At a glance
How 1,360 first tests went in 2025.
- Passed first time
- 78 in every 100
- Did not pass first time
- 22 in every 100301 failed first-attempt tests
- The typical car
- 13 yearsabout 97,830 miles
- First tests counted
- 1,360
What failed most often
- Coil spring (rear)19 in every 100 failed tests
How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.
These are patterns across 2012 BMW 6 Series vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. A wear pattern follows age and use more than the way the car was built. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.
Suspension
One fault: coil spring (rear), 4.4 times as often as on similar cars.
Figures below are measured across the 301 failed first attempts in 2025 that had a mileage recorded, which allows a like-for-like comparison.
We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.
Coil spring (rear)
What it means
A missing bump stop rubber is not a reason to fail a coil spring. When the vehicle is jacked and lowered, a spring that does not correctly locate as the suspension returns to its normal running position is rejected as insecurely attached. A missing spring is Major, and graded Dangerous where directional control is affected.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
Tyres
Two wear patterns. The strongest is the tyre condition (rear): 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.
Tyre condition (rear)
What it means
Exposed or damaged ply or cords are graded Dangerous. A cut in excess of the requirements and deep enough to reach the ply or cords is Major, and testers may open the cut with a blunt instrument to check its depth. A tyre contacting the vehicle through flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; fouling fails only at the time of test.
Tyre condition (front)
What it means
Exposed or damaged ply or cords are graded Dangerous. A cut in excess of the requirements and deep enough to reach the ply or cords is Major, and testers may open the cut with a blunt instrument to check its depth. A tyre contacting the vehicle through flexing or suspension movement is not a defect; fouling fails only at the time of test.
Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.
MOT pass rates
How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.
- Passed first time
- 78in every 100
- Passed on the first test.
- Fixed at the station
- 3in every 100
- Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
- Failed
- 19in every 100
- Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.
First-attempt pass 77.9% of 1,360 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 81.0%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 3 fixed and the 19 not fixed make the 22 in every 100 that did not pass first time.
Same model, other years
Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.
Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 79 in every 100 passed first time.
| Year | Passed first time | First tests |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 70 in every 100 | 917 |
| 2005 | 69 in every 100 | 1,113 |
| 2006 | 70 in every 100 | 1,283 |
| 2007 | 74 in every 100 | 1,081 |
| 2008 | 76 in every 100 | 980 |
| 2009 | 75 in every 100 | 530 |
| 2010 | 80 in every 100 | 493 |
| 2011 | 77 in every 100 | 583 |
| 2012 This car | 78 in every 100 | 1,360 |
| 2013 | 79 in every 100 | 1,784 |
| 2014 | 78 in every 100 | 1,816 |
| 2015 | 82 in every 100 | 1,820 |
| 2016 | 85 in every 100 | 1,726 |
| 2017 | 84 in every 100 | 1,254 |
| 2018 | 86 in every 100 | 2,168 |
| 2019 | 88 in every 100 | 990 |
FAQs
Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.
About this data
How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.
These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.
What we include
UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.
Same-day repairs
PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.
How we compare
We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.
What this does not cover
- MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
- Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
- Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
- If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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