Does the BMW 7 Series fail the MOT on brakes more than it should?
The BMW 7 Series records 7.47 brakes failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 12.70 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−5.23, 95% interval −5.44 to −5.03). It ranks 574 of 712 models on brakes (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on brakes · check a BMW 7 Series by registration
What exactly fails on brakes?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the BMW 7 Series is “Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded”, recorded 1,401 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded | 1,401 | 1.23 |
| Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement | 1,210 | 1.06 |
| a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm | 815 | 0.71 |
| A flexible brake hose excessively damaged, deteriorated, chafed, twisted or stretched | 544 | 0.48 |
| Parking brake efficiency less than 50% of the required value | 451 | 0.39 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 114,240 (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 7 Series gets a brakes advisory, how often does it fail next time?
9.6% of BMW 7 Series MOTs with a brakes advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.1 months and 3,892 miles later (12,168 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,168 (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 7 Series 1999 · BMW 7 Series 2000 · BMW 7 Series 2001 · BMW 7 Series 2002 · BMW 7 Series 2003 · BMW 7 Series 2004 · BMW 7 Series 2005 · BMW 7 Series 2006 · BMW 7 Series 2007 · BMW 7 Series 2008 · BMW 7 Series 2009 · BMW 7 Series 2010 · BMW 7 Series 2011 · BMW 7 Series 2012 · BMW 7 Series 2013 · BMW 7 Series 2014 · BMW 7 Series 2015 · BMW 7 Series 2016 · BMW 7 Series 2017 · BMW 7 Series 2018 · BMW 7 Series 2019 · BMW 7 Series 2020 · BMW 7 Series in Finland · BMW 7 Series by postcode area · BMW 7 Series body, chassis and structure failures · BMW 7 Series vehicle identification failures · BMW 7 Series lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · BMW 7 Series noise, emissions and leaks failures · BMW 7 Series road wheels failures · BMW 7 Series seat belts and airbags failures · BMW 7 Series steering failures · BMW 7 Series suspension failures · BMW 7 Series tyres failures · BMW 7 Series visibility failures