Kia Sorento MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Kia Sorento MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Kia Sorento passed on its first attempt in 74.6%, and its overall record sits −1.8 percentage points below the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Kia Sorento in the 2023–2025 data: 131,854 tests across 22 model years (2003–2024). 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 Sorento MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the Kia Sorento, the Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment 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 Sorento's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded Kia Sorento DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Kia Sorento, each with how many of the model's 131,854 tests it was noted on.

• "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (Minor) — noted on about 4,048 Kia Sorento tests, 3.1% of the model's MOT record.
• "Track rod end ball joint has excessive play" (Major) — noted on about 3,271 Kia Sorento tests, 2.5% of the model's MOT record.
• "Ball joint excessively worn" (Rectified) — noted on about 3,051 Kia Sorento tests, 2.3% of the model's MOT record.
• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 2,934 Kia Sorento tests, 2.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Position lamp not working" (Major) — noted on about 1,923 Kia Sorento tests, 1.5% of the model's MOT record.
• "Linkage ball joints ball joint excessively worn" (Major) — noted on about 1,460 Kia Sorento tests, 1.1% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Kia Sorento Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Kia Sorento model year on record is 2024 (99.1% across 116 tests), and the weakest is 2004 (65.6%). The gap between them is 33.5 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Kia Sorento reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 2.3 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 Sorento Owners

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

• the lights — “registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”

  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.

• the suspension joints — “track rod end ball joint has excessive play”

  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 Sorento. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Where the Kia Sorento is most common

Across every Sorento model year on record (2003–2024): 55,321 Kia Sorento cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 131,852 tests. Sheffield (S) has the most, with 1,845 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 Sorento 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 Sorento MOT & Reliability