BMW 525 reliability, MOT pass rate and rarity

Time Period & Model

Time period snapshot: Last 5 years

Manufacturer: BMW

Model: 525

Model reliability rank

MOT-based rank from 95,459 selected-period tests.

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Overall MOT pass rate

75.8%

Share of this model's 95,459 selected-period MOT tests that pass.

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Efficiency, emissions & tax

Average MPG

CO2 emission

Euro emissions

Tax cost

£370/yr

Vehicle list price over £40,000?NoYes

Average vehicle miles

151,618

High average mileage in the analysed fleet.

Life expectancy miles

151,666

Healthy mature-fleet mileage expectation.

Average vehicle age

18.3

Older average age in the represented fleet.

Vehicles represented

10,671

10,671 valid MOT, 0 under 3 years.

Tests analysed

95,459

95,459 MOT tests in the selected period.

Rarity ranking

Based on Make & Model

Scarce

10,671On the road

Insight summary

BMW 525 is a scarce model in this snapshot, with 10,671 represented vehicles and 0.03% of the active UK pool tracked by AutoRank. For the last 5 years, it has a pass rate of 75.8% from 95,459 MOT tests, with a reliability score of 59. The current pool shows an average of 151,618 miles and an average age of 18.3 years, while mature-fleet mileage is estimated at 151,666 miles. Diesel leads the fuel split, followed by petrol, and the most frequent defect themes are windscreen damage, parking brake and lighting. The practical read is that the BMW 525 looks a little better than average, but still rewards careful checks on mileage and maintenance.

Fuel type breakdown (by model)

Fuel	Vehicles
DIESEL	7,908
PETROL	2,759
LPG	3
GAS BI-FUEL	1

Euro NCAP Safety

No NCAP tests found for this model.

Top 25 most common defects (by model)

Defect	Count
Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (3.2 (a) (i))	2,530
Parking brake efficiency below requirements (1.4.2 (a) (i))	1,770
Supplementary restraint system warning lamp indicates a fault (7.1.6 (a))	1,610
Nearside Rear Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (5.2.3 (e))	1,117
Offside Rear Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (5.2.3 (e))	966
Offside Rear Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))	788
Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (3.5 (a))	749
Nearside Front Position lamp not working (4.2.1 (a) (ii))	702
Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (5.3.4 (b) (ii))	690
Nearside Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))	682
Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (5.3.4 (b) (ii))	676
Offside Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))	662
Nearside Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))	640
Engine MIL inoperative or indicates a malfunction (8.2.1.2 (h))	634
Offside Front Track rod end ball joint has excessive play (2.1.3 (b) (i))	627
Offside Front Position lamp not working (4.2.1 (a) (ii))	607
Nearside Rear Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))	599
Nearside Front Track rod end ball joint has excessive play (2.1.3 (b) (i))	579
Nearside Rear Brake hose excessively deteriorated (1.1.12 (b) (ii))	574
Offside Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))	568
Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (5.3.4 (b) (i))	563
Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (5.3.4 (b) (i))	539
Nearside Front Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))	516
Offside Front Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))	516
Offside Rear Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))	493

All 25 defects ranked by recorded countShowing 20,397 defects across this top 25 set

Windscreen damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view (3.2 (a) (i))

2,530

Parking brake efficiency below requirements (1.4.2 (a) (i))

1,770

Supplementary restraint system warning lamp indicates a fault (7.1.6 (a))

1,610

Nearside Rear Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (5.2.3 (e))

1,117

Offside Rear Tyre tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm (5.2.3 (e))

966

Offside Rear Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))

788

Windscreen washer provides insufficient washer liquid (3.5 (a))

749

Nearside Front Position lamp not working (4.2.1 (a) (ii))

702

Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (5.3.4 (b) (ii))

690

Nearside Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))

682

Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (5.3.4 (b) (ii))

676

Offside Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))

662

Nearside Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))

640

Engine MIL inoperative or indicates a malfunction (8.2.1.2 (h))

634

Offside Front Track rod end ball joint has excessive play (2.1.3 (b) (i))

627

Offside Front Position lamp not working (4.2.1 (a) (ii))

607

Nearside Rear Coil spring fractured or broken (5.3.1 (b) (i))

599

Nearside Front Track rod end ball joint has excessive play (2.1.3 (b) (i))

579

Nearside Rear Brake hose excessively deteriorated (1.1.12 (b) (ii))

574

Offside Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))

568

Offside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (5.3.4 (b) (i))

563

Nearside Front Anti-roll bar linkage ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated (5.3.4 (b) (i))

539

Nearside Front Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))

516

Offside Front Headlamp lens slightly defective (4.1.1 (b) (i))

516

Offside Rear Registration plate lamp inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources (4.7.1 (b) (i))

493

BMW 525 reliability and MOT data