Does the Kia Soul fail the MOT on steering more than it should?
The Kia Soul records 8.59 steering failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 2.25 expected for a car of the same age mix: more than expected for its class and age (+6.34, 95% interval +6.19 to +6.50). It ranks 35 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 Soul by registration
What exactly fails on steering?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Kia Soul is “A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play”, recorded 9,123 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play | 9,123 | 6.63 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated | 946 | 0.69 |
| A steering ball joint worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment | 777 | 0.56 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 485 | 0.35 |
| Free play in the steering, measured at the rim of the steering wheel is excessive | 120 | 0.09 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 137,660 (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 Soul gets a steering advisory, how often does it fail next time?
26.9% of Kia Soul MOTs with a steering advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 5,523 miles later (4,496 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 4,496 (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 Soul 2009 · Kia Soul 2010 · Kia Soul 2011 · Kia Soul 2012 · Kia Soul 2013 · Kia Soul 2014 · Kia Soul 2015 · Kia Soul 2016 · Kia Soul 2017 · Kia Soul 2018 · Kia Soul 2019 · Kia Soul 2020 · Kia Soul in Norway · Kia Soul in Finland · Kia Soul in the Netherlands · Kia Soul by postcode area · Kia Soul body, chassis and structure failures · Kia Soul brakes failures · Kia Soul vehicle identification failures · Kia Soul lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Kia Soul noise, emissions and leaks failures · Kia Soul road wheels failures · Kia Soul seat belts and airbags failures · Kia Soul suspension failures · Kia Soul tyres failures · Kia Soul visibility failures