Pass rate
80.6%
Around average — 8.0 pts ahead of the 72.6% that cars this age and mileage manage.
Across 103 recorded tests.
Typical repair bill £11–£32
2003 BMW 760 MOT pass rate
- 2003
- typical 112,514 mi
Check your postcode
Most common fault
Brakes
23.6% of faults · 20.9% nationally
mostly worn pads and discs, corroded pipes and a handbrake that will not hold.
Which year to buy
- Best 2010 89.5% pass
- Avoid 2004 73.2% pass
Across the 7 years on record, a spread of 16.3 points. See every year →
- First-attempt pass
- 76.5%
- Typical mileage
- 113k mi
The 2003 BMW 760 MOT pass rate is 80.6% of its MOT tests — 8.0 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Brakes is the biggest single reason it fails, at 23.6% of what testers record.
Expert verdict
Emissions & leaks: 2.8× the national share
Emissions & leaks make up 15.7% of everything recorded on the 2003 BMW 760, against 5.5% nationally — 10.2 points above. Brakes are still the single largest share at 23.6%, 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.
- 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 72.6% and this one manages 80.6% — 8.0 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
- Failures here tend to be cheap ones. 67% of the repairs this model fails on cost under £30 in parts. The pass rate matters less than what a bad afternoon at the test centre actually costs you.
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 760? Get an email when these numbers change .
How does the 2003 BMW 760 compare?
Cars of this age and mileage average 72.6%, so this figure is 8.0 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 76.5%. The median 2003 BMW 760 in this dataset had covered 112,514 mi.
Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 80.7% of the time, April–September 80.4%.
The single most recorded failure item is "Headlamp lens slightly defective", noted on 5.83% of tests.
- 103 recorded tests behind this page.
- 80.6% overall pass rate, 76.5% on a first attempt.
- Across every year of the BMW 760, the average is 81.4% — best year 2010 (89.5%), worst 2004 (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
- 103
- Typical mileage (median)
- 112,514 mi
- Make and model
- BMW 760
- Updated
- 2026-11-07
Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.
Top part to budget for
Headlight Bulb
Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.
Does mileage affect the 760 MOT pass rate?
Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 65% so small gaps stay visible.
Regional pass rates for the 760
| Region | Tests | Pass rate |
|---|---|---|
| South East | 22 | 86.4% |
| West Midlands | 15 | 80.0% |
| East of England | 15 | 73.3% |
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 760
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 760
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 5.8% 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 suspension joints 3.9% of tests
“ball joint 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.
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 760 through its MOT
Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £11–£32 — and 67% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.
- Average repair across the 10 common items
- £11–£32
- Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…
- £3–£12
- Dearest common item: has ply or cords exposed
- £45–£95
- Common items a careful owner can do at home
- 90%
- Repairs that still cost under £30
- 67%
Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 103 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 760, side by side
7 model years on record, from 2003 to 2014. Across them the pass rate runs from 73.2% to 89.5% — a spread of 16.3 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.
- 2003 80.6%headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2004 73.2% headlamp lens slightly defective
- 2005 78.9% rbt (sp) efficiency below…
- 2006 83.3% wipers does not clear the…
- 2007 88.2% ball joint dust cover no longer…
- 2010 89.5% windscreen damaged but not…
- 2014 81.3% coil spring fractured or broken
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 760 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
- Porsche Boxster 80.4%
- Subaru Impreza 80.0%
- Mercedes-Benz S-Class 81.7%
- Jaguar Xj 78.8%
- Mercedes-Benz Slk 78.3%
- Lexus IS200 78.0%
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 760 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 226 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 | 54 | 23.60% | 20.89% | +2.71 |
| Tyres | 41 | 17.90% | 19.76% | −1.86 |
| Noise, emissions and leaks | 36 | 15.70% | 5.52% | +10.18 |
| Suspension | 33 | 14.40% | 20.98% | −6.58 |
| Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | 27 | 11.80% | 12.21% | −0.41 |
| Visibility | 12 | 5.20% | 4.97% | +0.23 |
| Body, chassis, structure | 7 | 3.10% | 5.57% | −2.47 |
| Non-component advisories | 7 | 3.10% | 4.18% | −1.08 |
| Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | 5 | 2.20% | 0.82% | +1.38 |
| Steering | 4 | 1.70% | 2.57% | −0.87 |
The exact failure items, in the tester's words
| Recorded item | Severity | Tests | Est. cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Headlamp lens slightly defective Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Minor | 5.8% | £5–25 |
| Ball joint excessively worn Suspension | Major | 3.9% | £18–45 |
| Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks | Major | 3.9% | £3–12 |
| Srs malfunction indicator lamp warning lamp indicates a fault Seat belts and supplementary restraint systems | Major | 3.9% | £3–12 |
| Electronic stability control warning lamp indicates a fault Brakes | Major | 2.9% | £3–15 |
| Headlamp aim too low Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment | Rectified | 2.9% | £30–80 |
| Mirrors slightly damaged Visibility | Minor | 2.9% | £3–15 |
| Anti-lock braking system warning lamp indicates an ABS fault Brakes | Major | 1.9% | £3–15 |
| Ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated Suspension | Minor | 1.9% | £18–45 |
| Has ply or cords exposed 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Engine oil leaks leaking excessively from engine Noise, emissions and leaks | Advisory | 22.3% | £200–700 |
| Rigid brake pipes excessively corroded Brakes | Advisory | 20.4% | £80–180 |
| Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension | Advisory | 17.5% | £40–150 |
| Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres | Advisory | 17.5% | £45–95 |
| Flexible brake hoses excessively deteriorated Brakes | Advisory | 9.7% | £25–70 |
| Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes | Advisory | 6.8% | £45–110 |
Pass rate by mileage
| Mileage | Tests | Pass rate | Median odometer |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30-60k | 10 | 80.0% | 51,839 mi |
| 60-90k | 9 | 100.0% | 73,157 mi |
| 90-120k | 45 | 73.3% | 107,592 mi |
| 120k+ | 37 | 86.5% | 151,958 mi |
Source: 103 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 760 MOT questions
What is the MOT pass rate for a 2003 BMW 760?
80.6% of the 103 2003 BMW 760 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 72.6% for cars first used in 2003. First-attempt pass rate: 76.5%.
What are the most common MOT failures on a 2003 BMW 760?
The three most recorded items are headlamp lens slightly defective (5.83%), ball joint excessively worn (3.88%), malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction (3.88%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.
Does mileage affect the 2003 BMW 760 MOT pass rate?
Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 80.0% of the time, falling to 86.5% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2003 BMW 760 in this dataset had covered 112,514 mi.
Does the season affect the 2003 BMW 760 MOT pass rate?
Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 80.7% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 80.4%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.