Model Reports 3 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Kia Soul 2020: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 85 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2020 Kia Soul were passes.

Summary

With 855 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2020 Kia Soul differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist.

At a glance

How 855 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
85 in every 100
Did not pass first time
15 in every 100127 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
5 yearsabout 35,970 miles
First tests counted
855

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 2020 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.

Visibility

One fault: windscreen wipers (front), 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 127 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.

Windscreen wipers (front)

Failed on 24 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Only a clearly damaged or worn windscreen wiper needs to be rejected. A wiper that is missing or not working is graded Major, and so is a blade that is missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen. A defective blade is graded Minor.

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

Tyres

One wear pattern: tyre condition (rear), 2.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Tyre condition (rear)

Failed on 37 first tests2.3 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Exposed or damaged ply or cords are graded Dangerous. A cut in excess of the requirements and deep enough to reach the ply or cords is Major, and testers may open the cut with a blunt instrument to check its depth. A tyre contacting the vehicle through flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; fouling fails only at the time of test.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. 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
85in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
3in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
12in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 85.1% of 855 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 87.7%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 3 fixed and the 12 not fixed make the 15 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Same model, other years

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

406080100201020152020Older carsNewer cars
40608010020102020Older 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, 88 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
201678 in every 1002,048
201785 in every 1001,612
201885 in every 1001,897
201985 in every 100323
2020 This car85 in every 100855
202189 in every 1001,092
202291 in every 100827

FAQs

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

With 855 first tests, there are too few to say whether the 2020 Kia Soul differs from the model years either side. Treat the faults below as a checklist. In 2025, 85.1% of 855 first MOTs on the 2020 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 87.7%. Among 127 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Windscreen wipers (front) appears more often than on similar cars (18.9% of those tests; 24 observed failures; about 2.3× 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.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Windscreen wipers (front) (18.9% of those tests; 24 observed failures; about 2.3× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Windscreen wipers (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (18.9% of those tests; 24 observed failures; about 2.3× 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 2020 Kia Soul include Windscreen wipers (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.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2020 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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