2015 BMW X3 MOT pass rate

2015
3 trims combined
typical 78,571 mi

Check your postcode

Pass rate by postcode →

Pass rate

85.4%

Above average — 3.3 pts ahead of the 82.1% that cars this age and mileage manage.

Across 24,197 recorded tests.

Typical repair bill £37–£89

Most common fault

Tyres

26.1% of faults · 19.8% nationally

mostly tread below the limit, cuts and sidewall bulges.

Part only £55–£85 for Tread depth below 1.6 mm. What fitting it takes →

3.2 pts down across model years — 6.7% in 2004, 3.5% in 2021.

Every failure, with what it costs →

Which year to buy

Best 2022 96.1% pass
Avoid 2005 75.1% pass

Across the 19 years on record, a spread of 21 points. See every year →

First-attempt pass: 83.0%
Typical mileage: 79k mi

The 2015 BMW X3 MOT pass rate is 85.4% of its MOT tests — 3.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. Tyres is the biggest single reason it fails, at 26.1% of what testers record.

Expert verdict

Advisories: 4.3× the national share

Advisories make up 18.1% of everything recorded on the 2015 BMW X3, against 4.2% nationally — 13.9 points above. Tyres are still the single largest share at 26.1%, but at 19.8% nationally that one is ordinary. Most of what testers record here is advisory — worth reading, not worth walking away from on its own.

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 82.1% and this one manages 85.4% — 3.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict.
When it fails, it costs. Only 19% 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.

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

Every BMW X3 first registered in 2015 is combined here — 3 trim and body variants in total — so the sample is as large as the DVSA data allows.

How does the 2015 BMW X3 compare?

Cars of this age and mileage average 82.1%, so this figure is 3.3 points ahead of what its age and mileage predict. On a first attempt, before any retests, the figure drops to 83.0%. The median 2015 BMW X3 in this dataset had covered 78,571 mi.

100% of the tests on this vehicle ran on Diesel, which passed 85.4% of the time. Pass rates also shift with the test month: tests recorded October–March passed 85.5% of the time, April–September 85.3%.

The single most recorded failure item is "Coil spring fractured or broken", noted on 4.31% of tests.

24,197 recorded tests behind this page.
85.4% overall pass rate, 83.0% on a first attempt.
Across every year of the BMW X3, the average is 85.3% — best year 2022 (96.1%), worst 2005 (75.1%).

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: 24,197
Typical mileage (median): 78,571 mi
Make and model: BMW X3
Updated: 2026-11-07

Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2023–2025), OGL v3.0.

Top part to budget for

Coil Spring

Usually a DIY or independent-garage job.

Does mileage affect the X3 MOT pass rate?

0-30k 91.9%

30-60k 88.2%

60-90k 85.1%

90-120k 84.0%

120k+ 82.5%

Pass rate by odometer reading. Bar lengths start at 74% so small gaps stay visible.

Fuel type and reliability

Diesel 85.4%

Petrol 83.3%

Pass rate by fuel type. Diesel is the most common here (100% of tests).

Where the BMW X3 is most common

Across all X3 model years on record (2004–2022): 143,421 BMW X3 cars tested in a recordable postcode area, across 317,965 tests. Birmingham (B) has the most, with 4,089 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.

#	Postcode area	Cars	Share of all	Tests	Pass rate
1	Birmingham (B)	4,089	2.9%	8,507	88.0%
2	Guildford (GU)	3,211	2.2%	7,685	84.3%
3	Reading (RG)	3,008	2.1%	7,098	85.0%
4	Peterborough (PE)	2,786	1.9%	5,971	85.9%
5	Sheffield (S)	2,590	1.8%	5,620	87.3%
6	Leicester (LE)	2,467	1.7%	5,585	86.8%
7	Nottingham (NG)	2,377	1.7%	5,179	85.1%
8	Ashford (TN)	2,175	1.5%	5,097	84.2%
9	Glasgow (G)	2,173	1.5%	5,084	85.2%
10	Coventry (CV)	2,141	1.5%	4,574	88.1%
11	High Wycombe (HP)	2,122	1.5%	4,674	86.5%
12	Newcastle upon Tyne (NE)	2,111	1.5%	5,003	86.6%
13	Kingston upon Thames (KT)	2,065	1.4%	4,571	87.0%
14	Manchester (M)	1,966	1.4%	3,988	85.8%
15	Crawley (RH)	1,914	1.3%	4,542	84.7%
16	Chelmsford (CM)	1,907	1.3%	4,232	85.9%
17	Bristol (BS)	1,853	1.3%	4,341	82.4%
18	Slough (SL)	1,819	1.3%	3,701	88.8%
19	Brighton (BN)	1,800	1.3%	4,361	82.8%
20	Gloucester (GL)	1,769	1.2%	4,307	83.1%

The twenty areas with the most BMW X3 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 →

Regional pass rates for the X3

Region	Tests	Pass rate
South East	6,440	85.4%
East of England	2,502	86.9%
North West	2,483	85.1%
South West	2,476	85.0%
West Midlands	2,040	86.8%
Yorkshire	1,844	83.5%
London	1,704	88.4%
Scotland	1,516	81.2%
East Midlands	1,502	86.4%
North East	847	84.7%
Wales	840	83.2%

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 2015 X3

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.

Tyres 26.1%

+6.3 pts vs national national 19.8% Compare tyre prices

Brakes 19.3%

−1.6 pts vs national national 20.9% Price brakes parts

Advisories 18.1%

+13.9 pts vs national national 4.2% Price advisories parts

Suspension 13.3%

−7.7 pts vs national national 21.0% Price suspension parts

Show the other 6 fault categories

Visibility 7.0%
Lamps & electrics 6.7%
Emissions & leaks 3.6%
Steering 2.8%
Identification 1.4%
Body & chassis 0.6%

Shares are of every item recorded on 2015 BMW X3 tests — a composition, so they add to 100% across all sections, not per test.

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 2015 X3

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 coil springs 4.3% of tests

“coil spring fractured or broken”

Look up inside each wheel arch with a torch, all the way round the spring. A snapped spring usually breaks at the very bottom coil, where a quick glance will not reach.
Check the windscreen 3.1% of tests

“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.
Check the wipers and washers 1.3% of tests

“wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively”

Run the wipers with the screen wet: they should clear it in one sweep without smearing or juddering. Top the washer bottle up and check both jets hit the screen.

What testers look for →

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 2015 X3 through its MOT

Across the 10 items that are recorded most often on this model, the average repair comes to £37–£89 — and 19% of those repairs are parts that cost under £30.

Average repair across the 10 common items: £37–£89
Cheapest common item: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or…: £3–£12
Dearest common item: windscreen damaged: £80–£200
Common items a careful owner can do at home: 80%
Repairs that still cost under £30: 19%

Estimates from typical UK parts prices, weighted by how often each item appears in 24,197 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 X3, side by side

19 model years on record, from 2004 to 2022. Across them the pass rate runs from 75.1% to 96.1% — a spread of 21 points. The bar under each year is the item that failed it most often.

2004 76.6% windscreen damaged but not…
2005 75.1% windscreen damaged but not…
2006 76.8% windscreen damaged but not…
2007 77.3% joints constant velocity boot…
2008 79.5% windscreen damaged but not…
2009 79.8% windscreen damaged but not…
2010 81.9% windscreen damaged but not…
2011 82.3% windscreen damaged but not…
2012 80.8% side repeaters not working
2013 81.6% side repeaters not working
2014 82.8% coil spring fractured or broken
2015 85.4%
coil spring fractured or broken
2016 85.9% coil spring fractured or broken
2017 87.9% windscreen damaged but not…
2018 90.9% windscreen damaged but not…
2019 91.5% has a cut in excess of the…
2020 91.4% has a cut in excess of the…
2021 92.6% has a cut in excess of the…
2022 96.1% windscreen damaged but not…

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 2015 BMW X3 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.

Compare 2015 with another year →

Compare two different cars instead →

Other 2015 cars with a similar record

Closest pass rates among 2015 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 2015 BMW X3 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 25,587 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
Tyres	6,750	26.10%	19.76%	+6.34
Brakes	4,999	19.30%	20.89%	−1.59
Non-component advisories	4,673	18.10%	4.18%	+13.92
Suspension	3,441	13.30%	20.98%	−7.68
Visibility	1,809	7.00%	4.97%	+2.03
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	1,737	6.70%	12.21%	−5.51
Noise, emissions and leaks	940	3.60%	5.52%	−1.92
Steering	711	2.80%	2.57%	+0.23
Identification of the vehicle	368	1.40%	1.76%	−0.36
Body, chassis, structure	159	0.60%	5.57%	−4.97

The exact failure items, in the tester's words

Share of the 24,197 tests on this vehicle that recorded each item
Recorded item	Severity	Tests	Est. cost	Part
Coil spring fractured or broken Suspension	Major	4.3%	£25–65	Coil Spring →
Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view Visibility	Minor	3.1%	£80–200	Windscreen →
Has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Tyres	Major	1.4%	£45–95	Tyres →
Wipers does not clear the windscreen effectively Visibility	Major	1.3%	£8–22	Wiper Blade →
Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres	Major	1.1%	£45–95	Tyres →
Wipers blade defective Visibility	Minor	0.99%	£8–22	Wiper Blade →
Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes	Major	0.95%	£18–45	Brake Pads Set →
Has ply or cords exposed Tyres	Major	0.90%	£45–95	Tyres →
Malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction Noise, emissions and leaks	Major	0.73%	£3–12	Indicator Bulb →
Headlamp aim projected beam image is obviously incorrect Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	Rectified	0.69%	£30–80	Headlight Alignment →

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.

Items recorded as advisory on this vehicle
Recorded item	Severity	Tests	Est. cost
Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm Tyres	Advisory	16.4%	£45–95
Non-component advisories Play in steering rack inner joint(s) Non-component advisories	Advisory	12.4%	£120–300
Brake pads less than 1.5 mm thick Brakes	Advisory	9.8%	£18–45
Brake discs in such a condition that it is seriously weakened Brakes	Advisory	5.1%	£45–110
Non-component advisories Child Seat fitted not allowing full inspection of adult belt Non-component advisories	Advisory	3.6%	£20–80
Pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn Suspension	Advisory	3.3%	£40–150

Pass rate by mileage

Mileage	Tests	Pass rate	Median odometer
0-30k	519	91.9%	23,478 mi
30-60k	5,223	88.2%	48,513 mi
60-90k	10,140	85.1%	74,942 mi
90-120k	5,779	84.0%	102,447 mi
120k+	2,524	82.5%	142,025 mi

Source: 24,197 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.

2015 X3 MOT questions

What is the MOT pass rate for a 2015 BMW X3?

85.4% of the 24,197 2015 BMW X3 tests in this dataset passed, against a national average of 82.1% for cars first used in 2015. First-attempt pass rate: 83.0%.

What are the most common MOT failures on a 2015 BMW X3?

The three most recorded items are coil spring fractured or broken (4.31%), windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (3.06%), has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.45%). Percentages are the share of tests on this vehicle that recorded the item.

Does mileage affect the 2015 BMW X3 MOT pass rate?

Yes. Cars under 30,000 miles passed 91.9% of the time, falling to 82.5% for those over 120,000 miles. The median 2015 BMW X3 in this dataset had covered 78,571 mi.

Which fuel type is most reliable for a 2015 BMW X3?

Diesel: 85.4% pass rate across 24,167 tests. Petrol: 83.3% pass rate across 30 tests. Shares are of the tests on this vehicle that recorded each fuel type.

Does the season affect the 2015 BMW X3 MOT pass rate?

Tests recorded in the winter months (October–March) passed 85.5% of the time; summer months (April–September) passed 85.3%. Brakes, tyres and lights are tested harder in bad weather, but the difference is small on most models.