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1988 BMW 730 — MOT History by Age

How cars manufactured in 1988 perform at MOT as they age

38 years
Current Age
51.6%
Latest Pass Rate
213
Total Tests (All Years)
143,970 mi
Avg Mileage (Latest)

Data from official DVSA MOT testing records

Insufficient data for same-age comparison.

How This Car Ages

Pass rate progression for the 1988 BMW 730 as it ages.

21 yrs57.7%
22 yrs55.4%
23 yrs47.8%
24 yrs51.6%

Bar chart showing pass rate by car age from 21 to 24 years

Fail Rate %
📊 View as table
AgePass RateTests
21 yrs57.7%71
22 yrs55.4%65
23 yrs47.8%46
24 yrs51.6%31

Pass Rate Trend

How the 1988 BMW 730 pass rate changes as it ages, from first MOT to most recent.

Trend shows declining over 4 years

Pass Rate %
📊 View as table
BuiltPass RateTests
2012 (24 yrs)51.6%31
2011 (23 yrs)47.8%46
2010 (22 yrs)55.4%65
2009 (21 yrs)57.7%71

Year-by-Year MOT Results

2009High Fail Rate
57.7%
Age (yrs) 21Tests 71Avg Mileage 181,636Top Failure Brakes — 28.2%
2010High Fail Rate
55.4%
Age (yrs) 22Tests 65Avg Mileage 157,890Top Failure Lamps, Reflectors and Electrical Equipment — 29.2%
2011High Fail Rate
47.8%
Age (yrs) 23Tests 46Avg Mileage 154,003Top Failure Exhaust, Fuel and Emissions — 26.1%
2012High Fail Rate
51.6%
Age (yrs) 24Tests 31Avg Mileage 143,970Top Failure Suspension — 32.3%

Common MOT Failures

Top failure categories across all test years for 1988 BMW 730, with age trends.

Brakes
25.5%
— Consistent
Lamps, Reflectors and Electrical Equipment
25.1%
↓ Decreases with age
Suspension
22.6%
↑ Increases with age
Exhaust, Fuel and Emissions
20.5%
↓ Decreases with age
Tyres
16.9%
— Consistent

How Failures Change With Age

Comparing failure rates between the youngest and oldest test years.

CategoryAt YoungestAt OldestChangeTrend
Suspension16.9% (21 yrs)32.3% (24 yrs)
+15.4%
🔴 ↑
Steering9.9% (21 yrs)19.4% (24 yrs)
+9.5%
🔴 ↑
Exhaust, Fuel and Emissions21.1% (21 yrs)16.1% (24 yrs)
-5.0%
🟢 ↓
Lamps, Reflectors and Electrical Equipment26.8% (21 yrs)22.6% (24 yrs)
-4.2%
🟢 ↓
Brakes28.2% (21 yrs)25.8% (24 yrs)
-2.4%
🟢 ↓

Other Manufacture Years

Looking for the best year to buy? See the full comparison on the BMW 730 page →

About This Data

This page shows how BMW 730 cars manufactured in 1988 perform at MOT as they age. Data spans from 2009 to 2012, covering 213 tests. Pass rates naturally decline with age as components wear.

Based on DVSA anonymised MOT test data (2005–2024). Crown copyright, Open Government Licence v3.0.

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