Pass rate
89.4%
Above average — 1.3 pts behind the 90.7% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 470 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £27–£69
2020 Kia Optima MOT pass rate
- 2020
- typical 47,882 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Tyres
38.6% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Which year to buy
- Best 2020 89.4% pass · this year
- Avoid 2011 68.3% pass
Across the 10 years on record, a spread of 21.1 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 88.2%
- Typical mileage
- 48k mi
The 2020 Kia Optima MOT pass rate is 89.4% of its MOT tests — 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 38.6% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 2.0× the national share
Tyres make up 38.6% of everything recorded on the 2020 Kia Optima, against 19.8% nationally — 18.8 points above. Check all four tyres yourself, including the inner shoulders, and look at the date stamp — a tyre can pass on tread and still be six years old.
- Failures here tend to be cheap ones. 55% of the repairs this model fails on cost under £30 in parts. The pass rate matters less than what a bad afternoon at the test centre actually costs you.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a Kia Optima? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2020 Kia Optima compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 90.7%, so this figure is 1.3 points behind what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 88.2%. The median 2020 Kia Optima in this dataset had covered 47,882 mi.
67% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 89.3% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 88.5% of the time, April–September 91.0%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively", noted on 2.13% of tests.
- 470 recorded tests behind this page.
- 89.4% overall pass rate, 88.2% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the Kia Optima, the average is 84.7% — best year 2020 (89.4%), worst 2011 (68.3%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 470
- Typical mileage (median)
- 47,882 mi
- Make and model
- Kia Optima
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Wiper Blade
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the Optima MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 76% so small gaps stay visible.
Fuel type and reliability
Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (67% of tests).
Where the Kia Optima is most common
Across all Optima model years on record (2011–2020): 16,883 Kia Optima cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 38,912 tests. Glasgow (G) has the most, with 556 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.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glasgow (G) | 556 | 83.5% |
| 2 | Birmingham (B) | 516 | 87.0% |
| 3 | Peterborough (PE) | 506 | 86.2% |
| 4 | Sheffield (S) | 444 | 86.9% |
| 5 | Nottingham (NG) | 385 | 83.8% |
| 6 | Edinburgh (EH) | 332 | 83.1% |
| 7 | Doncaster (DN) | 322 | 84.7% |
| 8 | Manchester (M) | 311 | 84.8% |
| 9 | Leicester (LE) | 298 | 87.5% |
| 10 | Bolton (BL) | 276 | 84.5% |
| 11 | Newcastle upon Tyne (NE) | 273 | 78.8% |
| 12 | Derby (DE) | 267 | 87.7% |
| 13 | Milton Keynes (MK) | 246 | 84.9% |
| 14 | Coventry (CV) | 246 | 85.2% |
| 15 | Stoke On Trent (ST) | 230 | 84.3% |
| 16 | Oldham (OL) | 225 | 84.9% |
| 17 | Hamilton (ML) | 216 | 83.2% |
| 18 | Cardiff (CF) | 213 | 83.1% |
| 19 | Northampton (NN) | 211 | 85.9% |
| 20 | Leeds (LS) | 208 | 82.7% |
The twenty areas with the most Kia Optima 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 →
Regional pass rates for the Optima
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| East of England | 78 | 93.6% |
| South East | 75 | 92.0% |
| Scotland | 59 | 89.8% |
| North West | 52 | 90.4% |
| Yorkshire | 45 | 86.7% |
| South West | 42 | 76.2% |
| North East | 35 | 88.6% |
| West Midlands | 28 | 92.9% |
| East Midlands | 27 | 92.6% |
| Wales | 20 | 80.0% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2020 Optima
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2020 Optima
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the wipers and washers 2.1% of tests
“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.
-
Check the brakes 1.5% of tests
“brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick”
Look through the spokes of each wheel at the pad — less than 3mm of friction material, or a lip on the disc edge, is the usual failure. Check the handbrake holds on a slope with a few clicks, not at the top of its travel.
-
Check the lights 1.5% of tests
“malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2020 Optima through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £27–£69 — and 55% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £27–£69
- Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: joints constant velocity boot severely…
- £80–£250
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 80%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 55%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 470 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the Optima, side by side
10 model years on record, from 2011 to 2020. Across them the pass rate runs from 68.3% to 89.4% — a spread of 21.1 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2011 68.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2012 72.5% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2013 77.3% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2014 78.6% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2015 81.9% track rod end ball joint has…
- 2016 86.4% brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick
- 2017 85.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2018 87.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2019 86.6% brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick
- 2020 89.4%wipers does not clear the…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2020 Kia Optima with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2020 cars with a similar record
- Volkswagen Amarok 89.4%
- Renault Zoe I Iconc 89.4%
- SEAT Alhambra 89.4%
- Renault Kadjar 89.5%
- Dacia Sandero 89.5%
- Dacia Duster 89.5%
Closest pass rates among 2020 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2020 Kia Optima 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 386 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 150 | 38.60% | 19.76% | +18.84 |
| Brakes | 121 | 31.10% | 20.89% | +10.21 |
| Visibility | 36 | 9.30% | 4.97% | +4.33 |
| Non-component advisories | 20 | 5.10% | 4.18% | +0.92 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 15 | 3.90% | 12.21% | −8.31 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 14 | 3.60% | 5.52% | −1.92 |
| Steering | 12 | 3.10% | 2.57% | +0.53 |
| Suspension | 7 | 1.80% | 20.98% | −19.18 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 6 | 1.50% | 1.76% | −0.26 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 5 | 1.30% | 5.57% | −4.27 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Major | 2.1% | £8–22 |
| Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres | Major | 1.7% | £45–95 |
| Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility | Rectified | 1.7% | £8–22 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Major | 1.5% | £18–45 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.5% | £3–12 |
| Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility | Minor | 1.5% | £80–200 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 1.5% | £8–22 |
| Has ply or cords exposed Tyres | Major | 0.85% | £45–95 |
| Joints constant velocity boot severely deteriorated Body, chassis, structure | Minor | 0.85% | £80–250 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 0.85% | £5–20 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 18.9% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 12.8% | £18–45 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 7.5% | £45–110 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 6.2% | £45–95 |
| Non-component advisories Nail in tyre Non-component advisories | Advisory | 2.5% | £45–95 |
| Tread depth tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm Tyres | Advisory | 2.3% | £45–95 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 125 | 88.0% | 19,428 mi |
| 30-60k | 171 | 93.6% | 43,976 mi |
| 60-90k | 85 | 84.7% | 72,566 mi |
| 90-120k | 50 | 86.0% | 102,789 mi |
| 120k+ | 39 | 89.7% | 153,046 mi |
Source: 470 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2020 Optima MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2020 Kia Optima?
89.4% of the 470 2020 Kia Optima tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 90.7% for cars first used in 2020. First-attempt pass rate: 88.2%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2020 Kia Optima?
The three most recorded items are wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively (2.13%), has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.70%), wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively (1.70%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2020 Kia Optima MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 88.0% of the time, falling to 89.7% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2020 Kia Optima in this dataset had covered 47,882 mi.
Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2020 Kia Optima?
Diesel: 89.3% pass rate across 317 tests. Hybrid: 92.5% pass rate across 134 tests. Petrol: 68.4% pass rate across 19 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.
Does the season affect the 2020 Kia Optima MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 88.5% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 91.0%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.