2016 BMW 520: MOT pass rate and reliability
87.6% of 2016 BMW 520s pass the MOT first time, measured across 12,156 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 88,382 miles.
How the 2016 compares
- Against all BMW 520s (80.7%, 76,919 tests): +6.9 points
- Against all 2016 cars (80.9%): +6.7 points
- National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%
Every BMW 520 model year
Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2016 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the BMW 520:
| Year | Pass rate | Tests | Avg mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | 72.4% | 239 | 116,317 |
| 2002 | 65.7% | 300 | 120,219 |
| 2003 | 65.8% | 360 | 113,126 |
| 2004 | 74% | 242 | 124,117 |
| 2005 | 66.3% | 526 | 170,725 |
| 2006 | 68.9% | 1,995 | 170,350 |
| 2007 | 71.1% | 3,041 | 162,057 |
| 2008 | 74% | 2,711 | 153,747 |
| 2009 | 74.2% | 3,955 | 144,447 |
| 2010 | 75.6% | 4,076 | 138,202 |
| 2011 | 76.2% | 7,598 | 136,231 |
| 2012 | 76.6% | 6,338 | 126,581 |
| 2013 | 81.5% | 6,634 | 117,620 |
| 2014 | 84.1% | 11,743 | 112,543 |
| 2015 | 86.4% | 12,343 | 100,979 |
| 2016 | 87.6% | 12,156 | 88,382 |
| 2017 | 86.8% | 1,485 | 78,803 |
What this means if you are buying a 2016 520
The 2016 is one of the stronger years for this model, passing 6.9 points more often than the BMW 520 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 10-year-old car fails on
A 2016 car is 10 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 above average, the point where suspension bushes, drop links and exhaust corrosion start showing up as advisories before they become failures. On a 2016 BMW 520 the average at test was 88,382 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.
2016 is the strongest year on record for this model at 87.6%, ahead of every other year we hold data for.
Nearby model years
- 2013 BMW 520 - 81.5%
- 2014 BMW 520 - 84.1%
- 2015 BMW 520 - 86.4%
- 2017 BMW 520 - 86.8%