2004 BMW 645 4.4L Petrol · LUI 6028

Steering and front suspension wear dominates the mechanical history of this 2004 BMW 645, with the pattern of advisories becoming steadily more pointed across successive tests. The most recent examination on 27 November 2025 recorded a pass, but it was accompanied by advisories for play in both steering rack inner joints and slight play in the offside front suspension arm ball joint, signalling continued deterioration of the front-end linkage geometry. The previous year was more concerning: a fail on 25 November 2024 cited a nearside front track rod end with excessive wear, a non-functioning nearside headlamp on dipped beam, and a parking brake efficiency below the required standard, with the retest two days later clearing those items but leaving the front anti-roll bar wear and the thinning front brake pads unresolved as advisories. Reading back further, the 2023 tests captured an emerging picture of rear suspension bush wear and split rear anti-roll bar ball joint play, alongside the first appearance of the track rod end play that would later fail. The overall trajectory is one of accumulating front-end wear rather than acute failure, but with the rack inner joints now joining the track rod end on the advisory list, the steering assembly as a whole is clearly ageing and warrants close mechanical inspection before purchase. With 164,887 miles recorded over 22 years, this car has averaged roughly 7,500 miles annually, which is broadly typical for a vehicle of its age and consistent with regular but not excessive use. There are no multi-year gaps in the MOT record that would suggest prolonged standing, nor any sudden mileage jumps between tests, indicating continuous service rather than a stored or sparingly driven example. Mechanically, this mileage profile means the consumables and wear items would have been exercised regularly, which is generally favourable for components such as the braking system, drivetrain seals and battery, but it also confirms that chassis components have done substantial work over two decades. The fact that the shock absorbers have only been flagged for light oil misting rather than replacement, and that the brake pads were merely recorded as wearing thin rather than exhausted, suggests a vehicle that has been maintained on a usage-appropriate schedule, though the volume of steering and suspension advisories points to genuine wear accumulation rather than neglect. The under-bonnet oil leak flagged in 2023 as not excessive should be revisited during a viewing, as any progression since would warrant attention. For a prospective buyer, the steering and front suspension components are the priority areas to evaluate on a physical inspection. Both steering rack inner joints and the offside front lower arm ball joint should be checked with the wheels off the ground for any clonking, roughness or visible movement when the tyres are rocked by hand, and a test drive should focus on detecting any vagueness in the steering response, knocking over uneven surfaces, or a tendency for the front end to tramline or pull, particularly under braking. Given the split rear anti-roll bar ball joints and worn rear suspension bushes recorded in 2023, it is worth listening for any rear-end clonks or rattles over speed humps and expansion joints, and for any vagueness in rear wheel location during cornering. The recorded nearside rear wheel bearing play and the parking brake efficiency fail both merit verification: the handbrake should hold the vehicle firmly on a moderate incline without creeping, and any humming or droning from the rear that changes with cornering direction would indicate the bearing needs replacement. The braking system requires a measured assessment, as the front pads have been flagged as wearing thin across consecutive tests and the offside front brake pipe was noted as corroded but coated in grease or other material in 2023, which is a common short-term cosmetic fix that does not address underlying corrosion of the pipe itself. On inspection, the brake pedal should feel firm without any excessive travel or judder under hard stopping, and a visual check of the flexible brake hoses and rigid pipes along the front and rear underbody should be carried out with a torch to identify any surface rust, pitting or active corrosion weeping. The shock absorber oil misting recorded on both front offside and rear nearside units in 2023 should be re-examined for any progression into heavier weeping or actual drips, and the tyres should be checked for uneven inner or outer shoulder wear patterns, which would confirm any geometry misalignment caused by the worn steering and suspension components. With the headlamp failure noted in 2024, all exterior lamps including main beam, indicators and side lights should be verified as fully functional during any pre-purchase viewing, and given the vehicle's age, a thorough inspection of the underbody subframes, mounting points and boot floor for any corrosion that may have developed beyond the MOT inspector's line of sight would be a sensible precaution on a 22-year-old BMW of this mileage.