17,946 tests in 2025
Hyundai Kona Electric reliability and MOT pass rate
90.7% passed first time. The 9.3% fail rate is 13.3 points better than the all-car average, on a median example 4 years old with 34,226 miles.
Electric versions only, by DVSA’s fuel record for each test. Petrol, diesel and hybrid versions are on the Hyundai Kona page.
Pass rate
90.7%
22.6% of all cars failed; 9.3% of these did.
Fixed on the day
4.3%
Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.
Median at test
34,226 mi
4 years old.
Fail rate by age
| Age at test | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 16,270 | 9.3% |
| 6-9 years | 967 | 9.8% |
| 10-13 years | 0 | — |
| 14+ years | 0 | — |
What the Kona Electric fails on
Share of failed tests with at least one fail item in each DVSA inspection section. A test can fail in several sections at once.
- Tyres936 dangerous66.1%
- Visibility21.5%
- Brakes33 dangerous10.2%
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment9.7%
- Body, chassis, structure1 dangerous2.3%
- Suspension3 dangerous2.3%
- Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems1.8%
- Identification of the vehicle1.2%
Is the Kona Electric getting worse?
The fail rate rose 3.5 points to 9.9% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
| Year | Tests | Median age | Fail rate | All cars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 14,981 | 3 | 6.4% | 22.5% | |
| 2023 | 20,482 | 4 | 7.6% | 22.8% | |
| 2024 | 23,239 | — | 8.8% | 23.2% | |
| 2025 | 30,883 | — | 9.9% | 22.6% |
Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Kona Electric at its test that year, and it is the number to watch: across the whole fleet each extra year of age adds roughly 1.9 points to the fail rate, so a model whose age and fail rate rise together is simply getting older.
The exact defects that fail it
Every failure item DVSA recorded against a Kona Electric in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.
- 1Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords447 tests
- 2Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively294 tests
- 3Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm292 tests
- 4Condition: has ply or cords exposed274 tests
- 5Condition: has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure54 tests
- 6Condition: has a lump, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure49 tests
- 7Service brake performance: efficiency below requirements43 tests
- 8Headlamp aim: too high41 tests
What wears out first
Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Kona Electric collects 1.94 of them per test, and these are the ones that come up most. Treat it as the running-repairs list for the next year or two.
- 1Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm2,794 tests
- 2Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened1,069 tests
- 3Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure943 tests
- 4Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords483 tests
- 5Tread depth: tread pattern not visible over the whole tread area when minimum depth required is 1.0mm429 tests
- 6Non-component advisories: Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt405 tests
- 7Non-component advisories: Nail in tyre378 tests
- 8Condition: has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure165 tests
Questions
What is the Hyundai Kona Electric MOT pass rate?
90.7% of the 17,946 Hyundai Kona Electric first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 9.3% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 4.3% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.
What does a Hyundai Kona Electric usually fail on?
The single most common failure is "Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords", recorded on 447 failed tests, followed by "Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively" and "Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm". By section, tyres appears in 66.1% of failures, visibility appears in 21.5% of failures, brakes appears in 10.2% of failures.
Does age change the odds?
Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 9.3%; at 6-9 years it was 9.8%. The median Hyundai Kona Electric tested in 2025 was 4 years old with 34,226 miles.
Is the Hyundai Kona Electric getting less reliable?
The fail rate rose 3.5 points to 9.9% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
First-attempt class 4 tests, 2025, from DVSA’s anonymised MOT data (OGL v3, retrieved 2026-09-12). DVSA records newer cars trim by trim; this page adds every Kona Electric trim together. Year-on-year figures come from the same DVSA extracts for 2026 and earlier years. Full method on the pass rates hub.
Other Hyundai models
Checking a particular Kona Electric?
The odds above are the model. The car in front of you has its own record: every test, every advisory, the mileage at each one.
Due a test? Find an approved MOT station near you.