Does the Kia Carens fail the MOT on steering more than it should?
The Kia Carens records 2.59 steering failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 2.53 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (+0.06, 95% interval −0.04 to +0.15). It ranks 215 of 640 models on steering (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on steering · check a Kia Carens by registration
What exactly fails on steering?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Kia Carens is “A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play”, recorded 1,438 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play | 1,438 | 1.39 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 421 | 0.41 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated | 391 | 0.38 |
| A steering ball joint worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment | 143 | 0.14 |
| Steering linkage retaining or locking device missing or ineffective | 95 | 0.09 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 103,823 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Kia Carens gets a steering advisory, how often does it fail next time?
14.6% of Kia Carens MOTs with a steering advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 4,989 miles later (1,190 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,190 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Kia Carens 2003 · Kia Carens 2004 · Kia Carens 2005 · Kia Carens 2006 · Kia Carens 2007 · Kia Carens 2008 · Kia Carens 2009 · Kia Carens 2010 · Kia Carens 2011 · Kia Carens 2012 · Kia Carens 2013 · Kia Carens 2014 · Kia Carens 2015 · Kia Carens 2016 · Kia Carens 2017 · Kia Carens 2018 · Kia Carens 2019 · Kia Carens in Finland · Kia Carens in the Netherlands · Kia Carens by postcode area · Kia Carens body, chassis and structure failures · Kia Carens brakes failures · Kia Carens vehicle identification failures · Kia Carens lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Kia Carens noise, emissions and leaks failures · Kia Carens road wheels failures · Kia Carens seat belts and airbags failures · Kia Carens suspension failures · Kia Carens tyres failures · Kia Carens visibility failures