Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 86,613 tests

Pass rate climbs 15.7 points across the cohorts — newer 120 examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 81,390

Pass

77.0%

Fail

17.6%

PRS

4.7%

Avg mileage at test

103,421 mi

2018–2020 cohort 4,728

Pass

89.6%

Fail

8.6%

PRS

1.4%

Avg mileage at test

41,748 mi

2021+ cohort 495

Pass

92.7%

Fail

4.8%

PRS

2.4%

Avg mileage at test

27,937 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

Generations on file · 4

BMW 120 · UK market

Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.

The picture

BMW 120: mixed MOT record across 54,300 tests

The BMW 120 is a diesel-powered car sold in the UK market across multiple generations, covering a broad date range in the test population.

MOT data from 54,300 tests puts this car on a 76.1% first-time pass rate, roughly in line with the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 96,968 miles. The most common fail item is cracked or discoloured windscreen, followed by tyre tread below the legal limit.

Buyers weighing up a used 120 should treat the failure breakdown as a pre-purchase checklist. The pass rate is reasonable, but the gap between first attempt and a clean sheet narrows with age and mileage.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 22–34

Above average — worth comparing quotes before buying. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

22–34

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

2,815 occurrences · 3.3% of tests
02

A shock absorber damaged to the extent that it does not function or showing signs of severe leakage

2,226 occurrences · 2.6% of tests
03

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

2,170 occurrences · 2.5% of tests
04

A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources

1,891 occurrences · 2.2% of tests
05

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

1,179 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
06

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

1,131 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
07

A tyre cords visible or damaged

920 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
08

Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement

885 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
09

A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

882 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
10

A tyre seriously damaged

867 occurrences · 1.0% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures

£148–£370

If every one of this 120's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 15.7-point gap between bands means the year you buy BMW 120 has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

92.7%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 92.7% — a 15.7-point improvement. Tests in this band average 27,937 miles — roughly 75K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, malfunctioning or obviously inoperative — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

77.0%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 77.0% pass rate against a fleet average of 92.7% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, has a serious fluid leak, and tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm. Average mileage on test for this band is 103,421 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (92.7% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (77.0% pass). That's a 15.7-point spread across 81,390 older tests and 495 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Summit

Summit ADRG-640 BMW Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass LHS

£10.99

View at My Motor World →

Summit

Summit ADRG-904 BMW Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass RHS

£10.99

View at My Motor World →

Summit

Summit ADRG-905 BMW Replacement Stick-On Tinted Mirror Glass LHS

£10.99

View at My Motor World →

Draper Expert

Draper Expert Oil Filter Socket for Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche and VW

£18.69

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

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Buying or keeping a 120?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own a 120 and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.