All generations and engines together · 48,453 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 50k
Better than most small SUVs, by age and by mileage. Watch suspension and brakes. A solid used buy, provided its MOT history has no repeating suspension advisories.
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press, with how well each report stands up. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
Owners on Kona and Kona N forums report creaks and clunks from the front end, usually over speed bumps or when turning on full lock; on the Kona N some traced it to the electronic limited-slip differential rather than a worn bush or mount. This is one of the few folklore complaints that lines up with the measured MOT data for this class, where suspension is the standout failure category. Reviewers have also marked the ride as firm and bumpy on the larger wheel options, which won't help wear on what's underneath. No manufacturer bulletin covers it and there's no consistent mileage pattern in what owners describe, so treat it as a listen-for-it item on the test drive rather than a guaranteed fault.
On the twin-clutch automatic version of the 1.6 T-GDi, owners and Honest John readers report hesitant, jerky pull-away from a stop and occasional judder or a brief stall with a message telling the driver to restart the car manually. It's the same family of dry dual-clutch complaint that's well documented across Hyundai and Kia's smaller automatics in general. No UK recall or TSB has surfaced for it and dealers have sometimes struggled to reproduce the fault on the ramp, so treat this as a repeatedly reported pattern rather than an officially confirmed one. Manual Kona models aren't affected.
Two separate diesel-specific gripes turn up repeatedly: front brake discs juddering under gentle, low-speed braking from as early as 8,000 miles (Hyundai authorised replacement discs and pads on at least one reported case, though parts availability was patchy), and DPF warning lights returning even after a successful forced regeneration, pointing to upstream EGR, sensor or injector wear on cars used mostly for short trips. Left alone, a DPF/EGR clean or replacement can run into four figures. No recall covers either issue.
Two UK safety recalls were issued for the Kona Electric's battery: one in October 2020 for a battery management system fault that could damage individual cells, and one in April 2021 for a potential electrical short in the pack, together covering roughly 2,900 UK cars. The remedy is a BMS software update, an inspection of the battery data, and replacement of the module or full pack if the inspection finds a fault. Always check the VIN on Hyundai's own recall checker before buying an early Kona Electric, since a completed recall should show as closed.
A recurring nuisance on the Electric: the small 12V battery that runs the car's electronics drains flat overnight or after the car sits for a few days, sometimes needing a jump start or a full replacement. It shows up repeatedly on owner forums across several years of the car and doesn't seem tied to one specific age or mileage. Hyundai hasn't officially acknowledged a fault; the usual dealer advice is to check the 12V battery's condition and any software updates relating to the car's sleep-mode power draw.
Ranked from this model’s own MOT record, then from what owners report.
Saveable checklistThe physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
The physical checks its own defect data says are worth your time, most telling first.
These judge the seller’s upkeep rather than the model, and they are where the haggling money is.
Drawn from the reports above rather than the MOT data. These are the model-specific ones.
Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.
Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.
The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 9,914 tests in this band.
Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.
Same segment (Small SUVs), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.