Does the BMW 1 Series fail the MOT on steering more than it should?
The BMW 1 Series records 0.65 steering failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 2.45 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−1.80, 95% interval −1.82 to −1.78). It ranks 456 of 640 models on steering (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on steering · check a BMW 1 Series by registration
What exactly fails on steering?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the BMW 1 Series is “Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated”, recorded 5,342 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated | 5,342 | 0.24 |
| A steering ball joint with excessive wear or free play | 3,599 | 0.16 |
| Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc | 3,255 | 0.14 |
| Free play in the steering, measured at the rim of the steering wheel is excessive | 471 | 0.02 |
| EPS MIL indicating a system malfunction | 285 | 0.01 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,252,061 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a BMW 1 Series gets a steering advisory, how often does it fail next time?
4.1% of BMW 1 Series MOTs with a steering advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12 months and 6,927 miles later (10,690 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 10,690 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
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