2004 BMW 118: MOT pass rate and reliability
61.3% of 2004 BMW 118s pass the MOT first time, measured across 261 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 147,263 miles.
How the 2004 compares
- Against all BMW 118s (82.3%, 148,641 tests): -21 points
- Against all 2004 cars (64%): -2.7 points
- National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%
Every BMW 118 model year
Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2004 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the BMW 118:
| Year | Pass rate | Tests | Avg mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 61.3% | 261 | 147,263 |
| 2005 | 68.8% | 1,623 | 136,193 |
| 2006 | 67.7% | 2,660 | 135,377 |
| 2007 | 71.4% | 3,341 | 122,767 |
| 2008 | 70.7% | 5,555 | 122,113 |
| 2009 | 70.8% | 7,501 | 117,715 |
| 2010 | 72.7% | 10,041 | 112,969 |
| 2011 | 73.1% | 9,212 | 107,345 |
| 2012 | 73.2% | 5,713 | 101,828 |
| 2013 | 77.9% | 5,517 | 91,524 |
| 2014 | 80.3% | 4,377 | 90,948 |
| 2015 | 84.5% | 10,998 | 73,455 |
| 2016 | 84.8% | 13,780 | 64,685 |
| 2017 | 86.3% | 14,711 | 56,088 |
| 2018 | 86.7% | 11,105 | 47,238 |
| 2019 | 88.4% | 10,288 | 38,742 |
| 2020 | 91.2% | 18,041 | 32,366 |
| 2021 | 92% | 13,164 | 26,028 |
| 2022 | 96.1% | 726 | 20,867 |
What this means if you are buying a 2004 118
The 2004 is a weaker year for this model, passing 21 points less often than the BMW 118 average. Some of that is simply age, so compare it against the 2004 figure for all cars above rather than against newer examples. Check the exact car with the free MOT history checker before you buy, and run its VIN and mileage through our free VIN decoder and clocking check.
What a 22-year-old car fails on
A 2004 car is 22 years old now, and age drives the failure mix more than the badge does. Across all cars tested, these are the categories that actually cause failures:
- Lights and electrical: 10.36% of all cars tested
- Suspension: 8.65% of all cars tested
- Tyres: 6.23% of all cars tested
- Brakes: 6.1% of all cars tested
- Visibility: wipers, washers, glass: 4.65% of all cars tested
- Body, chassis and structure: 3.18% of all cars tested
That is very high mileage. Clutches, dual-mass flywheels and head gaskets have usually been through at least one repair by this point, so ask for evidence rather than assume the car is original everywhere. On a 2004 BMW 118 the average at test was 147,263 miles, so treat anything far above that as a car that has worked harder than its peers, and anything far below as one worth checking for the faults that come from standing still.
The strongest year for this model is 2022 at 96.1%, and the weakest in our data is 2004 at 61.3%. That 34.8 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2004 car against a newer one tells you very little.
Nearby model years
- 2005 BMW 118 - 68.8%
- 2006 BMW 118 - 67.7%
- 2007 BMW 118 - 71.4%