At a glance
How 27,880 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 89 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 11 in every 1003,181 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 3 yearsabout 24,689 miles
- First tests counted
- 27,880
What failed most often
- Windscreen wipers (front)22 in every 100 failed tests
- Tyre condition (rear)13 in every 100 failed tests
- Headlight aim9 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.
These are patterns across 2022 Kia Sportage 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
Two faults. The strongest is the electronic parking brake: 44 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 3,181 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.
Electronic parking brake
What it means
An electronic parking brake is applied electronically but must still be maintained in operation by direct mechanical means. It may apply automatically in certain conditions, such as when the ignition is switched off or when the driver's door is opened. A control that is missing, defective or inoperative is Major, and so is a malfunction warning.
Handbrake efficiency below minimum (roller test)
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.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Noise, emissions and leaks
One fault: petrol engine warning light, 3.2 times as often as on similar cars.
Petrol engine warning light
What it means
The malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) on a petrol engine is a Major failure when it is illuminated indicating a malfunction. The detail line DVSA gives for the same row also names an inoperative lamp. The test covers only certain petrol vehicles, depending on their age, size and fuel type.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Visibility
One fault: windscreen wipers (front), 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.
Windscreen wipers (front)
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
- 89in 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
- 8in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 88.6% of 27,880 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 92.3%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 3 fixed and the 8 not fixed make the 11 in every 100 that did not pass first time.
By fuel type
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.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 91 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 49 in every 100 | 781 |
| 2006 | 50 in every 100 | 741 |
| 2007 | 49 in every 100 | 858 |
| 2008 | 54 in every 100 | 1,057 |
| 2009 | 54 in every 100 | 1,731 |
| 2010 | 56 in every 100 | 3,425 |
| 2011 | 58 in every 100 | 6,761 |
| 2012 | 59 in every 100 | 11,560 |
| 2013 | 61 in every 100 | 16,520 |
| 2014 | 68 in every 100 | 17,894 |
| 2015 | 71 in every 100 | 19,807 |
| 2016 | 75 in every 100 | 35,201 |
| 2017 | 79 in every 100 | 34,934 |
| 2018 | 82 in every 100 | 32,321 |
| 2019 | 83 in every 100 | 31,668 |
| 2020 | 83 in every 100 | 18,121 |
| 2021 | 85 in every 100 | 25,840 |
| 2022 This car | 89 in every 100 | 27,880 |
If you are buying one
What this year's MOT record means for the decision in front of you.
Mileage matters most on a 2022 Sportage.
Of 2022 Sportage vehicles with under 17,000 miles, 93 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 35,000 miles or more, 84 in every 100 did.
Which fuel?
| Typical mileage | Passed first time, as tested | Passed first time, same mileage | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hybrid | 24,646 miles | 90 | 90 |
| Petrol | 24,498 miles | 87 | 87 |
Figures are in every 100 first tests. At the same mileage there is no clear difference between the two.
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 17,000 | 22,000–28,000 | 35,000 and over | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Windscreen wipers (front) | 1.1 | 2.8 | 3.5 |
| Tyre condition (rear) | 0.7 | 1.4 | 2.3 |
| Headlight aim | 0.9 | 1.0 | 1.2 |
| Tyre tread depth (front) | 0.3 | 0.8 | 1.7 |
| Electronic parking brake | 0.5 | 0.7 | 0.7 |
Faults per 100 first tests, by the car's mileage at the test.
When a car fails
of failed cars had one item to fix.
of failed cars had three or more items to fix.
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.
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.
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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