Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Kia Soul 2009: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 51 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2009 Kia Soul were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Track rod end (front).

Summary

A 2009 Kia Soul passed first time about 5 in every 100 less often than the 2010 model year next to it.

At a glance

How 1,815 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
51 in every 100
Did not pass first time
49 in every 100888 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
16 yearsabout 99,720 miles
First tests counted
1,815

What failed most often

  1. Track rod end (front)21 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)19 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Suspension arm ball joint (front)11 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 2009 Kia Soul vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Steering

One fault: track rod end (front), 4.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 888 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.

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.

Track rod end (front)

Failed on 184 first tests4.6 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play is Major, and one worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment is graded Dangerous. A dust cover that is damaged but still keeps dirt out is Minor, and one missing or no longer keeping dirt out is Major. Testers must tell wear from a joint's built-in clearance or spring loading.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 41 first tests, 3.1 times as often as on similar cars.

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

Brakes

One fault and one wear pattern. The strongest is the rigid brake pipes (rear): 2.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Rigid brake pipes (rear)

Failed on 47 first tests2.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Chafing, corrosion or damage to a rigid brake pipe justifies rejection once its wall thickness is reduced by a set amount, although DVSA accepts this is not easy to determine. If a tester is not sure, the benefit of the doubt applies. A leaking pipe or connection is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic system and Major on an air system.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 155 first tests, 3.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Brake discs (rear)

Failed on 22 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

A brake disc or drum must be significantly worn before it is rejected, and being worn below the manufacturer's recommended limits is not a reason in itself. Significantly and obviously worn is Major, as is contamination with oil or grease. A disc or drum that is fractured, insecure, seriously weakened or missing is graded Dangerous.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 156 first tests, 2.8 times as often as on similar cars.

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

Suspension

One fault: anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front), 2.1 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 64 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsPossible 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.

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.

Side repeater indicators

Noted on 30 first tests15 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Steering rack play

Noted on 25 first tests7.3 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
51in 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
41in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 51.1% of 1,815 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 58.8%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 41 not fixed make the 49 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsPassed first time, as tested
Diesel94051
Petrol87551

Figures are in every 100 first tests.

Same model, other years

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

406080100200920152020Newer cars
40608010020092020Newer 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, 53 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
2009 This car51 in every 1001,815
201056 in every 1002,605
201157 in every 1003,058
201258 in every 1001,492
201361 in every 1001,216
201472 in every 1002,521
201576 in every 1002,463
201678 in every 1002,048
201785 in every 1001,612
201885 in every 1001,897
201985 in every 100323
202085 in every 100855
202189 in every 1001,092
202291 in every 100827

FAQs

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

A 2009 Kia Soul passed first time about 5 in every 100 less often than the 2010 model year next to it. In 2025, 51.1% of 1,815 first MOTs on the 2009 Kia Soul passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 58.8%. Among 888 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Track rod end (front) appears more often than on similar cars (20.7% of those tests; 184 observed failures; about 4.6× 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 2009 Kia Soul at the first attempt were Track rod end (front) (20.7%), Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (19.3%) and Suspension arm ball joint (front) (10.9%), 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: Track rod end (front) (20.7% of those tests; 184 observed failures; about 4.6× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Track rod end (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (20.7% of those tests; 184 observed failures; about 4.6× 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 2009 Kia Soul include Track rod end (front), Rigid brake pipes (rear), Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front). 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 2009 Kia Soul (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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