Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Kia Soul 2016: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 78 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2016 Kia Soul were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test).

Summary

The 2016 Kia Soul follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 2,048 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
78 in every 100
Did not pass first time
22 in every 100448 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
9 yearsabout 55,512 miles
First tests counted
2,048

What failed most often

  1. Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)17 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 2016 Kia Soul 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.

Brakes

Four faults. The strongest is the handbrake performance (roller test, rear): 8.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 447 of 448 failed first attempts (99.8%) 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.

Handbrake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 23 first tests8.9 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A parking brake that is inoperative on one side is Major. When tested on the road, the failure is the vehicle deviating excessively from a straight line. Vehicles whose parking brake was already tested as the secondary brake are not tested again for this.

Anti-lock braking system (ABS)

Failed on 29 first tests6.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

ABS is failed as removed only where it has obviously been removed, because not every vehicle in the age range where removal is not permitted has ABS. A warning lamp that does not light or shows an ABS fault is Major, as is a missing or excessively damaged wheel speed sensor. Every failure row for this component is Major.

Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)

Failed on 77 first tests6.5 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A parking brake with efficiency below the minimum requirement is Major, and graded Dangerous where efficiency is less than half of the required value. On a roller brake tester, the requirement counts as met if more than half of the wheels of a brake system lock. The check applies only to vehicles whose parking brake was not already tested as the secondary brake.

Brake performance (roller test, rear)

Failed on 20 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A wheel with no recorded braking effort on the roller test is graded Dangerous. Inadequate effort, a brake grabbing severely, abnormal lag and excessive fluctuation in effort are each Major. So is significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied, which indicates a binding brake.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 23 first tests, 3.2 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.

MOT pass rates

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

Passed first time
78in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
4in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
18in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 78.1% of 2,048 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 81.8%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 4 fixed and the 18 not fixed make the 22 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as testedPassed first time, same mileage
Diesel1,36357,142 miles7979
Petrol55652,532 miles7675

Figures are in every 100 first tests. Cars with more miles usually fail more often, so the same-mileage figure gives every fuel the mileage mix of all the cars in this year.

Same model, other years

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

406080100201020162020Older carsNewer cars
406080100201020162020Older carsNewer 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, 82 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200951 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
2016 This car78 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.

The 2016 Kia Soul follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test), about 17 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 78.1% of 2,048 first MOTs on the 2016 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 81.8%. Among 448 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Handbrake performance (roller test, rear) appears more often than on similar cars (5.1% of those tests; 23 observed failures; about 8.9× 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 2016 Kia Soul at the first attempt were Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test) (17.2%), 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: Handbrake performance (roller test, rear) (5.1% of those tests; 23 observed failures; about 8.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Handbrake performance (roller test, rear) shows up more often than on similar cars (5.1% of those tests; 23 observed failures; about 8.9× 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 2016 Kia Soul include Handbrake performance (roller test, rear), Anti-lock braking system (ABS), Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test). These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2016 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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