BMW 535: MOT pass rate and reliability data

The BMW 535 passes its MOT first time more often than the average UK car, by 6.2 percentage points. These figures come from the DVSA's full year of anonymised MOT results, covering 8,313 individual BMW 535 tests. Nothing here is an estimate or a survey.

The numbers

What this means if you are buying one

A 82.9% first-time pass rate means roughly 17 in every 100 BMW 535s presented for MOT fail on the first attempt. That is better than average, so a well-kept example is a reasonably safe used buy. The average BMW 535 tested had covered 115,782 miles and was built around 2010.

What this means at salvage auction

Pass rate is a proxy for what a car costs to keep on the road. On a BMW 535 bought as a repairable salvage, the mechanical side is less likely to spring surprises, so your repair estimate should hold up reasonably well.

Before you bid: run the lot through the analyzer, check the car's own record, check the mileage, decode the VIN, and if it carries a marker use the write-off value calculator. Or compare it against another model.

Looking at a specific BMW 535 rather than the model in general? The free check covers its MOT and mileage history, and the full HPI report confirms the insurance write-off category, outstanding finance and whether it is recorded stolen, from licensed data for 5 credits. Already own one that has been damaged? Work out whether fixing it beats selling it with the repair or scrap calculator, and see what damaged BMW 535s actually sold for at UK salvage auction.

Most common MOT failures on a BMW 535

1. An SRS malfunction indicator lamp (MIL) indicates a system malfunction, 0.5% of tests (1.54x the national rate for this defect)
2. A tyre cords visible or damaged, 1.7% of tests (1.39x the national rate for this defect)
3. A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn, 2.1% of tests
4. Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements, 2% of tests
5. A tyre seriously damaged, 1.9% of tests
6. A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened, 1.2% of tests
7. A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc, 1.1% of tests
8. The aim of a headlamp is not within limits laid down in the requirements, 0.9% of tests
9. Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement, 0.7% of tests
10. Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen, 0.7% of tests

From 16,340 DVSA-tracked BMW 535 tests, 2024. DVSA testers marked 5.83% of these flagged BMW 535 defects as "dangerous", meaning the tester judged the car unsafe to drive away, against 4.97% nationally.

BMW 535 pass rate by model year

Pass rates fall steadily as cars age, so the model year matters as much as the model. First-time pass rate for each BMW 535 year:

• 2005 BMW 535 - 79.4% first-time pass, 660 tests
• 2006 BMW 535 - 79.3% first-time pass, 676 tests
• 2007 BMW 535 - 79.2% first-time pass, 707 tests
• 2008 BMW 535 - 79.4% first-time pass, 476 tests
• 2009 BMW 535 - 78.4% first-time pass, 268 tests
• 2010 BMW 535 - 78.6% first-time pass, 318 tests
• 2011 BMW 535 - 84.2% first-time pass, 526 tests
• 2012 BMW 535 - 85.7% first-time pass, 279 tests
• 2013 BMW 535 - 86.6% first-time pass, 359 tests
• 2014 BMW 535 - 87.7% first-time pass, 894 tests
• 2015 BMW 535 - 86.7% first-time pass, 1,281 tests
• 2016 BMW 535 - 89% first-time pass, 1,150 tests

BMW 535 by fuel type

Diesel and petrol versions of the same car fail on different things, so the fuel type moves the number:

• Diesel BMW 535 - 83.5% first-time pass, 7,105 tests
• Petrol BMW 535 - 82.9% first-time pass, 1,146 tests

Other BMW models

• BMW 3 Series - 76.8%
• BMW 118 - 81.9%
• BMW 116 - 78.6%
• BMW X1 - 85.2%
• BMW X3 - 82.3%
• BMW X5 - 81.2%
• BMW 1 Series - 81.6%
• BMW 520 - 80.2%

Models with a similar pass rate

• MINI One Auto - 83%
• Peugeot 208 GT Line Ev - 83%
• Renault Clio Iconic Blue Dci - 83%
• Ford Tourneo Custom 320 Ti Eblue A - 82.9%
• Mercedes-Benz Cla - 82.8%
• Jeep Grand Cherokee - 82.8%

If this car is a salvage or write-off

• What does Cat N mean? Category N explained
• What does Cat S mean? Category S explained
• Cat S vs Cat N: the real differences

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All 2,005 models ranked by MOT pass rate