Common problems

BMW i8 common problems

What MOT testers find on the BMW i8: the parts that fail or get advisories most often at each age, against all cars of the same age. From 5,846 DVSA MOT tests taken 2022 to 2025.

MOT data updated 28 September 2026

At 7 years, the most tested age

Tyres fails per 100 MOTs (n=1,720)4.1

All cars at 7 years (n=10,537,318)6.0

Tyres advisories and minor defects per 100 MOTs (n=1,720)20.2

All cars, same age (n=10,537,318)24.8

What stands out

Number plates and VIN fails show up on 1.5 of every 100 MOTs of a BMW i8 at 7 years old (n=1,720), against 0.2 for all cars of that age (n=10,537,318).
Suspension fails are less common: 0.2 per 100 MOTs against 4.4 for all cars at the same age.
The fail item testers record most often at 7 years: tyre tread below 1.6 mm, on 2.9 per 100 MOTs (all cars 2.2).
The most common advisory or minor defect: tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge, on 15.4 per 100 MOTs.

Problems by part at 7 years

How many of every 100 MOTs found a fail, or an advisory or minor defect, in each area. A test with faults in two areas counts in both.

BMW i8 at 7 years (n=1,720) against all cars at 7 years (n=10,537,318). Per 100 MOTs.
Area	Fails	All cars	Advisories	All cars
Tyres	4.1	6.0	20.2	24.8
Lights and electrics	1.7	5.8
Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	1.6	3.4	2.6	3.3
Number plates and VIN	1.5	0.2	0.6	1.2
Body and structure	1.2	1.3	1.9	1.6
Brakes	0.6	4.1	6.4	17.9
Exhaust, emissions and leaks	0.3	1.7	0.6	1.7
Seat belts and airbags	0.3	0.4	0.1	0.3
Suspension	0.2	4.4	1.1	8.7
Road wheels	0.2	0.3	0.4	0.6
Steering	0.1	0.8	0.2	1.1

What testers fail most on the i8 at 7 years

Fail items on the BMW i8 at 7 years (n=1,720), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=10,537,318).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	Typical repair (estimate)
Tyre tread below 1.6 mm	Tyres	2.9	2.2	£88 to £145 per tyre
Registration plates: does not conform to the specified requirements	Number plates and VIN	1.2	0.1	£23 to £63 per plate (rough guide)

Early warnings: advisories and minor defects at 7 years

Advisories and minor defects are recorded, but the car still passes. Across all cars, a part with an advisory or minor defect failed at the next MOT 5.5 times in 100 (n=88,666,940 pairs of consecutive MOTs), against 0.3 times in 100 when the same part had none (n=12,936,860,350).

Advisories and minor defects on the BMW i8 at 7 years (n=1,720), per 100 MOTs, with all cars at the same age (n=10,537,318).
Item	Area	Per 100 MOTs	All cars	If it needs replacing (estimate)
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	15.4	15.0	£88 to £145 per tyre
Brake pads: wearing thin	Brakes	3.8	9.0	£72 to £174 per axle (rough guide)
Brake discs: worn, pitted or scored, but not seriously weakened	Brakes	2.7	8.0	£148 to £376 per axle (rough guide)
Tyre condition: slightly damaged/cracking or perishing	Tyres	2.7	8.9	£88 to £145 per tyre
Tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge	Tyres	2.5	2.0	£88 to £145 per tyre
Nail in tyre	Other	2.4	2.0
Windscreen: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors	1.7	1.9
Drive shaft joints: constant velocity boot severely deteriorated	Body and structure	1.7	0.5

Repair estimates are a guide for an independent garage: labour at the national median local garage rate (median £78 an hour from 65 garages, ONS price quotes) times estimated labour hours, plus a parts band. Labour hours and most parts bands are estimates, not quotes, and prices vary by model, engine and region. A warning light fault shows the cost of the diagnosis only.

How problems change with age

Fails per 100 MOTs in the three most common areas at 7 years. Ages with fewer than 1,000 tests are not shown.
Age	Tests (n)	Tyres	Lights and electrics	Windscreen, wipers and mirrors
6 years	1,323	5.4	1.3	0.8
7 years	1,720	4.1	1.7	1.6
8 years	1,527	5.1	1.7	1.6
9 years	1,276	3.2	1.8	2.1

What to check on a viewing

On the BMW i8, testers most often record tyre tread below 1.6 mm; registration plates: does not conform to the specified requirements. Look at these first, then the areas below.

Tyres

Check the tread across the full width of all four tyres, and the spare if there is one.
Look for cuts, bulges and cracking in the sidewalls.
Wear on one edge only can point to worn suspension or the tracking being out.

Lights and electrics

With someone outside, try every light: dipped and main beam, indicators, brake lights, fog lights and number plate lamps.
Check that the warning lights come on with the ignition and go out once the engine runs.
Look for misted, cracked or yellowed headlamp lenses.

Windscreen, wipers and mirrors

Look for chips or cracks in the windscreen, above all in front of the driver.
Run the wipers and washers: they should clear the screen without smearing.
Check that the mirrors are present, secure and not cracked.

Ask for the car's MOT history and service record: advisories that repeat from one year to the next show what has been left. GOV.UK MOT history.

Questions

What are the most common problems on the BMW i8?

At 7 years, the age with the most MOT tests (1,720), the fail items testers record most often on the BMW i8 are tyre tread below 1.6 mm (2.9 per 100 MOTs), registration plates: does not conform to the specified requirements (1.2 per 100 MOTs). The most common advisories or minor defects are tread depth: worn close to legal limit/worn on edge (15.4) and brake pads: wearing thin (3.8).

Which parts of the BMW i8 fail more often than on other cars?

At 7 years: number plates and VIN (1.5 per 100 MOTs against 0.2 for all cars). Compared with 10,537,318 MOTs of all cars the same age.

BMW i8 problems by area

i8 tyre problems

Other BMW models

All BMW models · Common problems by make

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.

The all cars figures cover all class 4 vehicles (cars and light vans) tested at the same age.

Looking at a BMW i8?

These figures describe the model, not the car in front of you. Found one you might buy? See what the VetTheCar Buying Report covers, or use the tools that work without a registration.

See a sample report Car tools · MOT fail rates by model · Compare models by MOT record

Repair estimates: ONS consumer price quotes for local garage labour (09/2025 to 08/2026), the MOT inspection manual for defect wording, and estimated labour hours and parts bands. Not affiliated with or endorsed by ONS.

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 28 September 2026.

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