BMW 318 MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

BMW 318 MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The BMW 318 passed on its first attempt in 86.5%, and its overall record sits +6.9 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the BMW 318 in the 2023–2025 data: 29,342 tests across 17 model years (2004–2021). A test still carries exactly one pass or fail verdict.

Figures are computed from every recorded DVSA test for this model in the 2023–2025 data.

Most Common BMW 318 MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the BMW 318, the Visibility section leads the record — the breakdown below shows where the recorded failures cluster, then the exact strings behind the three biggest sections.

Shares are over the BMW 318's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded BMW 318 DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the BMW 318, each with how many of the model's 29,342 tests it was noted on.

• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 661 BMW 318 tests, 2.3% of the model's MOT record.
• "Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm" (Major) — noted on about 472 BMW 318 tests, 1.6% of the model's MOT record.
• "Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick" (Major) — noted on about 364 BMW 318 tests, 1.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords" (Major) — noted on about 351 BMW 318 tests, 1.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak" (Major) — noted on about 339 BMW 318 tests, 1.2% of the model's MOT record.
• "Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction" (Major) — noted on about 238 BMW 318 tests, 0.8% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst BMW 318 Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest BMW 318 model year on record is 2019 (89.4% across 5,121 tests), and the weakest is 2004 (74.0%). The gap between them is 15.4 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

Newest model year first. Only years with at least 50 recorded tests are listed.

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for BMW 318 Owners

These checks follow this BMW 318's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a BMW 318.

• the windscreen — “windscreen damaged”

  Check the driver’s side of the screen within the swept area for chips and cracks; anything larger than 10mm in the driver’s central view is a fail. Most chips can be resin-repaired for far less than a new screen.

• the tyre tread — “tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm”

  Check all four tyres cold, including the inner shoulder where wear hides — 1.6mm across the central three-quarters is the legal limit, and most testers fail at 1.6mm without argument.

• the brakes — “brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick”

  Look through the spokes of each wheel at the pad — less than 3mm of friction material, or a lip on the disc edge, is the usual failure. Check the handbrake holds on a slope with a few clicks, not at the top of its travel.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the BMW 318. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Where the BMW 318 is most common

Across every 318 model year on record (2004–2021): 14,243 BMW 318 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 29,335 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 525 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.

The twenty areas with the most BMW 318 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 →

Frequently Asked Questions: BMW 318 MOT & Reliability