2004 Kia Sorento MOT pass rate: 56.2% (1,642 tests)

2004-registered Kia Sorentos passed 56.2% of 1,642 MOT tests in 2023–2025 — 8.0 points worse than same-age cars (64.2%). This is one of the lower-scoring Sorento years after correcting for vehicle age — inspect the individual car carefully.

56.2%Pass rate, 2004 cars

92.0Age-adjusted index (100 = average)

1,642Tests analysed

115,498 miMedian mileage at test

69.3% / 55.5%Petrol vs diesel pass rate

Is the 2004 Sorento getting worse?

Pass rate of 2004-registered cars across recent test years:

Test year	Pass rate
2023	54.9% -9.0 vs same-age
2024	55.4% -8.6 vs same-age
2025	60.4% -4.9 vs same-age

The raw rate normally falls as cars age. The “vs same-age” figure compares this cohort with all UK cars registered in the same year, so normal ageing is not mistaken for a bad model year.

What fails on a 2004 Sorento

#	System	Defects recorded	Share
1	Suspension	780	22.5%
2	Brakes	728	21.0%
3	Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	658	19.0%
4	Body, chassis, structure	548	15.8%
5	Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems	259	7.5%
6	Visibility	133	3.8%

All Sorento years compared

Registration year	Tests	Pass rate	Vs same-age	Median mileage
2004 (this page)	1,642	56.2%	-8.0 pts	115,498
2005	2,813	59.0%	-5.4 pts	113,610
2006	5,195	58.5%	-5.9 pts	114,060
2007	3,585	60.6%	-4.5 pts	110,870
2008	2,681	59.2%	-5.9 pts	106,652
2009	3,734	61.8%	-4.7 pts	103,087
2010	5,374	63.8%	-3.5 pts	111,824
2011	4,734	64.9%	-4.3 pts	106,054
2012	5,580	64.6%	-6.6 pts	102,286
2013	6,258	67.9%	-5.4 pts	94,107
2014	8,570	71.8%	-4.0 pts	83,960
2015	11,779	78.0%	-0.8 pts	77,584
2016	9,306	80.1%	-1.2 pts	68,684
2017	9,193	83.3%	-0.7 pts	59,339
2018	8,104	85.8%	-0.5 pts	50,358
2019	8,137	87.2%	-1.2 pts	39,903

Weighing up which year to buy? See the full ranking: Kia Sorento years to avoid.

Buying a 2004 Sorento? Two checks first

Free MOT history checkThe exact car’s failures, advisories and mileage trail — sellers can’t edit it
Topdon OBD2 scannersTopdon diagnostic scanners with full-system readouts
XTOOL diagnostic toolsXTOOL code readers for petrol and diesel cars
Autel UK testersAutel professional-grade diagnostic testers

FAQs

Is a 2004 Kia Sorento reliable?

2004-registered examples passed 56.2% of their MOT tests (1,642 tests, 2023–2025), -8.0 points versus all UK cars registered in the same year. At roughly 22 years old with a median 115,498 miles, condition now varies car by car — always check the individual MOT history.

What mileage is too high for a 2004 Sorento?

The median tested example shows 115,498 miles. Anything far beyond that isn't automatically bad — a motorway-mile car with consistent service records often beats a low-mileage school-run car — but price accordingly and scrutinise the mileage trail for gaps or drops.

Source: DVSA Anonymised MOT tests and results, 2023–2025 extracts (96 million Class 4 initial tests; retests excluded). Only vehicles old enough for a routine first MOT are included. Age-adjusted figures compare the model-year cohort with all vehicles of the same registration year tested in the same calendar year. Contains public sector information licensed under OGL v3.0.