Ford Kuga MOT failure rate and common faults
310,648 Ford Kuga cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 20.6% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 23.0% of the time, which makes the Ford Kuga 10% less likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
20.6%
failed first time
310,648 MOT tests in 2025
-10%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 23.0%
87 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
88.7
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 89.9
What fails on a Ford Kuga MOT
Failure items recorded per 1,000 tests, by part of the car, set against an average car with exactly the same spread of ages. A figure well above average is a weak spot worth checking before you buy.
The most common Ford Kuga MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Position lamp: not working | Lights and electrics | 31.5 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 30.4 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 29.6 |
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 18.4 |
| Tyres: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords | Tyres | 15.8 |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 14.6 |
| Tyre pressure monitoring system: malfunctioning or obviously inoperative | Tyres | 14.3 |
| Tyres: has ply or cords exposed | Tyres | 12.7 |
| Coil spring: fractured or broken | Suspension | 11.6 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp: inoperative or indicates a malfunction | Engine, emissions and leaks | 10.4 |
Ford Kuga MOT failure rate by year
Every car fails more often as it ages, so each registration year is compared with the average for all cars of the same age. Years with fewer than 500 tests are left out.
| First registered | Tests | Failed | Same age average | Average mileage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 26,462 | 8.1% | 11.4% | 27,000 |
| 2021 | 20,535 | 10.9% | 12.8% | 35,600 |
| 2020 | 15,489 | 13.4% | 14.1% | 38,900 |
| 2019 | 40,613 | 15.6% | 16.5% | 45,700 |
| 2018 | 38,320 | 15.9% | 19.1% | 54,700 |
| 2017 | 36,653 | 17.0% | 21.8% | 64,400 |
| 2016 | 33,093 | 22.0% | 25.1% | 73,100 |
| 2015 | 30,442 | 25.8% | 28.1% | 81,400 |
| 2014 | 22,246 | 28.4% | 31.4% | 89,400 |
| 2013 | 12,327 | 29.6% | 34.3% | 98,500 |
| 2012 | 8,966 | 38.0% | 36.6% | 107,500 |
| 2011 | 8,427 | 41.0% | 38.8% | 115,100 |
| 2010 | 8,560 | 41.4% | 40.7% | 121,900 |
| 2009 | 6,381 | 40.6% | 41.8% | 126,400 |
| 2008 | 2,133 | 39.8% | 42.9% | 130,100 |
Advisories to look for in a Ford Kuga's MOT history
An advisory is a tester's warning that something is wearing but has not failed yet. These are the ones written most often on the Ford Kuga, per 1,000 tests. If the car you are looking at has one of these, ask whether it has been fixed since.
- Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge319.8
- Brake pads: wearing thin155.5
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened107.2
- Tyres: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing106.4
- Suspension arms: pin or bush worn but not resulting in excessive movement70.0
- Shock absorbers: has light misting of oil38.4
Checking a used Ford Kuga before you buy
The Ford Kuga has no part of the car that fails well above average for its age, so check the areas that fail most often overall.
Lights and electrics
Walk round the car with every light on: headlights on dip and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and the number plate lamp. A pattern of electrical faults costs more than a bulb.
Tyres
Check the tread across the full width of every tyre, inner edge included. Uneven wear points to worn suspension or out of line steering geometry.
Brakes
Look through the wheel spokes at the discs for a deep lip or scoring, check the handbrake holds the car on a slope, and feel for a pull to one side when braking hard.
Averages only take you so far. The specific car's MOT history shows whether it has already failed on any of these, how often advisories were ignored, and whether the mileage climbs steadily from test to test. Read our guide to reading a car's MOT history before you go to view it.
Fuel mix of the Ford Kuga cars tested: Diesel 74%, Petrol 19%, Hybrid 7%. Average age at test 8.2 years, average recorded mileage 66,000.
Ford Kuga MOT questions
What is the Ford Kuga MOT failure rate?
20.6% of Ford Kuga cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 310,648 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 23.0% of the time, so the Ford Kuga was 10% less likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Ford Kuga MOT?
Lights and electrics caused the most failure items, at 107 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Position lamp: not working", recorded 31.5 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Ford Kuga year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2022 registrations did best: 8.1% failed against an average of 11.4% for cars that age. Older cars always fail more often, so compare a year with its age group rather than with newer cars.
Does this tell me whether a particular Ford Kuga will pass?
No. These are averages across every Ford Kuga tested in 2025. The car in front of you has its own record: its full MOT history shows every pass, failure and advisory it has had, and it is free to view by registration.
Other Ford models
- Ford Fiesta34.1% failed
- Ford Focus31.4% failed
- Ford Transit37.5% failed
- Ford Transit Custom22.8% failed
- Ford Ka33.3% failed
- Ford Mondeo32.3% failed
Ranked close to the Ford Kuga
- Toyota C-HRrank 84
- Toyota Aygorank 85
- Kia Nirorank 86
- Skoda Octaviarank 88
How these figures are calculated
Source: DVSA Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2025 release. We count first tests of cars and small vans (class 4) aged 3 to 20, so a car that fails and is retested is counted once. A failure includes faults fixed and passed within the same visit. The same age average weights the national failure rate for each age by how many Ford Kuga cars of that age were tested, so a model is never penalised for having an older fleet. Make and model are as recorded at the test; trim levels are combined. Full method and rankings.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.