Does the Kia Sportage fail the MOT on steering more than it should?
The Kia Sportage records 3.41 steering failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 1.45 expected for a car of the same age mix: more than expected for its class and age (+1.96, 95% interval +1.93 to +1.99). It ranks 119 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 Sportage by registration
What exactly fails on steering?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Kia Sportage is “Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated”, recorded 19,865 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated | 19,865 | 1.56 |
| A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play | 11,437 | 0.90 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 9,779 | 0.77 |
| A steering ball joint worn to the extent there is a serious risk of detachment | 919 | 0.07 |
| Steering linkage retaining or locking device missing or ineffective | 446 | 0.03 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,275,244 (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 Sportage gets a steering advisory, how often does it fail next time?
15.7% of Kia Sportage MOTs with a steering advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 7,124 miles later (8,436 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 8,436 (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 Sportage 2003 · Kia Sportage 2005 · Kia Sportage 2006 · Kia Sportage 2007 · Kia Sportage 2008 · Kia Sportage 2009 · Kia Sportage 2010 · Kia Sportage 2011 · Kia Sportage 2012 · Kia Sportage 2013 · Kia Sportage 2014 · Kia Sportage 2015 · Kia Sportage 2016 · Kia Sportage 2017 · Kia Sportage 2018 · Kia Sportage 2019 · Kia Sportage 2020 · Kia Sportage in Finland · Kia Sportage in the Netherlands · Kia Sportage in Norway · Kia Sportage by postcode area · Kia Sportage body, chassis and structure failures · Kia Sportage brakes failures · Kia Sportage vehicle identification failures · Kia Sportage lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Kia Sportage noise, emissions and leaks failures · Kia Sportage road wheels failures · Kia Sportage seat belts and airbags failures · Kia Sportage suspension failures · Kia Sportage tyres failures · Kia Sportage visibility failures