Pass rate
74.6%
Below average — 1.3 pts ahead of the 73.3% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 71 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £36–£109
2001 BMW 325 MOT pass rate
- 2001
- typical 105,200 mi
Only 71 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
Brakes
26.3% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2011 88.6% pass
- Avoid 2003 73.2% pass
Across the 9 years on record, a spread of 15.4 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 69.0%
- Typical mileage
- 105k mi
The 2001 BMW 325 MOT pass rate is 74.6% of its MOT tests — 1.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 26.3% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 2.3× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 12.7% of everything recorded on the 2001 BMW 325, against 5.5% nationally — 7.2 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 26.3%, but at 20.9% nationally that one is ordinary. A smoky diesel or a leaking joint fails on emissions more often than on wear, so ask for a recent emissions printout.
- When it fails, it costs. Only 33% 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.
- Based on a small sample. 71 tests back this page. That is enough to publish and to index, not enough to treat the decimal places as precise — read the pattern, not the second digit.
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 325? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2001 BMW 325 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 73.3%, so this figure is 1.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 69.0%. The median 2001 BMW 325 in this dataset had covered 105,200 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 67.6% of the time, April–September 82.4%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources", noted on 11.27% of tests.
- 71 recorded tests behind this page.
- 74.6% overall pass rate, 69.0% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the BMW 325, the average is 80.4% — best year 2011 (88.6%), worst 2003 (73.2%).
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
- 71
- Typical mileage (median)
- 105,200 mi
- Make and model
- BMW 325
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Number Plate Lamp
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the 325 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 58% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the 325
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South West | 23 | 69.6% |
| South East | 17 | 70.6% |
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 2001 325
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 2001 325
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 lights 11.3% of tests
“registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources”
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 suspension joints 8.4% of tests
“pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn”
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 exhaust and emissions 5.6% of tests
“exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases”
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 2001 325 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £36–£109 — and 33% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £36–£109
- Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: component mounting prescribed areas…
- £180–£450
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 50%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 33%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 71 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 325, side by side
9 model years on record, from 2001 to 2011. Across them the pass rate runs from 73.2% to 88.6% — a spread of 15.4 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2001 74.6%registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2003 73.2% pins and bushes pin or bush…
- 2005 80.0% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2006 84.0% registration plate lamp(s)…
- 2007 76.8% shock absorbers has a serious…
- 2008 80.8% anti-lock braking system warning…
- 2009 80.1% shock absorbers has a serious…
- 2010 87.3% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2011 88.6% position lamp not working
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 2001 BMW 325 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 2001 cars with a similar record
- Audi A4 74.5%
- Nissan Almera 74.7%
- Land Rover Discovery 74.8%
- Rover 25 74.8%
- Toyota Celica 74.3%
- Toyota MR2 74.2%
Closest pass rates among 2001 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 2001 BMW 325 10 failure items · 6 advisories · 10 inspection categories · mileage brackets · all of it in the page, none of it above the fold
Every inspection category
Shares of the 212 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brakes | 56 | 26.30% | 20.89% | +5.41 |
| Suspension | 40 | 18.80% | 20.98% | −2.18 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 29 | 13.60% | 12.21% | +1.39 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 27 | 12.70% | 5.52% | +7.18 |
| Tyres | 20 | 9.40% | 19.76% | −10.36 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 15 | 7.00% | 5.57% | +1.43 |
| Non-component advisories | 11 | 5.20% | 4.18% | +1.02 |
| Steering | 8 | 3.80% | 2.57% | +1.23 |
| Visibility | 3 | 1.40% | 4.97% | −3.57 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 3 | 1.40% | 0.82% | +0.58 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 11.3% | £5–20 |
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 9.9% | £45–110 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Major | 8.4% | £40–150 |
| Exhaust system has a major leak of exhaust gases Body, chassis, structure | Major | 5.6% | £45–120 |
| Catalyst emissions Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 4.2% | £60–250 |
| Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 4.2% | £30–80 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 4.2% | £3–12 |
| Anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an ABS fault Brakes | Major | 2.8% | £3–15 |
| Ball joint excessively worn Suspension | Major | 2.8% | £18–45 |
| Component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength Suspension | Major | 2.8% | £180–450 |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 19.7% | £200–700 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 18.3% | £45–95 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 16.9% | £80–180 |
| Non-component advisories Play in steering rack inner joint(s) Non-component advisories | Advisory | 11.3% | £120–300 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 9.9% | £45–110 |
| Flexible brake hoses excessively deteriorated Brakes | Advisory | 9.9% | £25–70 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-60k | 11 | 90.9% | 47,190 mi |
| 60-90k | 13 | 92.3% | 75,202 mi |
| 90-120k | 21 | 66.7% | 104,766 mi |
| 120k+ | 25 | 68.0% | 192,317 mi |
Source: 71 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.
2001 325 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2001 BMW 325?
74.6% of the 71 2001 BMW 325 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 73.3% for cars first used in 2001. First-attempt pass rate: 69.0%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2001 BMW 325?
The three most recorded items are registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (11.27%), rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements (9.86%), pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (8.45%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2001 BMW 325 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 90.9% of the time, falling to 68.0% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2001 BMW 325 in this dataset had covered 105,200 mi.
Does the season affect the 2001 BMW 325 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 67.6% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 82.4%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.