Does the BMW 8 Series fail the MOT on brakes more than it should?
The BMW 8 Series records 4.60 brakes failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 8.87 expected for a car of the same age mix: less than expected for its class and age (−4.27, 95% interval −4.73 to −3.81). It ranks 547 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 8 Series by registration
What exactly fails on brakes?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the BMW 8 Series is “Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded”, recorded 135 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded | 135 | 0.84 |
| Warning device shows system malfunction | 91 | 0.56 |
| Parking brake efficiency below minimum requirement | 56 | 0.35 |
| A flexible brake hose excessively damaged, deteriorated, chafed, twisted or stretched | 43 | 0.27 |
| Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake | 39 | 0.24 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 16,114 (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 8 Series gets a brakes advisory, how often does it fail next time?
10.1% of BMW 8 Series MOTs with a brakes advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.3 months and 545 miles later (1,137 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 1,137 (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 8 Series 2018 · BMW 8 Series 2019 · BMW 8 Series 2020 · BMW 8 Series by postcode area · BMW 8 Series body, chassis and structure failures · BMW 8 Series vehicle identification failures · BMW 8 Series lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · BMW 8 Series noise, emissions and leaks failures · BMW 8 Series road wheels failures · BMW 8 Series seat belts and airbags failures · BMW 8 Series steering failures · BMW 8 Series suspension failures · BMW 8 Series tyres failures · BMW 8 Series visibility failures