UK vehicle statistics / BMW
How many BMW cars are left?
At the end of 2026 Q1, DfT recorded 2,208,080 licensed and 323,492 SORN BMW vehicles in the UK, across 65 published model groups. That means 1 in 8 surviving BMW is currently off the road.
Looking at a BMW?
Population figures describe a model group, not the car in front of you.
Check its registration free for the official tax, MOT and mileage record. Before buying, the optional £9.99 full history check adds outstanding-finance, stolen and insurance write-off checks.
Is the BMW fleet shrinking?
Adding up every published BMW model group: Licensed numbers peaked at 2,213,957 in 2025 Q3 and stand at 2,208,080 in 2026 Q1, flat 0%. That is up 9% in the five years since 2021 Q1. A further 323,492 are declared SORN — 1 in 8 of the 2,531,572 still on the DVLA record is off the road, laid up, part-restored or waiting to be sold.
BMW MOT pass rate
In 2024, 78.5% of 1,544,333 BMW MOTs passed first time — above the 71.2% UK average.
The items most often behind a first-test failure across published BMW model groups:
- Condition — 5.1% of tests. Corrosion, damage or wear on a tested component. Worth seeing in person, as the cost ranges from trivial to structural.
- Headlamp Aim — 2.8% of tests. Headlights pointing too high or low. Cheap to adjust, and common on every make.
- Tread Depth — 1.7% of tests. Tyres below the 1.6mm legal limit. Budget for tyres, and treat it as a sign of how the car was maintained.
- Shock Absorbers — 1.3% of tests. Leaking or worn dampers. Replaced in pairs and noticeable in how the car rides.
See every model on the BMW MOT pass rate page.
Before you buy
- Condition — 5.1% of tests in 2024. Corrosion, damage or wear on a tested component. Worth seeing in person, as the cost ranges from trivial to structural.
- Headlamp Aim — 2.8% of tests in 2024. Headlights pointing too high or low. Cheap to adjust, and common on every make.
- Tread Depth — 1.7% of tests in 2024. Tyres below the 1.6mm legal limit. Budget for tyres, and treat it as a sign of how the car was maintained.
- Shock Absorbers — 1.3% of tests in 2024. Leaking or worn dampers. Replaced in pairs and noticeable in how the car rides.
- Check the actual BMW — These figures describe the model group. Enter the registration for that vehicle's free MOT, tax and mileage record before you pay a deposit.
Rarest BMW models
The published BMW model groups with the smallest surviving populations.
- M240i — 103 licensed, 0 SORN
- Z8 — 38 licensed, 70 SORN
- Z1 — 40 licensed, 72 SORN
- G 450 — 15 licensed, 106 SORN
- 1602 — 71 licensed, 56 SORN
Every BMW model
| Model | Licensed | SORN |
|---|---|---|
| 3 Series | 465,380 | 122,778 |
| 1 Series | 400,915 | 24,504 |
| 5 Series | 196,710 | 42,656 |
| 2 Series | 146,547 | 1,709 |
| X1 | 132,654 | 2,701 |
| X3 | 124,814 | 5,969 |
| X5 | 107,250 | 15,415 |
| 4 Series | 113,715 | 2,888 |
| R Series | 55,162 | 27,159 |
| IX | 48,373 | 527 |
| I4 | 41,761 | 244 |
| Z4 | 32,586 | 7,846 |
| M3 | 28,712 | 10,354 |
| M1 | 32,391 | 867 |
| X2 | 27,779 | 203 |
| 7 Series | 18,325 | 7,794 |
| M2 | 24,784 | 796 |
| I3 | 25,039 | 512 |
| 6 Series | 19,321 | 4,935 |
| M4 | 20,298 | 1,254 |
| X4 | 20,440 | 330 |
| IX3 | 19,790 | 80 |
| S 1000 | 12,741 | 5,659 |
| X6 | 16,479 | 1,513 |
| Z3 | 6,686 | 9,155 |
| K Series | 6,046 | 8,351 |
| I5 | 9,347 | 85 |
| M5 | 6,103 | 2,881 |
| 8 Series | 6,640 | 1,267 |
| F 800 | 4,808 | 2,609 |
| X7 | 6,406 | 205 |
| M Series | 6,017 | 95 |
| F 900 | 4,071 | 480 |
| F 650 GS | 1,431 | 1,801 |
| G 310 | 2,302 | 688 |
| I8 | 1,999 | 264 |
| M 1000 | 1,487 | 327 |
| M6 | 1,083 | 624 |
| F 850 | 1,363 | 302 |
| M8 | 1,448 | 88 |
| F 750 | 1,300 | 215 |
| XM | 1,489 | 15 |
| F 650 | 349 | 917 |
| G 650 | 626 | 615 |
| C 400 | 976 | 164 |
| Alpina | 892 | 97 |
| 2002 | 469 | 408 |
| F 700 | 528 | 227 |
| C1 | 130 | 587 |
| M Roadster | 199 | 315 |
| M Coupe | 185 | 301 |
| F650 CS | 116 | 288 |
| HP4 | 148 | 236 |
| CE | 338 | 40 |
| CI | 138 | 237 |
| C 650 | 217 | 153 |
| 3.0 CS | 190 | 176 |
| HP2 | 47 | 173 |
| M7 Series | 191 | 19 |
| 2000 | 82 | 90 |
| 1602 | 71 | 56 |
| G 450 | 15 | 106 |
| Z1 | 40 | 72 |
| Z8 | 38 | 70 |
| M240i | 103 | 0 |
How to read these numbers
Licensed means taxed and legal to use on the road at the end of the quarter. SORN means the keeper has declared it off the road — it still exists, but it is not in use. A model group's total is the best available proxy for how many survive, and a shrinking one means fewer donor cars, fewer specialists and slower parts supply.
Common questions
How many BMW cars are left in the UK?
2,208,080 BMW vehicles were licensed and 323,492 were SORN at the end of 2026 Q1, across 65 published model groups, according to DfT and DVLA statistics.
Which BMW is rarest?
Of the published BMW model groups, the M240i has the smallest surviving population at 103 licensed and 0 SORN.
Is the BMW fleet shrinking?
Licensed numbers peaked at 2,213,957 in 2025 Q3 and stand at 2,208,080 in 2026 Q1, flat 0%. That is up 9% in the five years since 2021 Q1. A further 323,492 are declared SORN — 1 in 8 of the 2,531,572 still on the DVLA record is off the road, laid up, part-restored or waiting to be sold.
What is the BMW MOT pass rate?
78.5% of 1,544,333 class-4 initial MOT tests on BMW cars passed first time in 2024 — above the 71.2% UK average.
What do BMW cars fail the MOT on?
Across published BMW model groups, the most common initial failure categories in 2024 are condition (5.1% of tests), headlamp aim (2.8% of tests), tread depth (1.7% of tests). DVSA publishes each model group's six most common categories, so this ranks the biggest published causes.
Does a BMW population figure describe the car I am looking at?
No. It describes the model group. Enter the registration for that car's own free MOT, tax and mileage record.
Source and limitations
Source: Department for Transport and DVLA, df_VEH0120_UK. Released 2026-07-15 under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
DVLA make and model fields are administrative data and can contain omissions or inconsistencies. These statistics describe model groups, not an individual registration.
Confidential cells marked [c] represent between 1 and 4 vehicles and are treated as zero in aggregates, so totals can be slightly understated.