BMW 4 Series MOT Pass Rate & Official DVSA Failure Statistics

BMW 4 Series MOT History and Failure Rates vs UK National Average

The BMW 4 Series passed on its first attempt in 83.2%, and its overall record sits +4.4 percentage points above the national average for all cars. These figures come from every recorded DVSA MOT test for the BMW 4 Series in the 2023–2025 data: 4,215 tests across 7 model years (2013–2019). 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 4 Series MOT Problems by Failure Category

Every MOT failure a tester records belongs to one inspection section of the DVSA manual. For the BMW 4 Series, 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 4 Series's recorded defect strings, merged across its year pages.

Top Recorded BMW 4 Series DVSA MOT Test Statistics & Defect Descriptions

The descriptions below are the exact DVSA failure strings testers recorded most often for the BMW 4 Series, each with how many of the model's 4,215 tests it was noted on.

• "Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view" (Minor) — noted on about 126 BMW 4 Series tests, 3.0% of the model's MOT record.
• "Shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak" (Major) — noted on about 81 BMW 4 Series tests, 1.9% of the model's MOT record.
• "Has ply or cords exposed" (Major) — noted on about 65 BMW 4 Series tests, 1.5% 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 58 BMW 4 Series tests, 1.4% of the model's MOT record.
• "Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm" (Major) — noted on about 43 BMW 4 Series tests, 1.0% of the model's MOT record.
• "Rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements" (Major) — noted on about 34 BMW 4 Series tests, 0.8% of the model's MOT record.

Best and Worst BMW 4 Series Model Years by Pass Rate

The strongest BMW 4 Series model year on record is 2018 (92.1% across 365 tests), and the weakest is 2015 (83.2%). The gap between them is 8.9 points. Years with fewer than 50 recorded tests are excluded, so these are the years with enough MOT history to mean something.

BMW 4 Series reliability is improving in the DVSA data — the pass rate moves about 1.6 points a year across the most recent model years shown above.

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

Pre-MOT Inspection Checklist for BMW 4 Series Owners

These checks follow this BMW 4 Series's own most-recorded failure strings, starting with what a tester is most likely to flag on a BMW 4 Series.

• 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 shock absorbers — “shock absorbers has a serious fluid leak”

  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.

• 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.

Derived from the DVSA failure strings testers recorded for the BMW 4 Series. A check that finds nothing means the item is likely fine, not that the test is guaranteed.

Frequently Asked Questions: BMW 4 Series MOT & Reliability