MOT fail rates

BMW M4 MOT fail rate by age

How often the BMW M4 fails its MOT at each age, compared with all cars of the same age, and what it fails on. From 47,927 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 22 September 2026

At 7 years, the most tested age

MOT fail rate at age 7 (n=7,742)14.0%

All cars at 7 years (n=10,537,318)20.6%

Median mileage at test41,498

All cars, median mileage52,953

54 of 330 model groups with enough tests fail less often at 7 years.

What stands out

At 3 years the BMW M4 fails 10.3% of MOTs (5,541 tests), 1.8 points below the 12.1% for all cars that age. At 10 years it fails 13.9% (2,751 tests), 16.5 points below the 30.3% average.
The gap is widest at 10 years: 16.5 points below all cars.
Its most common structural or mechanical fail item at 7 years: Coil spring broken, at 3.6 per 100 MOTs.

MOT fail rate by age

Solid line: this model. Dashed line: all cars at the same age.

BMW M4: share of MOT tests that failed, by age, against all cars. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars	Difference	Median mileage
3 years	10.3%	5,541	12.1%	−1.8 pts	17,605 miles
4 years	10.8%	6,085	13.4%	−2.5 pts	23,101 miles
5 years	11.6%	6,989	15.3%	−3.8 pts	28,665 miles
6 years	13.3%	7,606	17.8%	−4.5 pts	34,961 miles
7 years	14.0%	7,742	20.6%	−6.6 pts	41,498 miles
8 years	13.8%	6,637	23.8%	−10.0 pts	47,290 miles
9 years	12.7%	4,576	27.1%	−14.4 pts	52,951 miles
10 years	13.9%	2,751	30.3%	−16.5 pts	58,300 miles

Most common fail items at 7 years

Split into structural or mechanical items and wear items. Wear items (tyres, brake pads, wipers, bulbs) say more about upkeep than about the design.

Structural and mechanical

Fail item	Per 100 MOTs
Coil spring broken Major	3.6
Suspension ball joint worn Major	0.7

Out of 7,742 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Wear and upkeep

Fail item	Per 100 MOTs
Tyre with cords exposed Dangerous	5.7
Tyre condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords Major	2.3
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm Dangerous	1.3
Registration plates: does not conform to the specified requirements Major	0.9
Tyre condition: has a tear, caused by separation or partial failure of its structure Dangerous	0.6
Washers: provides insufficient washer liquid Major	0.5
Headlight aimed too high Major	0.4

Out of 7,742 MOTs. A test with two faults counts twice.

Other models at 7 years

Model	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
BMW 1 Series	17.4%	125,818	20.6%
BMW 3 Series	15.3%	120,281	20.6%
BMW 2 Series	16.5%	78,101	20.6%

MOT fail rate by first-use year

Each year has its own page: the fail rate for cars first used that year at each MOT from 2022 to 2025 with at least 1,000 tests, the most common faults at that age, and the car tax and ULEZ rules for that year.

First-use year data updated 28 September 2026.

Latest MOT age with at least 1,000 tests for each first-use year.
First used	Age at test	MOT fail rate	Tests (n)	All cars
2015	10 years in 2025	13.9%	1,806	30.3%
2016	9 years in 2025	13.9%	1,694	27.1%
2017	8 years in 2025	13.8%	1,942	23.8%
2018	7 years in 2025	13.8%	1,999	20.6%
2019	6 years in 2025	13.3%	1,723	17.8%
2020	5 years in 2025	10.6%	1,156	15.3%

More on the BMW M4

Read this with care. A fail rate is not a measure of build quality. How far cars are driven, how they are used and how well owners maintain them all change it, and wear items such as tyres and brake pads are common fails. Compare a model only with cars of the same age. Methodology and limits.

Looking at one BMW M4?

These are figures for the model, not for one car. The VetTheCar Buying Report looks at a single car: its MOT tests, defects, advisories and mileage readings.

See an example report Browse the car tools

Source

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: DVSA anonymised MOT test data, class 4 normal MOT tests, 2022 to 2025. MOT data updated 22 September 2026.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by DVSA. How we calculate these figures · Data sources