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Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. RegFlags uses MOT, recall and licensing data, and Vehicle Certification Agency emissions data. It does not check outstanding finance, theft or insurance write-offs. Vehicle data by VehiclesDB.A Steady Circuit product
v0.1.9 17 Oct 23:22:22 UTC
  1. Reliability
  2. /
  3. BMW
  4. /
  5. 535

BMW 535 MOT reliability

BMW 535s passed their MOT first time 81% of the time across 7,710 tests in 2025.

First-time pass rate

81%

MOTs analysed

7,710

Still licensed (GB)

–

Body type

–

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
2015
First registered
2015 diesel
1,108 MOTs

Passed first time 86%. Typical mileage 92,191 (most between 73,816 and 113,983).

2016: 100% → 2017: 98% → 2018: 86% → 2019: 88% → 2020: 90% → 2021: 88% → 2022: 86% → 2023: 86% → 2024: 85% → 2025: 86%

Most common failures
  1. Condition: has ply or cords exposed (2.3%)
  2. Tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (2.0%)
  3. Coil spring: fractured or broken (1.9%)
  4. Shock absorbers: has a serious fluid leak (1.2%)
  5. Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (1.1%)
2015 petrol
144 MOTs

Passed first time 92%. Typical mileage 61,363 (most between 45,049 and 82,300).

2017: 100% → 2018: 92% → 2019: 94% → 2020: 91% → 2021: 86% → 2022: 90% → 2023: 89% → 2024: 86% → 2025: 92%

Most common failures
  1. Wipers: does not clear the windscreen effectively (2.1%)
  2. Condition: has ply or cords exposed (1.4%)
  3. Bumpers: damaged and likely to cause injury when grazed or contacted (0.7%)
  4. Condition: buckle not functioning as intended (0.7%)
  5. Condition: has a cut in excess of the requirements deep enough to reach the ply or cords (0.7%)
Where 2015 535s fail

Wheels & tyres

7.8%

Suspension & axles

4.0%

Visibility & wipers

2.1%

Lights & electrics

1.7%

Brakes

0.8%

Exhaust, emissions & leaks

0.3%

Body, structure & corrosion

0.1%

Looking at a particular car?

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

🇬🇧UK
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.