33,876 tests in 2025
Kia Sorento reliability and MOT pass rate
75.7% passed first time. The 24.3% fail rate is 1.7 points worse than the all-car average, on a median example 10 years old with 78,135 miles.
Pass rate
75.7%
22.6% of all cars failed; 24.3% of these did.
Fixed on the day
4.2%
Passed after a defect was put right during the visit.
Median at test
78,135 mi
10 years old.
Fail rate by age
| Age at test | Tests | Fail rate |
|---|---|---|
| 3-5 years | 5,314 | 10.4% |
| 6-9 years | 10,792 | 17.6% |
| 10-13 years | 9,850 | 29.5% |
| 14+ years | 7,555 | 37.9% |
What the Sorento 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.
- Suspension253 dangerous41%
- Brakes1,631 dangerous33.6%
- Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment31 dangerous25.9%
- Tyres1,803 dangerous22.3%
- Steering85 dangerous17.2%
- Body, chassis, structure94 dangerous13.1%
- Visibility10%
- Noise, emissions and leaks11 dangerous7.3%
Is the Sorento getting worse?
The fail rate rose 0.6 points to 26.3% from 2022 to 2025, against a rising rate across all cars.
| Year | Tests | Median age | Fail rate | All cars | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 38,143 | 9 | 25.7% | 22.5% | |
| 2023 | 35,833 | 9 | 26.6% | 22.8% | |
| 2024 | 29,767 | — | 27% | 23.2% | |
| 2025 | 29,798 | — | 26.3% | 22.6% |
Fail rate is first attempts at class 4 tests. Median age is the age of a typical Sorento 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 Sorento in 2025, counted by how many tests each one appeared on.
- 1Track rod end: ball joint has excessive play1,050 tests
- 2Ball joint: ball joint excessively worn930 tests
- 3Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick915 tests
- 4Tread depth: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm756 tests
- 5Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn644 tests
- 6Linkage ball joints: ball joint excessively worn569 tests
- 7Position lamp: not working501 tests
- 8Condition: has ply or cords exposed474 tests
What wears out first
Advisories are the tester flagging wear that is still legal. A typical Sorento collects 2.9 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 1.6mm6,305 tests
- 2Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick3,959 tests
- 3Pins and bushes: pin or bush excessively worn2,507 tests
- 4Brake discs: in such a condition that it is seriously weakened2,429 tests
- 5Rigid brake pipes: excessively corroded2,324 tests
- 6Engine oil leaks: leaking excessively from engine1,822 tests
- 7Condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure1,773 tests
- 8Coil spring: corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened1,172 tests
Questions
What is the Kia Sorento MOT pass rate?
75.7% of the 33,876 Kia Sorento first-attempt MOTs in 2025 passed. The fail rate of 24.3% compares with 22.6% across all cars. A further 4.2% passed after a defect was fixed during the test visit.
What does a Kia Sorento usually fail on?
The single most common failure is "Track rod end: ball joint has excessive play", recorded on 1,050 failed tests, followed by "Ball joint: ball joint excessively worn" and "Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick". By section, suspension appears in 41% of failures, brakes appears in 33.6% of failures, lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment appears in 25.9% of failures.
Does age change the odds?
Sharply. At 3 to 5 years old the fail rate was 10.4%; at 14+ years it was 37.9%. The median Kia Sorento tested in 2025 was 10 years old with 78,135 miles.
Is the Kia Sorento getting less reliable?
The fail rate rose 0.6 points to 26.3% 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 Sorento trim together. Year-on-year figures come from the same DVSA extracts for 2026 and earlier years. Full method on the pass rates hub.
DVSA has published 17 safety recalls naming the Kia Sorento: Kia Sorento recalls.
Other Kia models
Checking a particular Sorento?
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.