Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 206,990 tests

Pass rate climbs 8.1 points across the cohorts — newer X5 examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 162,784

Pass

83.0%

Fail

13.2%

PRS

3.2%

Avg mileage at test

108,289 mi

2018–2020 cohort 42,214

Pass

91.2%

Fail

7.4%

PRS

1.0%

Avg mileage at test

47,789 mi

2021+ cohort 1,992

Pass

91.1%

Fail

7.9%

PRS

0.7%

Avg mileage at test

35,073 mi

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

Generations on file · 4

BMW X5 · UK market

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

The picture

BMW X5: solid MOT record across 102,382 tests

The BMW X5 is a mid-size luxury crossover SUV produced by BMW. The X5 made its debut in 1999 as the E53 model.

MOT data from 102,382 tests puts this car on a 80.2% first-time pass rate, above the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 94,965 miles. The most common fail item is transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated, followed by cracked or discoloured windscreen.

Reviews, and Pictures | Edmunds"](https://www.edmunds.com/bmw/x5/). _Edmunds.com_. 23 September 2020. 2. ^"All BMW X5 generations. A work of progress. G05, F15, E70, E53". 5 June 2013. Retrieved 29 July 2019. 3. ^"BMW SAVs and SACs | Discover BMW". _discover.bmw.co.uk_. Archived.

Buyers weighing up a used X5 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 40–50

A high-group car — insurance costs will be significantly above average. 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 →

40–50

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

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

01

A transmission shaft constant velocity joint boot severely deteriorated

5,184 occurrences · 2.5% of tests
02

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

4,875 occurrences · 2.4% of tests
03

A tyre cords visible or damaged

3,755 occurrences · 1.8% of tests
04

Headlamp reflector or lens slightly defective

3,286 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
05

A tyre seriously damaged

2,953 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
06

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

2,733 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
07

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

2,402 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
08

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

2,080 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
09

A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn

1,972 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
10

A lamp with a multiple light source up to 1/2 not functioning

1,921 occurrences · 0.9% 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

£70–£175

If every one of this X5'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 8.2-point gap between bands means the year you buy BMW X5 has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

91.2%

2018–2020 registration

the 2018–2020 band climbs to 91.2% — a 8.2-point improvement. Tests in this band average 47,789 miles — roughly 61K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: has a cut in excess of the…, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. The stricter post-2018 MOT test rules meant manufacturers had to tighten up emissions and electrical checks, but this band still shows far fewer major failures on suspension and bodywork than the older fleet.

Band to be cautious about

83.0%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 83.0% pass rate against a fleet average of 91.2% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: constant velocity boot severely deteriorated, damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, and lens slightly defective. Average mileage on test for this band is 108,289 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (91.2% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (83.0% pass). That's a 8.2-point spread across 162,784 older tests and 42,214 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

Headlight restoration kit

Yellowed lenses fail the light-output test. A restoration kit lifts the haze in an afternoon for £20.

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.

Get a quote →

Recall history

69 UK recalls on record.

The X5 has 69 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping an X5?

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 an X5 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.