Pass rate
85.2%
Above average — 3.1 pts ahead of the 82.1% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 54 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £48–£174
2015 BMW 135 MOT pass rate
- 2015
- typical 66,442 mi
Only 54 tests of this exact model and year are in the DVSA data, below the 100 we ask for before a page goes in the index. The figures are still shown, because they are the only ones there are.
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Tyres
35.3% of faults · 19.8% nationally
mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.
Which year to buy
- Best 2016 94.9% pass
- Avoid 2008 84.7% pass
Across the 9 years on record, a spread of 10.2 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 83.3%
- Typical mileage
- 66k mi
The 2015 BMW 135 MOT pass rate is 85.2% of its MOT tests — 3.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 35.3% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Tyres: 1.8× the national share
Tyres make up 35.3% of everything recorded on the 2015 BMW 135, against 19.8% nationally — 15.5 points above. Check all four tyres yourself, including the inner shoulders, and look at the date stamp — a tyre can pass on tread and still be six years old.
- Beats its own age and mileage. Once you allow for how old and how far these cars have been driven, the expected pass rate is 82.1% and this one manages 85.2% — 3.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 9% of this model’s typical repairs come in under £30 in parts — the failures here tend to be the kind that need a garage rather than a bulb.
Written from this page's own figures: fault shares against the national composition, the like-for-like pass rate, and the priced repair list. How these are worked out
Watching a BMW 135? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2015 BMW 135 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 82.1%, so this figure is 3.1 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 83.3%. The median 2015 BMW 135 in this dataset had covered 66,442 mi.
The single most recorded failure item is "Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated", noted on 3.70% of tests.
- 54 recorded tests behind this page.
- 85.2% overall pass rate, 83.3% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the BMW 135, the average is 86.5% — best year 2016 (94.9%), worst 2008 (84.7%).
Figures count every completed test on this vehicle-year in the dataset, including retests. See methodology for the exact definition.
This page's data
- Tests analysed
- 54
- Typical mileage (median)
- 66,442 mi
- Make and model
- BMW 135
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Ball Joint
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the 135 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 58% so small gaps stay visible.
Where the BMW 135 is most common
Across all 135 model years on record (2007–2016): 1,825 BMW 135 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 3,631 tests. Reading (RG) has the most, with 66 cars tested there. Cars are counted by the postcode area of the MOT station, so this is where they were tested, not necessarily where their owners live.
| # | Postcode area | Cars | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Reading (RG) | 66 | 88.6% |
| 2 | Birmingham (B) | 58 | 91.3% |
| 3 | High Wycombe (HP) | 51 | 86.3% |
| 4 | Bristol (BS) | 49 | 85.1% |
| 5 | Guildford (GU) | 44 | 87.8% |
| 6 | Ashford (TN) | 39 | 85.9% |
| 7 | Brighton (BN) | 34 | 80.5% |
| 8 | Basildon (SS) | 33 | 88.0% |
| 9 | Enfield (EN) | 32 | 94.8% |
| 10 | Ipswich (IP) | 31 | 80.6% |
| 11 | Northampton (NN) | 30 | 83.3% |
| 12 | Portsmouth (PO) | 30 | 84.3% |
| 13 | Crawley (RH) | 29 | 83.6% |
| 14 | Gloucester (GL) | 29 | 84.5% |
| 15 | Sheffield (S) | 29 | 87.5% |
| 16 | London (N) | 29 | 95.7% |
| 17 | Peterborough (PE) | 28 | 86.8% |
| 18 | Maidstone (ME) | 26 | 89.8% |
| 19 | Derby (DE) | 25 | 80.7% |
| 20 | Nottingham (NG) | 25 | 86.0% |
The twenty areas with the most BMW 135 cars in the record, sorted by car count — sort the columns for a different question. Cars tested at a station whose postcode area could not be resolved are counted in the model's total but in no area, so the shares add up to slightly under 100% even across every area, and an area's cars are a subset of the model's. Pass rate is blank below 30 tests in an area, where a percentage is noise rather than a finding. How this model's pass rate varies by postcode →
Regional pass rates for the 135
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 24 | 75.0% |
Regions come from the postcode area recorded at the test station. Areas on region borders are assigned to the region with the majority of their population.
What fails a 2015 135
Everything a tester recorded on this vehicle, grouped into the inspection sections that produced it. The notch on each bar is the national share, so you can see at a glance whether this car is unusual or just ordinary.
A test can record several items, so these percentages do not add up to 100%. The exact strings, with prices, are in the full DVSA record at the bottom of this page.
Before your test
Three checks worth doing on a 2015 135
These are not generic tips — they are the faults recorded most often on this exact model, rewritten as things you can check yourself. All three take about ten minutes and cost nothing.
-
Check the suspension joints 3.7% of tests
“ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated”
With the car parked on level ground, rock the top of each front wheel in and out while someone watches the suspension arm. Clunks, or rubber boots split and greasy, are what testers record here.
-
Check the lights 1.9% of tests
“all position lamps light intensity obviously reduced”
Switch everything on and walk round the car: both headlamps on dip and main, every indicator, both brake lights, reverse, fog and the two number-plate lamps. A bulb is a few pounds and a five-minute job.
-
Check the exhaust and emissions 1.9% of tests
“catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits”
Listen for a blow at idle and have someone rev it gently. Then look at the tailpipe smoke: blue is oil, white when warm is coolant, black is over-fuelling. Any of those and the emissions test is the least of it.
Shares are the proportion of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item, so they overlap: one test can record several.
What it costs to get a 2015 135 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £48–£174 — and 9% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £48–£174
- Cheapest common item: all position lamps light intensity obviously…
- £5–£25
- Dearest common item: catalytic converter missing where one was…
- £120–£400
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 40%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 9%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 54 MOT tests on this vehicle. They exclude diagnostics, retest fees and garage labour where the part is a DIY fit, and they are not figures from the DVSA dataset. Older and higher-mileage examples cost more than the average. How these estimates are built → · All MOT repair costs → · Cheapest cars to put through a test →
Every year of the 135, side by side
9 model years on record, from 2007 to 2016. Across them the pass rate runs from 84.7% to 94.9% — a spread of 10.2 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2007 90.4% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2008 84.7% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2009 85.0% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2010 86.0% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2011 89.9% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2012 87.2% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2013 87.1% shock absorbers has a serious…
- 2015 85.2%ball joint dust cover severely…
- 2016 94.9% windscreen damaged but not…
Colour is the pass rate on a fixed scale, so a block means the same thing on any model. Each year links to its own page with the full fault breakdown.
Compare the 2015 BMW 135 with another year
The raw pass rate mostly measures age. The year comparison adds the like-for-like figure, the mileage bands and the repair bill.
Other 2015 cars with a similar record
- Jaguar Xe 85.2%
- Hyundai I10 85.3%
- SEAT Leon 85.3%
- Peugeot 108 85.1%
- Kia Soul 85.1%
- Mercedes-Benz Slk 85.4%
Closest pass rates among 2015 cars with at least 2,000 tests, so a small sample cannot flatter itself into the list. See the full rankings: best and worst MOT pass rates.
The full DVSA record for the 2015 BMW 135 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 8 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 68 individual items recorded on this vehicle, and the same share across all cars nationally. A single test can record several items, so a row is not a percentage of tests.
| Category | Items | This car | Nationally | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tyres | 24 | 35.30% | 19.76% | +15.54 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 13 | 19.10% | 5.52% | +13.58 |
| Suspension | 10 | 14.70% | 20.98% | −6.28 |
| Brakes | 10 | 14.70% | 20.89% | −6.19 |
| Non-component advisories | 6 | 8.80% | 4.18% | +4.62 |
| Road Wheels | 3 | 4.40% | 0.75% | +3.65 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 1 | 1.50% | 12.21% | −10.71 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 1 | 1.50% | 1.76% | −0.26 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 3.7% | £18–45 |
| All position lamps light intensity obviously reduced Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 1.9% | £5–25 |
| Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content after 2nd fast idle exceeds manufacturer's specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions carbon monoxide content at idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalyst emissions hydrocarbon content after 2nd fast idle exceeds default limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £60–250 |
| Catalytic converter missing where one was fitted as standard Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 1.9% | £120–400 |
| Fixing missing Road Wheels | Major | 1.9% | £20–55 |
| Has a bulge, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Major | 1.9% | £45–95 |
Severity is as recorded: Major and Dangerous fail the test outright; Minor and Advisory do not. Costs are estimates from typical UK parts prices — see how they are built.
What testers noted without failing the car
Advisories are the early warnings — the same parts a year or two before they fail. Reading them is how you tell a car that has been maintained from one that has been patched.
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 20.4% | £45–95 |
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 13.0% | £200–700 |
| Ball joint excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 7.4% | £18–45 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 7.4% | £45–110 |
| Has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Tyres | Advisory | 7.4% | £45–95 |
| Brake discs significantly and obviously worn Brakes | Advisory | 5.6% | £45–110 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0-30k | 3 | 100.0% | 29,106 mi |
| 30-60k | 16 | 81.3% | 42,656 mi |
| 60-90k | 21 | 81.0% | 70,345 mi |
| 90-120k | 11 | 100.0% | 104,447 mi |
| 120k+ | 3 | 66.7% | 122,275 mi |
Source: 54 recorded tests on this vehicle-year. Every row above is recomputed from the same DVSA extract as the rest of the page — see the methodology.
2015 135 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2015 BMW 135?
85.2% of the 54 2015 BMW 135 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 82.1% for cars first used in 2015. First-attempt pass rate: 83.3%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2015 BMW 135?
The three most recorded items are ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (3.70%), all position lamps light intensity obviously reduced (1.85%), catalyst emissions lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (1.85%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2015 BMW 135 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 66.7% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2015 BMW 135 in this dataset had covered 66,442 mi.