In 2025, 30,680 Kia Sorento cars had a regular MOT in Great Britain. 68% passed first time, compared with 70% for all cars of the same ages, which makes the Sorento about average. Adjusted for age, it ranks 156 of the 217 most-tested car models.
That comparison matters: older cars fail more often, so a raw pass rate flatters models that are mostly young. We compare each model against every car on the road at the same age.
Pass rate by age
At 5 years old, 80% of Sorentos passed first time (all cars that age: 86%). By 20 years, that figure is 53% (all cars: 58%). It trails the average car at most ages, most noticeably at 13 years (7 points behind).
Kia Sorento All cars of that age
| Age | Tests | Sorento passed first time | All cars | Typical mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 years | 438 | 80% | 86% | 45,974 |
| 6 years | 2,745 | 82% | 84% | 51,779 |
| 7 years | 2,712 | 82% | 81% | 62,268 |
| 8 years | 3,094 | 79% | 78% | 70,587 |
| 9 years | 3,125 | 75% | 75% | 80,281 |
| 10 years | 3,905 | 72% | 72% | 88,041 |
| 11 years | 2,821 | 67% | 69% | 93,435 |
| 12 years | 2,035 | 63% | 66% | 103,075 |
| 13 years | 1,759 | 57% | 63% | 109,526 |
| 14 years | 1,462 | 56% | 61% | 114,062 |
| 15 years | 1,636 | 59% | 59% | 118,165 |
| 16 years | 1,046 | 55% | 58% | 106,890 |
| 17 years | 688 | 54% | 57% | 108,543 |
| 18 years | 875 | 52% | 57% | 113,966 |
| 19 years | 1,219 | 53% | 57% | 114,457 |
| 20 years | 644 | 53% | 58% | 113,570 |
What fails most on a Kia Sorento
The area that lets the Sorento down most, relative to other cars, is steering: 5.9% of tests failed on it, 2.7 times the rate for the average car. It does comparatively well on emissions and leaks and visibility.
Share of Sorento tests failing on this area Average car
The six most common failure items
| Failure item | Area | Share of tests |
|---|---|---|
| A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn | Suspension | 9.5% |
| A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play | Steering | 4.2% |
| A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | Brakes | 4.0% |
| The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements | Lights and electrics | 3.9% |
| Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements | Tyres | 3.5% |
| A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning | Lights and electrics | 2.9% |
What to check when buying a used Sorento
Based on where the Sorento fails more often than other cars, these are the checks worth making before you buy:
- Steering: Feel for play or knocking through the wheel, and check power-steering fluid isn’t leaking. More
- Brakes: Look through the wheels for lipped or scored discs, check the handbrake holds on a slope, and feel for pulling or vibration under firm braking. Repair guide
- Body and structure: Get underneath with a torch: sills, jacking points, subframe mounts and floor pans. Structural rust is the failure that can make a car uneconomic to fix. Repair guide
Then check the individual car: its own MOT history will show whether it follows the pattern. A car with repeated advisories in the same weak area is more likely to fail its next test.
Check a specific Sorento
Enter the registration to see its full MOT history, mileage record and reliability score, compared with these figures.
Check a SorentoFrequently asked questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a Kia Sorento?
In 2025, 68% of Kia Sorento cars passed their MOT first time, across 30,680 tests. Cars of the same ages averaged 70%.
What do Kia Sorento cars most often fail their MOT on?
The most common failure items were: a suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn (9.5% of tests); a steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play (4.2% of tests); a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm (4.0% of tests).
Other Kia models
Kia Sportage (75%), Kia Picanto (71%), Kia Ceed (66%), Kia Rio (70%), Kia Niro (87%), Kia Venga (71%). All Kia models
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT tests and results, 2025 (class 4 normal tests; first-time pass means passed with no faults fixed at the test). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.