Kia Stonic MOT failure rate and common faults
32,469 Kia Stonic cars aged 3 to 20 took their MOT in 2025, and 12.3% failed at the first attempt. An average car of the same age failed 15.2% of the time, which makes the Kia Stonic 19% less likely to fail than the typical car on the road. Here is what fails, and which years to look for.
12.3%
failed first time
32,469 MOT tests in 2025
-19%
vs same age average
average car of this age mix: 15.2%
56 of 208
age adjusted rank
among cars; 1 fails least
52.6
dangerous defects per 1,000
same age average: 67.6
What fails on a Kia Stonic 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 Kia Stonic MOT failures
The individual failure items testers recorded most often, per 1,000 tests.
| Failure item | Area | Per 1,000 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 30.3 |
| Brake pads: less than 1.5 mm thick | Brakes | 26.6 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm | Tyres | 14.5 |
| Tyres: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords | Tyres | 9.5 |
| Headlamp aim: too low | Lights and electrics | 7.6 |
| Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 7.1 |
| Headlamp: not working on dipped beam | Lights and electrics | 7.0 |
| Ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt | Suspension | 7.0 |
| Washers: not working | Windscreen, wipers and mirrors | 5.2 |
| Brake discs: significantly and obviously worn | Brakes | 4.5 |
Kia Stonic 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 | 6,131 | 8.7% | 11.4% | 22,600 |
| 2021 | 6,105 | 10.6% | 12.8% | 27,500 |
| 2020 | 4,520 | 12.5% | 14.1% | 31,500 |
| 2019 | 8,190 | 13.8% | 16.5% | 40,300 |
| 2018 | 6,801 | 14.7% | 19.1% | 49,500 |
| 2017 | 722 | 16.1% | 21.8% | 54,200 |
Advisories to look for in a Kia Stonic'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 Kia Stonic, 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 edge201.7
- Brake pads: wearing thin132.2
- Tyres: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing88.5
- Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened81.3
- Brake discs: worn, but not excessively44.4
- Track rod end: ball joint has slight play14.3
Checking a used Kia Stonic before you buy
Against cars of the same age, the Kia Stonic fails more often than average on brakes and windscreen, wipers and mirrors. Start there.
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.
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors
Look for chips or cracks in the driver's line of sight, and test the wipers and washers. Windscreen damage in the swept area is an MOT failure.
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 Kia Stonic cars tested: Petrol 69%, Hybrid 23%, Diesel 7%. Average age at test 5.2 years, average recorded mileage 35,600.
Kia Stonic MOT questions
What is the Kia Stonic MOT failure rate?
12.3% of Kia Stonic cars failed their first MOT test of 2025, from 32,469 tests on vehicles aged 3 to 20. An average car with the same age mix failed 15.2% of the time, so the Kia Stonic was 19% less likely to fail.
What fails most often on a Kia Stonic MOT?
Brakes caused the most failure items, at 46 per 1,000 tests. The single most common failure item was "Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively", recorded 30.3 times per 1,000 tests.
Which Kia Stonic year has the best MOT record?
Measured against cars of the same age, 2022 registrations did best: 8.7% 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 Kia Stonic will pass?
No. These are averages across every Kia Stonic 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 Kia models
- Kia Sportage23.0% failed
- Kia Picanto28.5% failed
- Kia Ceed31.9% failed
- Kia Niro12.6% failed
- Kia Rio29.7% failed
- Kia Venga29.0% failed
Ranked close to the Kia Stonic
- Peugeot 108rank 53
- Audi A5rank 54
- Land Rover Discoveryrank 55
- BMW 2 Seriesrank 57
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 Kia Stonic 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.