BMW 1 Series — reliability by registration year
2004–2023 · 20 registration years · 377,252 first tests
2012
breaks the run — 2.3 pp worse than the years either side
Registration years
First-attempt MOT results for every 1 Series registration year with at least 500 first tests in 2025. Pass rates rise with newer cars, so read a year against its neighbours rather than against the top of the table. Years without their own report are listed here with the same figures.
| Year | First tests | First-attempt pass | Incl. PRS | Most common failure |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 1,244 | 94.6% | 96.1% | |
| 2022 | 13,102 | 90.9% | 92.1% | Tyres — Condition (front) 34.4% |
| 2021 | 17,952 | 90.3% | 91.6% | Tyres — Condition (front) 27.1% |
| 2020 | 23,203 | 87.9% | 89.2% | Tyres — Condition (front) 22.5% |
| 2019 | 26,813 | 85.3% | 87.7% | Tyres — Condition (rear) 18.3% |
| 2018 | 25,832 | 83.4% | 86.8% | Tyres — Condition (front) 13.6% |
| 2017 | 31,626 | 81.8% | 85.7% | Tyres — Condition (front) 11.4% |
| 2016 | 30,546 | 79.4% | 83.7% | Tread depth (rear) 10.9% |
| 2015 | 30,142 | 77.7% | 82.4% | Tread depth (rear) 10.8% |
| 2014 | 28,931 | 73.2% | 79.6% | Position lamp (front) 18.8% |
| 2013 | 33,958 | 69.8% | 76.2% | Position lamp (front) 16.9% |
| 2012 | 26,485 | 66.2% | 72.7% | Position lamp (front) 15.6% |
| 2.3 pp worse than the years either side What failed 2012 1 Seriess most often: Position lamp (front) (15.6%) · Linkage ball joint dust cover (front) (9.8%) · Shock absorbers (rear) (9.1%) | ||||
| 2011 | 19,761 | 67.2% | 74.1% | Shock absorbers (front) 12.1% |
| 2010 | 19,698 | 66.0% | 73.0% | Shock absorbers (front) 11.6% |
| 2009 | 16,332 | 64.9% | 72.1% | Shock absorbers (front) 9.7% |
| 2008 | 12,308 | 65.2% | 72.3% | Rbt (sp) 10.4% |
| 2007 | 7,653 | 64.2% | 72.7% | Rbt (sp) 10.8% |
| 2006 | 6,355 | 61.7% | 70.7% | Visibility — Washers 11.7% |
| 2005 | 4,265 | 61.4% | 70.3% | SRS malfunction indicator lamp 11.6% |
| 2004 | 1,046 | 60.7% | 68.9% | SRS malfunction indicator lamp 13.9% |