Kia Picanto Zest MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Kia Picanto Zest MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Kia Picanto Zest passed on its first attempt in 93.5%, and its overall record sits +12.8 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Kia Picanto Zest in the 2023–2025 data: 1,755 tests across 2 model years (2020–2021). 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 Picanto Zest MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Kia Picanto Zest, 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 Picanto Zest's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Kia Picanto Zest DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Kia Picanto Zest, each with how many of the model's 1,755 tests it was noted on.

• "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively" (Rectified) — noted on about 66 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 3.8% of the model's MOT record.
• "Wipers blade defective" (Minor) — noted on about 32 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 1.8% of the model's MOT record.
• "Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn" (Major) — noted on about 12 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 0.7% 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 10 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 0.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Track rod end ball joint has excessive play" (Major) — noted on about 9 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 0.5% of the model's MOT record.
• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 7 Kia Picanto Zest tests, 0.4% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Kia Picanto Zest Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Kia Picanto Zest model year on record is 2021 (95.3% across 86 tests), and the weakest is 2020 (93.7%). The gap between them is 1.6 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

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

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for Kia Picanto Zest Owners

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

• 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 suspension joints — “pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn”

  With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.

• 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.

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

Frequently Asked Questions: Kia Picanto Zest MOT & Reliability