Photo: Vauxford, CC BY-SA 4.0
BMW
1,614 MOT tests analysed. sits above the UK fleet average — here's where S 1000 XR TEs pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 19.8 points above the UK fleet average across our 1,984 tracked models — a confident result.
Pass
97.3%
Pass-after-fix
1.1%
Fail
1.6%
Avg miles
9,364
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Petrol cars first registered from January 2006 meet Euro 4 — compliant in London ULEZ, Birmingham CAZ, Bristol CAZ, and Glasgow LEZ.
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 1,614 tests
Pass rate is broadly flat across the cohorts — new and old S 1000 XR TE examples track each other at the test bay.
Pass
97.4%
Fail
1.9%
PRS
0.6%
Avg mileage at test
10,111 mi
Pass
97.2%
Fail
1.3%
PRS
1.4%
Avg mileage at test
8,789 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
The picture
Across 1,614 MOT tests, the S 1000 Xr Te returns 97.3% first-time pass — comfortably ahead of the UK fleet average. The single most-logged Major fail is uneven braking force. A non-conforming number plate and a number-plate lamp out round out the top three. Average tested mileage sits at 9,364, which is the lens to read those failure rankings through. If you own one and the next test is close, the ranked list below is a sensible pre-test checklist.
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Excessive fluctuation in brake effort through each wheel revolution
5 occurrences · 0.3% of tests
Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements
4 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
4 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
A footrest missing or insecure
3 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
Audible warning not working
3 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
A direction indicator lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
3 occurrences · 0.2% of tests
A wheel bearing excessively rough
2 occurrences · 0.1% of tests
Reflector missing or reflecting white to the rear
2 occurrences · 0.1% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of a single lamp or all lamps
2 occurrences · 0.1% of tests
Headlamp ‘dip’ switch does not operate in accordance with the requirements
2 occurrences · 0.1% 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 2 failures
£23–£70
If every one of this S 1000 XR TE'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 →
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Build your own retest budget.
Year-band analysis
First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. Pass rates barely move across bands here, so the year you buy BMW S 1000 XR TE makes little measurable difference to MOT outcomes.
Best band to buy
97.4%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 97.4% — a 0.3-point improvement. Failures here are mostly wear items: indicates excessive fluctuation of brake effort, does not conform to the specified requirements — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band.
Band to be cautious about
97.2%
2021+ registration
On the 2021-on band, the data shows a 97.2% pass rate against a fleet average of 97.4% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: missing in the case of multiple lamps…, insecure, and not working. Average mileage on test for this band is 8,789 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (97.4% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: 2021+ (97.2% pass). That's a 0.3-point spread across 912 older tests and 702 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.
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
MOT-spec replacement number plate
Faded or non-standard plates fail outright. Replacements take ten minutes online with V5C details.
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
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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 S 1000 XR TE 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.