks follow this Kia Niro's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a Kia Niro.

• the wipers and washers — “wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively”

  Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.

• the windscreen — “windscreen damaged”

  Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.

• the tyre tread — “tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm”

  Check all four tyres cold, including the inner shoulder where wear hides — 1.6mm across the central three-quarters is the legal limit, and most testers fail at 1.6mm without argument.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the Kia Niro. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Where the Kia Niro is most common

Across every Niro model year on record (2016–2025): 128,560 Kia Niro cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 240,731 tests. London (NW) has the most, with 5,028 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.

The twenty areas with the most Kia Niro cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →

Frequently Asked Questions: Kia Niro MOT & Reliability