2008 BMW 530: MOT pass rate and reliability
78.8% of 2008 BMW 530s pass the MOT first time, measured across 1,235 DVSA tests on that model year alone. The average one had covered 147,840 miles.
How the 2008 compares
- Against all BMW 530s (79.5%, 22,238 tests): -0.7 points
- Against all 2008 cars (64.7%): +14.1 points
- National first-time pass rate, all cars and years: 77%
Every BMW 530 model year
Pass rates fall as cars age, so the only fair comparison for a 2008 car is other cars of the same age. The full run for the BMW 530:
| Year | Pass rate | Tests | Avg mileage |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | 70.7% | 246 | 150,253 |
| 2001 | 72.5% | 600 | 148,948 |
| 2002 | 73.7% | 1,014 | 150,363 |
| 2003 | 70.2% | 1,136 | 147,606 |
| 2004 | 73.6% | 1,233 | 151,151 |
| 2005 | 73.2% | 1,405 | 159,254 |
| 2006 | 74.7% | 1,544 | 157,327 |
| 2007 | 77.7% | 1,583 | 154,725 |
| 2008 | 78.8% | 1,235 | 147,840 |
| 2009 | 80.4% | 1,084 | 140,709 |
| 2010 | 78.6% | 2,064 | 129,769 |
| 2011 | 79.9% | 1,475 | 124,934 |
| 2012 | 78.8% | 987 | 119,032 |
| 2013 | 86.2% | 777 | 114,465 |
| 2014 | 86.5% | 1,794 | 101,256 |
| 2015 | 87.1% | 1,887 | 90,932 |
| 2016 | 88.6% | 1,575 | 81,909 |
| 2017 | 88% | 259 | 73,328 |
What this means if you are buying a 2008 530
The 2008 sits close to the BMW 530 average, so there is no strong model-year signal either way. Judge the individual car on its own history. 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 18-year-old car fails on
A 2008 car is 18 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 2008 BMW 530 the average at test was 147,840 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 2016 at 88.6%, and the weakest in our data is 2003 at 70.2%. That 18.4 point spread across the model's life is why comparing a 2008 car against a newer one tells you very little.
Nearby model years
- 2005 BMW 530 - 73.2%
- 2006 BMW 530 - 74.7%
- 2007 BMW 530 - 77.7%
- 2009 BMW 530 - 80.4%
- 2010 BMW 530 - 78.6%
- 2011 BMW 530 - 79.9%