2021 BMW 2 Series: MOT pass rate and reliability

91.4% of 2021 BMW 2 Series pass the MOT first time, measured across 302 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 19,428 miles.

How the 2021 compares

  • Against all BMW 2 Series (88.3%, 21,034 tests): +3.1 points
  • Against all 2021 cars (90%): +1.4 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every BMW 2 Series model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2021 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the BMW 2 Series:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2014 82.7% 1,042 71,639
2015 85.2% 1,520 62,438
2016 87.8% 2,271 55,040
2017 87.8% 3,421 51,010
2018 88.1% 6,930 44,385
2019 89.9% 3,497 32,303
2020 92.4% 2,048 24,461
2021 91.4% 302 19,428

What this means if you are buying a 2021 2 Series

The 2021 is one of the stronger years for this model, passing 3.1 points more often than the BMW 2 Series average. That is a point in its favour, though condition and service history still matter more than the model year. 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 5-year-old car fails on

A 2021 car is 5 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 low mileage, which usually means light urban use. Short journeys are harder on batteries, brakes and exhausts than motorway miles, so do not assume low miles means low wear. On a 2021 BMW 2 Series the average at test was 19,428 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 2020 at 92.4%, and the weakest in our data is 2014 at 82.7%. That 9.7 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2021 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All BMW 2 Series MOT data · Every model