Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Ford Kuga 2011: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 59 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2011 Ford Kuga were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2011 Ford Kuga follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 8,142 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
59 in every 100
Did not pass first time
41 in every 1003,366 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
14 yearsabout 113,534 miles
First tests counted
8,142

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)19 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Coil spring (rear)15 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Tyre condition (rear)8 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2011 Ford Kuga vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Steering

One fault: steering rack (front), 6.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 3,325 of 3,366 failed first attempts (98.8%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Steering rack (front)

Failed on 110 first tests6.6 times as often as similar carsStrong evidence

What it means

Steering gear casing retaining devices dangerously loose, or visible relative movement to the chassis or bodywork, is graded Dangerous. A casing not properly attached, or fractured, is Major, but a fracture that affects the stability or attachment of the casing is Dangerous. A gaiter damaged but still keeping dirt out is Minor, and Major once missing or no longer doing so.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear): 5.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear)

Failed on 95 first tests5.7 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 126 first tests, 4.8 times as often as on similar cars.

Coil spring (rear)

Failed on 504 first tests3.5 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Noise, emissions and leaks

Two faults. The strongest is the diesel emissions test (compression-ignition rules for vehicles from 01/07/2008): 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Diesel emissions test (compression-ignition rules for vehicles from 01/07/2008)

Failed on 133 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Diesel engine warning light

Failed on 187 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

An engine malfunction indicator lamp that is illuminated to show a malfunction is graded Major on a diesel, but only on the diesels the test covers, which depends on the vehicle type and when it was first used. DVSA lists it under exhaust emissions for compression ignition engines, and the detail line for the row also names an inoperative lamp.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Transmission oil leaks (rear)

Noted on 21 first tests5.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Anti-roll bar (rear)

Noted on 64 first tests5.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Other power steering components

Noted on 26 first tests5.1 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Steering ball joint (front)

Noted on 20 first tests5.1 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

Anti-roll bar linkage pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 25 first tests5.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Anti-roll bar pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 36 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Suspension arm pins and bushes (rear)

Noted on 223 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
59in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
8in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
33in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 58.7% of 8,142 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 67.3%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 33 not fixed make the 41 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

406080100201120152020Older carsNewer cars
40608010020112020Newer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 61 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200860 in every 1002,035
200959 in every 1006,126
201058 in every 1008,215
2011 This car59 in every 1008,142
201262 in every 1008,637
201370 in every 10011,828
201471 in every 10021,357
201574 in every 10029,321
201678 in every 10032,042
201783 in every 10035,441
201884 in every 10036,882
201984 in every 10039,091
202087 in every 10014,872
202189 in every 10019,494
202292 in every 10024,825

If you are buying one

What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.

Mileage matters most on a 2011 Kuga.

Of 2011 Kuga vehicles with under 88,000 miles, 66 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 141,000 miles or more, 55 in every 100 did.

Under 88,0001,585 tests
66
88,000–106,0001,668 tests
61
106,000–121,000 Typical car1,578 tests
56
121,000–141,0001,646 tests
56
141,000 and over1,593 tests
55

What to check at your mileage

How often each fault turned up on a failed first test, by the car's mileage. Read it as: what is likely to need looking at on a car like the one in front of you.

Under 88,000106,000–121,000141,000 and over
Individual sidelight or tail light (front)3.98.810.2
Coil spring (rear)6.47.46.1
Tyre condition (rear)1.83.14.0
Windscreen washers2.32.52.9
Brake light1.72.53.3

Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.

When a car fails

30in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

43in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

10in every 100

of all first tests had a defect the tester marked dangerous (unsafe to drive away).

Every figure here is a first-attempt MOT rate from DVSA open data for this model line, for cars of this model year tested in 2025. Each mileage band holds a fifth of the tests. MOTs do not test engine or gearbox internals, so this is a pre-purchase checklist, not a full reliability score.

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

The 2011 Ford Kuga follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 19 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 58.7% of 8,142 first MOTs on the 2011 Ford Kuga passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 67.3%. Among 3,366 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Steering rack (front) appears more often than on similar cars (3.3% of those tests; 110 observed failures; about 6.6× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2011 Ford Kuga at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (18.9%), Coil spring (rear) (15.2%) and Tyre condition (rear) (7.8%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Steering rack (front) (3.3% of those tests; 110 observed failures; about 6.6× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Steering rack (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (3.3% of those tests; 110 observed failures; about 6.6× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2011 Ford Kuga include Steering rack (front), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (rear), Coil spring (rear). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2011 Ford Kuga (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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