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1997 BMW R Series — MOT History by Age

How cars manufactured in 1997 perform at MOT as they age

29 years
Current Age
84.4%
Latest Pass Rate
1,357
Total Tests (All Years)
46,900 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 1997 BMW R Series as it ages.

21 yrs85.6%
22 yrs85.0%
23 yrs87.6%
24 yrs84.3%
25 yrs84.1%
26 yrs88.6%
27 yrs84.4%

Bar chart showing pass rate by car age from 21 to 27 years

Fail Rate %
📊 View as table
AgePass RateTests
21 yrs85.6%194
22 yrs85.0%180
23 yrs87.6%129
24 yrs84.3%198
25 yrs84.1%182
26 yrs88.6%185
27 yrs84.4%289

Pass Rate Trend

How the 1997 BMW R Series pass rate changes as it ages, from first MOT to most recent.

Trend shows stable over 7 years

Pass Rate %
📊 View as table
BuiltPass RateTests
2024 (27 yrs)84.4%289
2023 (26 yrs)88.6%185
2022 (25 yrs)84.1%182
2021 (24 yrs)84.3%198
2020 (23 yrs)87.6%129
2019 (22 yrs)85%180
2018 (21 yrs)85.6%194

Year-by-Year MOT Results

2018
85.6%
Age (yrs) 21Tests 194Avg Mileage 49,489Top Failure Motorcycle brakes — 9.3%
2019
85.0%
Age (yrs) 22Tests 180Avg Mileage 49,216Top Failure Motorcycle brakes — 12.2%
2020
87.6%
Age (yrs) 23Tests 129Avg Mileage 48,014Top Failure Motorcycle brakes — 13.2%
2021
84.3%
Age (yrs) 24Tests 198Avg Mileage 45,368Top Failure Motorcycle lamps and reflectors — 12.1%
2022
84.1%
Age (yrs) 25Tests 182Avg Mileage 46,161Top Failure Motorcycle brakes — 15.4%
2023
88.6%
Age (yrs) 26Tests 185Avg Mileage 47,963Top Failure Motorcycle lamps and reflectors — 8.6%
2024
84.4%
Age (yrs) 27Tests 289Avg Mileage 46,900Top Failure Motorcycle lamps and reflectors — 13.1%

Common MOT Failures

Top failure categories across all test years for 1997 BMW R Series, with age trends.

Motorcycle brakes
10.6%
— Consistent
Motorcycle lamps and reflectors
9.8%
↑ Increases with age
Motorcycle tyres
4.5%
— Consistent
Motorcycle suspension
4.1%
— Consistent
Motorcycle lighting and signalling
3.6%
— Consistent

How Failures Change With Age

Comparing failure rates between the youngest and oldest test years.

CategoryAt YoungestAt OldestChangeTrend
Motorcycle lamps and reflectors5.7% (21 yrs)13.1% (27 yrs)
+7.4%
🔴 ↑
Motorcycle brakes9.3% (21 yrs)6.9% (27 yrs)
-2.4%
🟢 ↓
Motorcycle tyres3.1% (21 yrs)4.5% (27 yrs)
+1.4%
⚪ —
Motorcycle suspension2.6% (21 yrs)1.4% (27 yrs)
-1.2%
⚪ —

Other Manufacture Years

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

About This Data

This page shows how BMW R Series cars manufactured in 1997 perform at MOT as they age. Data spans from 2018 to 2024, covering 1,357 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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