How reliable is the Kia Optima compared with other cars?

We do not publish a comparison for the Kia Optima, because the cars of this model that have been tested do not cover a wide enough range of ages and mileages.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 78.5% across 10,954 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 Kia Optima?

The item recorded most often is "a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm", which appears in 21.9% of failed Kia Optima 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 Kia Optima?

The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 30.1% of all Kia Optima tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.

What mileage does a Kia Optima usually have at its MOT?

The average odometer reading recorded at test is 86,190 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.

Which Kia Optima years are the most reliable?

Going by MOT pass rate, Kia Optima cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 83.2%, and those registered 2011–2013 do worst at 63.1%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.

Does a Kia Optima get harder to pass as it ages?

Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 83.2% of Kia Optima tests pass. By 12 to 14 years, that falls to 63.1%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.

Are most Kia Optima models petrol or diesel?

Of the Kia Optima cars tested, 91% are diesel, 8% are hybrid, 1% are petrol. Fuel type affects which items tend to fail, particularly emissions and exhaust components.

Model reliability file

Kia Optima MOT pass rate & common failures

From 10,954 recorded MOT tests of the Kia Optima, published by DVSA.

Data updated 29 July 2026

Quick answer

Across 10,954 MOT tests, 78.5% of Kia Optima tests ended in a pass. This figure is not adjusted for age or mileage, so it is not a reliability ranking: the Kia Optima fleet does not yet cover a wide enough spread of ages and distances to compare it fairly against other models. Its most commonly recorded failure is a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm, which appears in 21.9% of failed tests. Cars of this model average 86,190 miles on the odometer when tested.

At a glance

Recorded pass rate

78.5%unadjusted, not comparable10,954 tests

We are not publishing a ranking for the Optima. 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 10,954 tests and are worth reading on their own terms.

DVSA recorded wording

Most common failure items

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

1.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm21.9%
439 occurrencesBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
2.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements15.7%
316 occurrencesTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
3.A tyre cords visible or damaged11.1%
222 occurrencesTyre ply or cord exposed, or the casing separating explained
4.A tyre seriously damaged8.9%
178 occurrencesTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
5.A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play7.8%
156 occurrencesBall joint worn explained
6.Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement5.2%
105 occurrencesParking brake efficiency too low explained
7.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded4.9%
99 occurrencesBrake pipe corroded explained
8.Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen4.8%
96 occurrencesWiper or washer not working properly explained
9.Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake4.7%
94 occurrencesBrake binding or imbalanced across an axle explained
10.A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc4.3%
86 occurrencesSuspension joint dust cover missing or split explained

Warnings without a failure

Most common advisories

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

1.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements30.1%
3,298 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
2.A brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm14.8%
1,620 testsBrake drum or shoe worn or contaminated explained
3.Brake disc or drum excessively weakened, insecure or fractured13.9%
1,519 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
4.A tyre seriously damaged8.5%
931 testsTyre damaged or deteriorated explained
5.Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded5.0%
552 testsBrake pipe corroded explained
6.Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn4.3%
466 testsBrake disc worn, pitted or scored explained
7.Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements4.0%
439 testsTyre worn close to the legal limit explained
8.Number plate inscription missing or illegible3.6%
394 testsRegistration plate missing, insecure or illegible explained

The rest of the record

Everything else recorded on the Kia Optima

The 18 other defects testers recorded on this model, beyond the most common listed above. Each links to what it means and what it takes to put right.

Known faults

Kia Optima common problems, by part and by year

The same failure record read the way a buyer asks the question: which parts wear out on a Optima, when they start, and how each registration year compares — including the steps that mark a generation change.

Optima common problems and results by year

How wear changes the picture

Optima pass rate by age and registration year

How often the Kia Optima passes at each age, with the years those cars were first registered. Tests are from 2025, so a car aged 3 to 5 was first used in 2020–2022.

3–5 yrsreg. 2020–202283%

6–8 yrsreg. 2017–201981%

9–11 yrsreg. 2014–201676%

12–14 yrsreg. 2011–201363%

Read this as an age curve rather than a verdict on particular model years. Nearly every car passes less often as it gets older, so a newer Optima outscoring an older one says more about wear than about how that year’s cars were built. Bands holding too few tests to be meaningful are omitted rather than shown as a rate.

What gets tested

The Optima fleet

Average mileage recorded at test: 86,190
Fuel mix of tested cars: Diesel91.0%
Hybrid8.2%
Petrol0.8%

Trim names grouped into this model (3)

Recorded exactly as DVSA holds them. Trim-level names are rolled up so one model is not split across a dozen thin pages.

OPTIMA CRDI
OPTIMA PHEV + AUTO
OPTIMA PHEV AUTO

Check a specific Kia Optima

A model average tells you the pattern. Its own MOT record tells you the car.

Compare within the range

Other Kia models

Kia Sportage — 71.7% adjusted
Kia Picanto — 65.5% adjusted
Kia Ceed — 68.9% adjusted
Kia Niro — 85.8% adjusted
Kia Rio — 69.0% adjusted
Kia Venga — 64.3% adjusted
All Kia models

Common questions

How reliable is the Kia Optima compared with other cars?: We do not publish a comparison for the Kia Optima, 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 78.5% across 10,954 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 Kia Optima?: The item recorded most often is "a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm", which appears in 21.9% of failed Kia Optima 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 Kia Optima?: The most common advisory is "Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements", noted on 30.1% of all Kia Optima tests. An advisory is not a failure: it flags something that will likely need attention before the next test.
What mileage does a Kia Optima usually have at its MOT?: The average odometer reading recorded at test is 86,190 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.
Which Kia Optima years are the most reliable?: Going by MOT pass rate, Kia Optima cars first registered 2020–2022 do best at 83.2%, and those registered 2011–2013 do worst at 63.1%. But that ordering is mostly age, not build year: almost every model passes less often as it wears, so the newest cars top this list whatever they are. A specific year looking strong here means little on its own; the failure items above, and the individual car's own MOT history, tell you far more.
Does a Kia Optima get harder to pass as it ages?: Yes. At 3 to 5 years old, 83.2% of Kia Optima tests pass. By 12 to 14 years, that falls to 63.1%. Nearly every model follows this pattern, which is why comparing raw pass rates between models is misleading unless age is accounted for.
Are most Kia Optima models petrol or diesel?: Of the Kia Optima cars tested, 91% are diesel, 8% are hybrid, 1% 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.