Pass rate
73.2%
Below average — 0.6 pts ahead of the 72.6% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 56 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £20–£60
2003 BMW 325 MOT pass rate
- 2003
- typical 90,583 mi
Only 56 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
25.8% 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 · this year
Across the 9 years on record, a spread of 15.4 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 66.7%
- Typical mileage
- 91k mi
The 2003 BMW 325 MOT pass rate is 73.2% of its MOT tests — about what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 25.8% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Lamps & electrics: 1.7× the national share
Lamps & electrics make up 20.8% of everything recorded on the 2003 BMW 325, against 12.2% nationally — 8.6 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 25.8%, but at 20.9% nationally that one is ordinary. Walk round the car with the lights on before the test: bulbs, indicators and number-plate lamps are the cheapest failures to prevent and among the most common.
- Based on a small sample. 56 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 2003 BMW 325 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.6%, so this figure is 0.6 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 66.7%. The median 2003 BMW 325 in this dataset had covered 90,583 mi.
The single most recorded failure item is "Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn", noted on 8.93% of tests.
- 56 recorded tests behind this page.
- 73.2% overall pass rate, 66.7% 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
- 56
- Typical mileage (median)
- 90,583 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
Suspension Component
Typically a garage job — get quotes before committing.
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 East | 15 | 73.3% |
| South West | 15 | 80.0% |
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 2003 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 2003 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 suspension joints 8.9% 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 lights 7.1% of tests
“headlamp lens slightly defective”
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 shock absorbers 5.4% of tests
“shock absorbers has negligible damping effect”
Press down hard on each corner of the car and let go. It should settle in one bounce; if it keeps rocking, or you can see oil weeping down a shock absorber, that is the fault a tester will find.
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 2003 325 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £20–£60 — and 47% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £20–£60
- Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: pins
- £40–£150
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 80%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 47%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 56 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 2003 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 2003 cars with a similar record
- Volkswagen Passat 73.1%
- Suzuki Jimny 73.1%
- Toyota YARIS 73.0%
- Mazda Mx-5 73.6%
- Volkswagen Golf 72.8%
- Subaru Forester 73.7%
Closest pass rates among 2003 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 2003 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 158 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 | 41 | 25.80% | 20.89% | +4.91 |
| Suspension | 34 | 21.40% | 20.98% | +0.42 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 33 | 20.80% | 12.21% | +8.59 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 18 | 11.30% | 5.52% | +5.78 |
| Tyres | 16 | 10.10% | 19.76% | −9.66 |
| Visibility | 4 | 2.50% | 4.97% | −2.47 |
| Non-component advisories | 4 | 2.50% | 4.18% | −1.68 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 3 | 1.90% | 5.57% | −3.67 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 3 | 1.90% | 0.82% | +1.08 |
| Identification of the vehicle | 2 | 1.30% | 1.76% | −0.46 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Major | 8.9% | £40–150 |
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 7.1% | £5–25 |
| Linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt Suspension | Major | 7.1% | £18–45 |
| Registration plate lamp(s) inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 7.1% | £5–20 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 5.4% | £3–12 |
| Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements Brakes | Major | 5.4% | £45–110 |
| Shock absorbers has negligible damping effect Suspension | Major | 5.4% | £30–75 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Major | 3.6% | £30–80 |
| Srs malfunction indicator lamp warning lamp indicates a fault Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Major | 3.6% | £3–12 |
| Wipers blade defective Visibility | Minor | 3.6% | £8–22 |
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 | 21.4% | £200–700 |
| Coil spring corroded so that its cross sectional area is reduced and seriously weakened Suspension | Advisory | 19.6% | £25–65 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 17.9% | £80–180 |
| Individual direction indicators incorrect colour Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Advisory | 16.1% | £3–12 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 16.1% | £45–95 |
| Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes | Advisory | 12.5% | £18–45 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-60k | 8 | 100.0% | 43,157 mi |
| 60-90k | 18 | 66.7% | 75,067 mi |
| 90-120k | 24 | 66.7% | 103,899 mi |
| 120k+ | 6 | 83.3% | 141,160 mi |
Source: 56 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.
2003 325 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2003 BMW 325?
73.2% of the 56 2003 BMW 325 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.6% for cars first used in 2003. First-attempt pass rate: 66.7%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2003 BMW 325?
The three most recorded items are pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (8.93%), headlamp lens slightly defective (7.14%), linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (7.14%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2003 BMW 325 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 100.0% of the time, falling to 83.3% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2003 BMW 325 in this dataset had covered 90,583 mi.