MOT cost .
Kia Carens
MOT 2023
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Kia

Carens

20,362 MOT tests analysed. lands in the middle of the pack — here's where Carenss pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.

That's 4.4 points below the UK fleet average across our 1,988 tracked models — buyers should expect more first-time fails than the typical UK car.

Pass

71.3%

Pass-after-fix

5.1%

Fail

23.0%

Avg miles

76,430

Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%

The picture

Carens: middle-of-the-pack on first-time pass

Across 20,362 MOT tests, the Carens returns 71.3% first-time pass — below the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is brake pads worn below 1.5 mm. A number-plate lamp out and a weak handbrake round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 76,430, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.

Top ten reasons for rejection.

  1. 01

    a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

    875 occurrences · 4.3% of tests

  2. 02

    A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

    725 occurrences · 3.6% of tests

  3. 03

    Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement

    645 occurrences · 3.2% of tests

  4. 04

    Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

    540 occurrences · 2.7% of tests

  5. 05

    A tyre cords visible or damaged

    509 occurrences · 2.5% of tests

  6. 06

    Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

    508 occurrences · 2.5% of tests

  7. 07

    Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

    500 occurrences · 2.5% of tests

  8. 08

    A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

    368 occurrences · 1.8% of tests

  9. 09

    Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

    358 occurrences · 1.8% of tests

  10. 10

    A tyre seriously damaged

    336 occurrences · 1.7% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 4 failures

£156–£325

If every one of this Carens's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

Brake pad measurement gauge

Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

Item 03 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Buying or keeping a Carens?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own a Carens and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.