2018 BMW 5 Series: MOT pass rate and reliability

88.7% of 2018 BMW 5 Series pass the MOT first time, measured across 18,968 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 64,995 miles.

How the 2018 compares

  • Against all BMW 5 Series (85.8%, 73,063 tests): +2.9 points
  • Against all 2018 cars (85.9%): +2.8 points
  • National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%

Every BMW 5 Series model year

Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2018 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the BMW 5 Series:

Year Pass rate Tests Avg mileage
2003 69.3% 205 141,559
2004 71.2% 271 150,065
2005 72.5% 385 158,682
2006 72.8% 751 159,057
2007 75.5% 880 157,957
2008 77.1% 803 154,282
2009 79.3% 691 148,795
2010 78.4% 662 137,607
2011 77.4% 1,059 133,870
2012 77.6% 5,920 124,637
2013 77.2% 5,907 117,987
2014 85.1% 201 101,932
2017 87.1% 13,355 74,168
2018 88.7% 18,968 64,995
2019 89.4% 15,586 53,822
2020 90.2% 4,262 41,452
2021 91.3% 1,844 37,915
2022 96.6% 355 34,175

What this means if you are buying a 2018 5 Series

The 2018 is one of the stronger years for this model, passing 2.9 points more often than the BMW 5 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 an 8-year-old car fails on

A 2018 car is 8 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 around average, so condition and service history will tell you more than the odometer does. On a 2018 BMW 5 Series the average at test was 64,995 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 96.6%, and the weakest in our data is 2003 at 69.3%. That 27.3 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2018 car against a newer one tells you very little.

Nearby model years

All BMW 5 Series MOT data · Every model