Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 31,438 tests

Pass rate climbs 8.3 points across the cohorts — newer Stonic examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 5,631

Pass

87.4%

Fail

10.2%

PRS

2.1%

Avg mileage at test

44,899 mi

2018–2020 cohort 25,549

Pass

88.4%

Fail

8.2%

PRS

3.1%

Avg mileage at test

33,559 mi

2021+ cohort 258

Pass

95.7%

Fail

2.7%

PRS

1.6%

Avg mileage at test

18,772 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

The picture

Kia Stonic: solid MOT record across 20,583 tests

The Kia Stonic is a subcompact crossover SUV (B-segment) manufactured by Kia Motors. Its name is derived from the words "speedy" and "tonic".

MOT data from 20,583 tests puts this car on an 89.3% first-time pass rate, well above the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 29,023 miles. The most common fail item is inoperative wiper blade, followed by brake pads worn below 1.5mm.

The ageing Kia Stonic has been treated to a second mid-life update, and it's a major one. We like how its interior and exterior styling have been brought into line with the rest of Kia's line-up, but the Stonic still lags behind cars like the Seat Arona and Ford Puma in terms of.

For used buyers, the Stonic's pass rate suggests it clears the MOT with fewer surprises than most — but the top failure items above are still worth a pre-purchase inspection, particularly on higher-mileage examples.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 10–26

Below the fleet average — generally reasonable to insure. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

10–26

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

646 occurrences · 2.1% of tests
02

Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

529 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
03

Wiper blade defective

502 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
04

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

402 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
05

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

306 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
06

A tyre seriously damaged

186 occurrences · 0.6% of tests
07

A headlamp or light source missing, inoperative or more than ½ not functioning in the case of LED

102 occurrences · 0.3% of tests
08

Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen

92 occurrences · 0.3% of tests
09

Brake disc or drum significantly and obviously worn

87 occurrences · 0.3% of tests
10

Windscreen washers not working or not providing sufficient fluid to clear the windscreen

73 occurrences · 0.2% 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

£180–£345

If every one of this Stonic'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.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 8.3-point gap between bands means the year you buy Kia Stonic has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

95.7%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 95.7% — a 8.3-point improvement. Tests in this band average 18,772 miles — roughly 26K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: blade defective, not working — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

87.4%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 87.4% pass rate against a fleet average of 95.7% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: less than 1.5 mm thick, tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, and blade defective. Average mileage on test for this band is 44,899 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (95.7% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (87.4% pass). That's a 8.3-point spread across 5,631 older tests and 258 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

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

Bosch Aerotwin wiper blades

Cheap wipers fail the test on smear streaks. Bosch Aerotwins last a winter and clear a screen properly.

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

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Kia Titanium Silver Metallic 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Touch Up Colour Paint Brush Kia White 12.5ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Kia Clear White Double Acrylic Spray Paint 150ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Hycote

Hycote Kia Titanium Silver Metallic Double Acrylic Spray Paint 150ml

£6.59

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

Get a quote →

Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

What's good

Recent owner-reported faults

16 Apr 2021
Report of PPF (petrol particulate filter) warning light on Kia Stonic 1.0 T-GDi. Reader has covered 12,000 miles in 22 months. Dealer says more long journeys required. [Google Pixel 10 Pro 256GB In Moonstone | Veri

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 1 reports indexed

Recall history

1 UK recall on record.

The Stonic has 1 official UK vehicle recall covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping a Stonic?

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 Stonic 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.