Kia Picanto vs Volkswagen Up

On MOT-testable defects, the Volkswagen Up (fail rate 11.9%) performed better than the Kia Picanto (19.2%) across comparable years. The biggest divergence was brakes, where the Picanto recorded failures more often.

19.2%
Picanto fail rate
11.9%
Up fail rate
7.23pp
Difference

Side by side

MOT figures compared
MetricKia PicantoVolkswagen Up
MOT tests analysed1,059,029665,062
Pass rate80.8%88.1%
Fail rate19.2%11.9%
Fail rate compared (lower is better) Kia Picanto 19.2% Volkswagen Up 11.9%
Overall MOT fail rate across comparable model years.

Where they differ

Failure-area share, by category
CategoryPicantoUp
Brakes8.4%3.8%
Suspension5.9%2.1%
Lighting & signalling7.5%5.4%
Tyres5.3%3.4%
Visibility5.3%3.7%

Methodology & source. Dataset: DVSA MOT testing data (2021,2022,2023,2024,2025). Data last updated 2026-07-01. Figures reflect MOT-testable defects only — read the methodology for how these are calculated and what they don't measure.

See the full data