All generations and engines together · 165,074 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 80k
Split by first-registration year. Cars registered in a changeover year can belong to either generation.
Computed from DVSA MOT results, all of Great Britain, 2025. Nothing here is opinion.
Share of tests where each item was recorded. The dark tick is the class average across all tracked models; bars are scaled within each group.
The rows that judge the model rather than its keeper. 65,307 tests in this band.
Tyres, pads and stone chips say more about how the car was driven and maintained than about how it was built.
Owner folklore from forums and the motoring press. Most of it never shows up in an MOT, which is why this section exists at all.
Early N47 diesel engines (pre-2011 build) can suffer timing chain tensioner failure, sometimes as early as 74-83k miles, and BMW recalled affected diesels to replace the tensioner and chain if stretched. The N20 turbo petrol that followed has its own version of the problem, with plastic timing chain guides that go brittle and snap. A failed chain on either engine usually means a rattle on cold start followed by a bent-valve engine rebuild, £3,000-£6,500.
On older diesel engines the intake manifold swirl flap actuators can snap and get pulled into the cylinder, wrecking the engine internally. It is mostly an E60-era problem (2003-2010 diesels) but the same design carried into early F10 units. No recall exists; the accepted fix is an aftermarket blanking plate that removes the flaps rather than repairing them, which tells you how widely owners distrust the factory part.
Owners across generations report clonks and creaks from front wishbone bushes, and there are enough reports of outright coil spring breakage on the motorway to take it seriously, one on a 2011 525d with the bush also failing under warranty at just 28,000 miles. This lines up with the measured MOT data, where suspension is the standout fault for this model in the saloon/estate segment: the folklore and the numbers agree on where the weak point is, even if the exact part (bush versus spring versus mount) varies by report.
The 'sealed for life' ZF automatic gearboxes fitted across E60 and F10 cars are not really sealed for life in practice. Owners report clunking and failed shifts from around 120-150k miles, with full replacement quoted at over £3,500, and a fluid flush every 60k is the commonly recommended preventive step. A separate leaking transmission sump pan has also been reported on some F10 diesels, starving the clutch packs of oil. Manual cars are not affected.
A poor earth connection on the battery cable can trigger false dashboard warnings and, in some cases, the engine cutting out while driving. BMW covered this under a recall, and a related rear light cluster wiring fault with an inadequate earth connection was also addressed. Worth checking the MOT history for repeated electrical advisories, since it suggests the fix was never properly done.
F10-era diesels have a history of EGR cooler failures, with at least one owner reporting smoke from the engine bay and coolant loss alongside an amber drivetrain warning light. There are also reports of oil level creeping up during DPF regeneration on 520d models, pointing to fuel getting into the oil. Neither has an official recall attached, but both show up repeatedly enough in owner reports to flag.
Built from the two sections above.
Same segment (Saloons & estates), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.
Head to head with the other popular cars in its class on reliability and common faults.