Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Renault Kadjar 2017: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 72 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2017 Renault Kadjar were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Headlight (front).

Summary

The 2017 Renault Kadjar follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 13,907 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
72 in every 100
Did not pass first time
28 in every 1003,953 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
8 yearsabout 61,049 miles
First tests counted
13,907

What failed most often

  1. Headlight (front)11 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Tyre tread depth (front)10 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Brake pads (rear)10 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 2017 Renault Kadjar 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.

Lamps and electrical

One fault and one wear pattern. The strongest is the headlight aim not tested (front): 5.0 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 3,947 of 3,953 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.

Headlight aim not tested (front)

Failed on 85 first tests5.0 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

What it means

Headlamp aim recorded as not tested, or unable to be tested, is a Major failure. These results must only be used where it becomes apparent during the test that the item cannot be tested, and this could not have been identified before starting. The reason must be included in the additional information box.

Headlight (front)

Failed on 417 first tests4.0 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

On vehicles first used on or after a set date, a halogen headlamp unit converted to take HID or LED bulbs fails for light source and lamp not compatible, which is Major. A complete unit built with those light sources is not failed for that. The precise position of the lamps is not part of the inspection beyond a visual look to see that they sit at about the same height and distance from each side.

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

Suspension

Two faults. The strongest is the suspension arm ball joint dust cover (front): 3.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Suspension arm ball joint dust cover (front)

Failed on 248 first tests3.4 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Whether a suspension arm ball joint dust cover still keeps dirt out decides its grade. Severely deteriorated is Minor, while missing, or no longer preventing the ingress of dirt, is Major.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 141 first tests2.7 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.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 66 first tests, 2.2 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.

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.

Track rod end (front)

Noted on 131 first tests5.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Wheel condition (front)

Noted on 82 first tests2.5 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Brake pads (rear)

Noted on 502 first tests2.1 times as often as similar carsWear pattern

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
72in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
5in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
23in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 71.6% of 13,907 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 77.1%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 5 fixed and the 23 not fixed make the 28 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsTypical mileagePassed first time, as testedPassed first time, same mileage
Diesel8,58666,682 miles7172
Petrol5,32153,846 miles7271

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.

40608010020152016201720182019202020212022Older carsNewer cars
40608010020172020Newer 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, 77 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
201565 in every 1002,862
201667 in every 10018,147
2017 This car72 in every 10013,907
201874 in every 10010,432
201979 in every 10011,272
202082 in every 1007,650
202187 in every 1001,475
202288 in every 100647

If you are buying one

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

Mileage matters most on a 2017 Kadjar.

Of 2017 Kadjar vehicles with under 44,000 miles, 79 in every 100 passed their 2025 MOT first time. With 81,000 miles or more, 65 in every 100 did.

Under 44,0002,740 tests
79
44,000–56,0002,829 tests
74
56,000–67,000 Typical car2,805 tests
71
67,000–81,0002,748 tests
69
81,000 and over2,778 tests
65

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 44,00056,000–67,00081,000 and over
Headlight (front)2.13.53.4
Tyre tread depth (front)1.63.23.7
Brake pads (rear)2.22.63.3
Tyre condition (front)2.42.12.9
Coil spring (rear)1.62.82.6

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

When a car fails

46in every 100

of failed cars had one item to fix.

24in every 100

of failed cars had three or more items to fix.

9in 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 2017 Renault Kadjar follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Headlight (front), about 11 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 71.6% of 13,907 first MOTs on the 2017 Renault Kadjar passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 77.1%. Among 3,953 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Headlight (front) appears more often than on similar cars (10.6% of those tests; 417 observed failures; about 4.0× 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 2017 Renault Kadjar at the first attempt were Headlight (front) (10.6%), Tyre tread depth (front) (10.2%) and Brake pads (rear) (9.7%), 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: Headlight (front) (10.6% of those tests; 417 observed failures; about 4.0× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Headlight (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (10.6% of those tests; 417 observed failures; about 4.0× 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 2017 Renault Kadjar include Headlight (front), Suspension arm ball joint dust cover (front), 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 2017 Renault Kadjar (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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