Does the BMW 4 Series fail the MOT on vehicle identification more than it should?
The BMW 4 Series records 0.66 vehicle identification failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 0.26 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (+0.40, 95% interval +0.38 to +0.43). It ranks 77 of 636 models on vehicle identification (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on vehicle identification · check a BMW 4 Series by registration
What exactly fails on vehicle identification?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the BMW 4 Series is “Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements”, recorded 2,951 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements | 2,951 | 0.56 |
| Number plate showing an incorrect registration | 200 | 0.04 |
| Number plate inscription missing or illegible | 178 | 0.03 |
| Number plate missing or so insecure that it is likely to fall off | 151 | 0.03 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 525,142 (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 4 Series gets a vehicle identification advisory, how often does it fail next time?
1.8% of BMW 4 Series MOTs with a vehicle identification advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.1 months and 11,134 miles later (2,065 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 2,065 (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
BMW 4 Series 2013 · BMW 4 Series 2014 · BMW 4 Series 2015 · BMW 4 Series 2016 · BMW 4 Series 2017 · BMW 4 Series 2018 · BMW 4 Series 2019 · BMW 4 Series 2020 · BMW 4 Series by postcode area · BMW 4 Series body, chassis and structure failures · BMW 4 Series brakes failures · BMW 4 Series lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · BMW 4 Series noise, emissions and leaks failures · BMW 4 Series road wheels failures · BMW 4 Series seat belts and airbags failures · BMW 4 Series steering failures · BMW 4 Series suspension failures · BMW 4 Series tyres failures · BMW 4 Series visibility failures