Hyundai Kona MOT pass rate & common failures

At a glance

Recorded pass rate

We are not publishing a ranking for the Kona. The examples tested do not cover a wide enough spread of ages and mileages to compare it fairly, and an unadjusted pass rate mostly sorts models by how recently they were bought rather than how well they were built. The failure and advisory patterns below come from the same 62,765 tests and are worth reading on their own terms.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

Share of failed Hyundai Kona tests in which each item was recorded. One failed test often lists several items, so these do not sum to 100%.

1. 1.A tyre seriously damaged24.7%

   1,579 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

2. 2.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen19.6%

   1,253 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

3. 3.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements18.2%

   1,164 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

4. 4.A tyre cords visible or damaged14.8%

   944 occurrencesTyre ply or cord exposed, or the casing separating explained

5. 5.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm11.0%

   701 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

6. 6.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn7.6%

   486 occurrencesSuspension arm bush worn explained

7. 7.A tyre seriously damaged4.2%

   266 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

8. 8.A tyre seriously damaged3.9%

   252 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

9. 9.Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen2.5%

   161 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

10. 10.Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen2.4%

    152 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

Share of all Hyundai Kona tests carrying each advisory. The denominator differs from the failure list above because an advisory can be issued on a car that passed.

1. 1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements19.2%

   12,049 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

2. 2.A tyre seriously damaged18.6%

   11,697 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

3. 3.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured7.4%

   4,668 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained

4. 4.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm5.5%

   3,449 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained

5. 5.A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn3.8%

   2,373 testsSuspension arm bush worn explained

6. 6.A tyre seriously damaged2.9%

   1,811 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained

7. 7.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements2.6%

   1,628 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained

8. 8.Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt2.6%

   1,623 tests

What gets tested

The Kona fleet

Average mileage recorded at test

35,221

Across examples of every age, so this is a description of the fleet rather than an annual figure.

Fuel mix of tested cars

Hybrid39.7%

Electric31.2%

Petrol29.1%

Compare within the range

Other Hyundai models

• Hyundai I10 — 67.7% adjusted
• Hyundai Tucson — 74.8% adjusted
• Hyundai I20 — 70.0% adjusted
• Hyundai I30 — 68.7% adjusted
• Hyundai IX35 — 63.8% unadjusted
• Hyundai Ioniq — 86.2% unadjusted
• All Hyundai models →

Common questions

How reliable is the Hyundai Kona compared with other cars?

We do not publish a comparison for the Hyundai Kona, because the cars of this model that have been tested do not cover a wide enough range of ages and mileages. Its raw pass rate is 86.3% across 62,765 tests, but comparing a raw rate between models mostly ranks them by how new they are rather than how good they are. The failure and advisory patterns further down the page are still drawn from real tests and are worth reading.

What is the most common MOT failure on a Hyundai Kona?

The item recorded most often is "A tyre seriously damaged", which appears in 24.7% of failed Hyundai Kona tests. Because one failed test can list several items, these shares do not add up to 100%.

What do testers most often warn about on a Hyundai Kona?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 19.2% of all Hyundai Kona tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Hyundai Kona usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 35,221 miles. This is the mileage across all tested examples of every age, not an annual figure, so treat it as a description of the fleet rather than a target for one car.

Are most Hyundai Kona models petrol or diesel?

Of the Hyundai Kona cars tested, 40% are hybrid, 31% are electric, 29% are petrol. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

How this was worked out

Method and limits

Figures come from the DVSA anonymised MOT testing dataset, published under the Open Government Licence. Only class 4 initial tests are counted: retests are excluded so a car appears once, and abandoned tests are excluded entirely. No adjusted rate is shown because this model's tested examples do not cover enough of the national age and mileage range for standardisation to mean anything.

An MOT measures whether a car met a legal standard on the day. It is not a breakdown record, a service history or a running-cost estimate, and a pass rate is a property of a fleet rather than a prediction about one car.

Further reading

Make sense of the numbers

• How to judge reliability from evidence rather than reputation
• What counts as high or low mileage for a car’s age
• The most common MOT failures and how to avoid them
• What to check before buying a used Hyundai