Performance by cohort

3 year bands · 90,210 tests

Pass rate climbs 5.1 points across the cohorts — newer XE examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.

Pre-2018 cohort 68,572

Pass

84.8%

Fail

11.6%

PRS

3.2%

Avg mileage at test

67,273 mi

2018–2020 cohort 20,995

Pass

86.7%

Fail

10.3%

PRS

2.8%

Avg mileage at test

42,600 mi

2021+ cohort 643

Pass

89.9%

Fail

6.2%

PRS

3.7%

Avg mileage at test

21,743 mi

Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.

The picture

Jaguar XE: solid MOT record across 49,871 tests

The Jaguar XE is a diesel-powered car sold in the UK market across multiple generations, covering a broad date range in the test population.

MOT data from 49,871 tests puts this car on a 83.3% first-time pass rate, above the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 54,419 miles. The most common fail item is tyre tread below the legal limit, followed by brake pads worn below 1.5mm.

Honest John owner records point to gearbox noise or CVT reliability as the recurring problems to check before buying used.

For used buyers, the XE's pass rate suggests it clears the MOT with fewer surprises than most — but the top failure items above are still worth a pre-purchase inspection, particularly on higher-mileage examples.

ABI Insurance Group

Group 30–42

A high-group car — insurance costs will be significantly above average. Lower groups cost less to insure; UK fleet average is around Group 22.

Source: ABI Group Rating Panel · administered by Thatcham Research · groups cover standard variants; performance trims may sit higher. Browse all insurance groups →

30–42

out of 50

Compare quotes →

Top ten reasons for rejection.

Filter failures:

Hide wear items to see the model's real defects.

01

Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements

1,810 occurrences · 2.0% of tests
02

a brake lining or pad worn below 1.5mm

1,274 occurrences · 1.4% of tests
03

Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view

1,165 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
04

Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning

975 occurrences · 1.1% of tests
05

A tyre seriously damaged

854 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
06

Wiper blade missing or obviously not clearing the windscreen

803 occurrences · 0.9% of tests
07

A tyre cords visible or damaged

722 occurrences · 0.8% of tests
08

Wiper blade defective

698 occurrences · 0.8% of tests
09

A tyre seriously damaged

664 occurrences · 0.7% of tests
10

A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened

443 occurrences · 0.5% of tests

Counts cover Major and Dangerous defects logged at test. Advisory items excluded so this shows why a car was rejected, not just what the tester flagged in passing.

Worst-case fix budget · top 3 failures

£148–£290

If every one of this XE's most-logged Major fails hit at the same MOT, that's the real-world UK garage range. Reality is usually one or two items, not all of them. Open the estimator →

Try the calculator

Build your own retest budget.

Year-band analysis

Best year to buy. Worst to avoid.

First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 5.1-point gap between bands means the year you buy Jaguar XE has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.

Best band to buy

89.9%

2021+ registration

the 2021-on band climbs to 89.9% — a 5.1-point improvement. Tests in this band average 21,743 miles — roughly 46K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: has a bulge, caused by separation or…, has a serious fluid leak — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. Post-2020 examples are early in their MOT life and generally show the cleanest records.

Band to be cautious about

84.8%

Pre-2018 registration

On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 84.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 89.9% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm, less than 1.5 mm thick, and damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view. Average mileage on test for this band is 67,273 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.

Best band to buy: 2021+ (89.9% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (84.8% pass). That's a 5.1-point spread across 68,572 older tests and 643 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.

Year-spread leaderboard →

Tools that pre-empt a retest.

Picked against this car's top failure patterns. Affiliate links to Amazon UK — we earn a small cut at no cost to you. Disclosed up-front, doesn't shape the data.

Item 01 · Amazon UK

Digital tyre-tread depth gauge

Five quid for a gauge beats £150 for a retest. UK MOT minimum is 1.6mm — most testers fail anything below 2mm to be safe.

Search Amazon UK

Item 02 · Amazon UK

Brake pad measurement gauge

Testers fail pads under 1.5mm. A wear gauge tells you if you've got two months left or two weeks.

Search Amazon UK

Item 03 · Amazon UK

H7 / W21W bulb pack

A spare-bulb kit lives in the boot. Test morning is not the time to find your stop-lamp's gone.

Search Amazon UK

My Motor World · affiliate

Parts & supplies for this fix

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Motor World

Motor World Jaguar XJ8 RHD SWB 2003- Car Floor Mat Set

£32.99

View at My Motor World →

Motor World

Motor World Jaguar XJ8 LWB 95-2006 Car Floor Mat Set

£32.99

View at My Motor World →

Motor World

Motor World Jaguar XF 2008-2014 Car Floor Mat Set

£32.99

View at My Motor World →

Motor World

Motor World Jaguar X-Type (Diesel) 2001- Car Floor Mat Set

£32.99

View at My Motor World →

Click Mechanic · affiliate

Book a mobile mechanic

Affiliate links — small commission, no extra cost to you.

Mobile mechanic · UK-wide

Book a mechanic at your door.

Fixed-price quotes upfront. No garage needed. Click Mechanic sends a vetted local mechanic to you — home, work, or roadside.

Get a quote →

Owner reports · Honest John

What owners actually report.

Verbatim faults logged by owners on honestjohn.co.uk over recent years. We didn't summarise — these are the words people typed in.

What's good

Superb ride comfort and fuel economy. Eight-speed automatic is excellent. Interior is much improved from 2019.

Where it falls short

Engaging alternative to the usual small German premium cars, but cramped rear seats and no estate option hinder the Jaguar XE’s appeal.

Recent owner-reported faults

27 Sep 2017
Report of new Jaguar XE Ingenium petrol automatic "jerking". Reader complains, "Our 17 plate lurches when going down through the lower gears. (Jaguar dealer) first agreed there was a fault and attempted a repair and then said “all the petrol ones do that“ as if that makes it alright and “these cars have to learn your style of driving”. Reader rejected the car within 30 days, which the head of business initially verbally agreed to but after the 30 days he said Jaguar must agree to that as the dealer chain head office will not allow a rejection without Jaguar’s agreement. (The dealer
17 Apr 2017
Complaint about Jaguar XE R Sport 2.0 Ingenium diesel bought new in February 2016. Owner has had issues with the exhaust vibrating from about 3k miles. Jaguar dealer tried numerous fixes with the support of Jaguar head office but can’t get the issue resolved (replaced AdBlue tank bracket as this was too small, bare copper earth wire in engine bay, engine mounts, reset valves to engine mounts, recalibrate torque, etc, etc). Following the last work done, it doesn’t vibrate severely as often but still does do it.
30 Jun 2016
Report that after a few minutes of driving a Jaguar XE diesel the engine management light appeared. The car went back to the garage and 2 fault codes were recorded, firstly P208E-73, secondly P0404-77. Told the fault was simply an over fill of AdBlue. When the car returned it felt sluggish. Once again the car went in, but no fault was recorded. Started the car and engine made a noise "like a million bolts turning inside," red exclamation light appeared but once driving this disappeared. Also SD card fault in nav system flags up fequently to contact dealer. It calculates a route then disappears and car has to be re-started to clear the fault.
26 Jun 2016
Report of several broken screens on XE. Could be thin, lightweight glass is more vulnerable to stones.
2 Apr 2016
Faint evaporating petrol smell reported from Jaguar XE when engine is hot and when braking to come to a halt. Jaguar Rescue called out twice but no fault found and had not had this problem before.
27 Feb 2016
Noise reported from transmission of July 2015 Jaguar XE 2.0 petrol auto. Dealer admitted problem, carried out tests and replaced the propshaft but the noise remains.
6 Feb 2016
Report of automatic transmission of 5000 mile Jaguar XE whining on the over run and slowing down to 30-35 mph. Car is seven months old.

Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 7 reports indexed

Recall history

13 UK recalls on record.

The XE has 13 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.

See all recalls

Buying or keeping an XE?

Use the failure ranking as a pre-test checklist or a haggling lever. Treat the headline pass rate as a fleet-wide trend, not a guarantee on any individual car.

If you own an XE and your last MOT looked nothing like the ranked failures above, that's normal — individual cars vary widely. The ranking shows the patterns testers flag most often across the country.