All generations and engines together · 17,742 MOT tests in the 2025 data · typical mileage at age 7: 68k
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. 9,620 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.
The 20d, 25d and 30d diesels are prone to soot build-up in the EGR valve and cooler, and to a clogged diesel particulate filter, if the car spends its life on short town runs rather than being given a regular motorway run to burn off. A buyer will notice a warning light, rough idle, a flat feeling on acceleration, or the car dropping into limp mode. It tends to show from around 60,000 miles on town-driven cars, and an EGR clean or valve replacement runs a few hundred pounds while a DPF replacement can run well into four figures. There is no recall for it, it is just how this generation of BMW diesel behaves on short trips.
A long-standing owner complaint: clonks and creaks from the front end over speed bumps and potholes, usually traced to top mounts, drop links or control arm bushes, and worse on cars with M Sport or adaptive (EDC) suspension. The measured MOT data for this class backs it up directly, suspension is the standout fault for large SUVs in this segment, and the X4 shares its front end with the X3 so the same wear pattern applies. Expect the first creaks from 40,000-60,000 miles; a set of drop links and bushes is a modest job, but EDC damper faults cost more.
On the petrol engines (20i, 30i, M40i and their four- and six-cylinder relatives), the electric water pump and integrated thermostat housing are a known weak point, usually announcing themselves with a coolant warning light or the temperature gauge creeping up. It is a familiar theme across the whole BMW four- and six-cylinder petrol family, not just the X4, and tends to appear from roughly 50,000-90,000 miles. Replacement is a parts-and-labour job in the £400-700 range. No recall, just a part that wears out.
Some owners report the iDrive screen freezing or rebooting, Connected Drive services dropping out, or a battery that goes flat if the car sits unused for a week or two, usually traced to control units staying awake when they shouldn't. Plenty of other owners rack up six-figure mileages with none of it. It splits opinion on the forums, some blame out-of-date software that a dealer visit fixes for nothing, others see it as a recurring niggle. Nothing has been officially acknowledged for the X4 specifically.
The panoramic sunroof's drain channels can silt up with leaves and grit, and when they do the water has nowhere to go except into the roof lining, footwells or boot. A buyer would notice damp carpet, a musty smell, or damp patches in the headlining, usually after a car has gone a couple of years without the drains being flushed out. It is a cheap fix if caught early (a garage syringe-flushes the drains) but expensive if left, with electrics and interior trim to dry out or replace.
Built from the two sections above.
Same segment (Family & large SUVs), best MOT record first. Compare before you shortlist.