Kia Sportage MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

Kia Sportage MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The Kia Sportage passed on its first attempt in 80.3%, and its overall record sits +2.3 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the Kia Sportage in the 2023–2025 data: 925,209 tests across 21 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 Sportage MOT Problems by Failure Category

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

Top Recorded Kia Sportage DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the Kia Sportage, each with how many of the model's 925,209 tests it was noted on.

• "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources" (Minor) — noted on about 18,944 Kia Sportage tests, 2.0% of the model's MOT record.
• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 17,452 Kia Sportage tests, 1.9% of the model's MOT record.
• "Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm" (Major) — noted on about 15,973 Kia Sportage tests, 1.7% of the model's MOT record.
• "Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick" (Major) — noted on about 14,444 Kia Sportage tests, 1.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively" (Major) — noted on about 13,822 Kia Sportage tests, 1.5% of the model's MOT record.
• "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements" (Major) — noted on about 11,595 Kia Sportage tests, 1.3% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst Kia Sportage Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest Kia Sportage model year on record is 2024 (95.9% across 73 tests), and the weakest is 2007 (67.0%). The gap between them is 28.9 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Kia Sportage reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.5 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 Sportage Owners

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

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

Frequently Asked Questions: Kia Sportage MOT & Reliability