BMW 1 MOT reliability

BMW 1s passed their MOT first time 66% of the time across 44 tests in 2025.

Example photo of a BMW 1 — Photo: Alexander-93 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

These figures come from 44 MOT tests. That's a fairly small number of cars, so they may not be typical of these cars as a whole.

First-time pass rate

66%

MOTs analysed

44

Still licensed (GB)

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Body type

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Pass rate by year of first registration

Older cars fail more often, so compare a car with others of the same age. Years with very few MOTs can show extreme pass rates, even 0% or 100%, so give more weight to years with more tests.

In detail:

First registered

2009 petrol

5 MOTs

These figures come from only 5 MOT tests. With so few cars, a single pass or fail changes the percentages a lot, so treat them as a rough guide rather than a true average.

Passed first time 60%. Typical mileage 101,704 (most between 77,317 and 101,707).

2012: 100% → 2013: 88% → 2014: 88% → 2015: 86% → 2016: 86% → 2017: 88% → 2018: 100% → 2019: 67% → 2020: 83% → 2021: 50% → 2022: 67% → 2023: 25% → 2024: 75% → 2025: 60%

Most common failures

Catalyst emissions: Lambda reading after 2nd fast idle outside specified limits (20.0%)
Headlamp aim: too low (20.0%)
Size/type: of different sizes are fitted on the same axle. (20.0%)

2009 diesel

3 MOTs

These figures come from only 3 MOT tests. With so few cars, a single pass or fail changes the percentages a lot, so treat them as a rough guide rather than a true average.

Passed first time 67%. Typical mileage 170,957 (most between 109,992 and 178,029).

2012: 75% → 2013: 50% → 2014: 83% → 2015: 100% → 2016: 75% → 2017: 75% → 2018: 75% → 2019: 60% → 2020: 75% → 2021: 67% → 2022: 67% → 2023: 75% → 2024: 67% → 2025: 67%

Most common failures

Attachment: fixing missing (33.3%)
Brake pads: worn down to wear indicator (33.3%)
Condition: has ply or cords exposed (33.3%)
Headlamp: not working on dipped beam (33.3%)
Rbt (sp): efficiency below requirements (33.3%)

Where 2009 1s fail

Wheels & tyres

20.0%

Lights & electrics

20.0%

Exhaust, emissions & leaks

20.0%

Looking at a particular car?

See its own MOT history, mileage and red flags, compared with these figures. Free.

Based on 2025 initial MOT tests in DVSA's anonymised MOT dataset (cars and light vans). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Model details: Vehicle data by VehiclesDB.