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Jaguar
57,642 MOT tests analysed. sits above the UK fleet average — here's where XJs pass, fail, and end up on the retest sheet.
That's 3.8 points above the UK fleet average across our 1,984 tracked models — a confident result.
Pass
81.3%
Pass-after-fix
2.8%
Fail
15.1%
Avg miles
91,294
Pass + Pass-after-fix + Fail = 100%
Some examples of this model are borderline — a small number of diesels were certified Euro 6 before September 2015. Check your registration on the government's ULEZ checker to be certain. Daily charges if driven in the zone: London £12.50 · Birmingham £8.00 · Bristol £9.00 .
Performance by cohort
2 year bands · 57,641 tests
Pass rate climbs 11.6 points across the cohorts — newer XJ examples clear the test more reliably than the early cars.
Pass
80.8%
Fail
15.4%
PRS
2.8%
Avg mileage at test
93,504 mi
Pass
92.4%
Fail
6.2%
PRS
1.1%
Avg mileage at test
37,671 mi
Cohort = vehicle's first-registration year band. Same model, different generations of build.
Generations on file · 6
Jaguar XJ · UK market
1968–1986
1986–1994
1994–1997
1997–2003
2003–2009
2009–2019
Photos: Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA / CC BY / public domain.
The picture
The Jaguar XJ is a series of mid-size/full-size luxury cars produced by British automobile manufacturer Jaguar Cars from 1968 to 2019. It was produced across four basic platform generations with various updated derivatives of each.
MOT data from 29,496 tests puts this car on a 78.5% first-time pass rate, roughly in line with the UK fleet average. Average mileage at test is 90,177 miles. The most common fail item is failed number plate light, followed by suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated.
The Jaguar XJ was positioned at the sporty end of the luxury saloon market to distinguish it from the Mercedes S-Class and others. It mostly delivers, but it’s not without some obvious flaws.
Buyers weighing up a used XJ should treat the failure breakdown as a pre-purchase checklist. The pass rate is reasonable, but the gap between first attempt and a clean sheet narrows with age and mileage.
ABI Insurance Group
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 →
40–50
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A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated
1,799 occurrences · 3.1% of tests
A rear registration plate lamp or light source missing or inoperative in the case of multiple lamps or light sources
1,688 occurrences · 2.9% of tests
Windscreen or window damaged or seriously discoloured but not adversely affecting driver's view
963 occurrences · 1.7% of tests
A suspension pin, bush or joint excessively worn
930 occurrences · 1.6% of tests
Steering rack gaiter or ball joint dust cover damaged or deteriorated
886 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
A suspension joint dust cover missing or no longer prevents the ingress of dirt etc
872 occurrences · 1.5% of tests
A suspension joint dust cover severely deteriorated
725 occurrences · 1.3% of tests
Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
716 occurrences · 1.2% of tests
A tyre cords visible or damaged
574 occurrences · 1.0% of tests
The strength or continuity of the load bearing structure within 30cm of any sub-frame, spring or suspension component mounting (a 'prescribed area') is significantly reduced or inadequately repaired
568 occurrences · 1.0% 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 4 failures
£248–£755
If every one of this XJ'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 →
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Build your own retest budget.
Year-band analysis
First-time MOT pass rate split by registration band. A 11.6-point gap between bands means the year you buy Jaguar XJ has a real effect on what turns up at the garage.
Best band to buy
92.4%
2018–2020 registration
the 2018–2020 band climbs to 92.4% — a 11.6-point improvement. Tests in this band average 37,671 miles — roughly 56K miles fewer on the clock than the older band. Failures here are mostly wear items: damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view, tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm — the structural issues that drag down older examples don't appear in the top-10 for this band. The stricter post-2018 MOT test rules meant manufacturers had to tighten up emissions and electrical checks, but this band still shows far fewer major failures on suspension and bodywork than the older fleet.
Band to be cautious about
80.8%
Pre-2018 registration
On the older band (pre-2018), the data shows a 80.8% pass rate against a fleet average of 92.4% on the newer band. The main culprits logged at test: ball joint dust cover severely deteriorated, inoperative in the case of multiple lamps…, and damaged but not adversely affecting driver's view. Average mileage on test for this band is 93,504 miles — high-mileage wear items are a recurring theme.
Best band to buy: 2018-2020 (92.4% first-time pass). Worst band to avoid: pre-2018 (80.8% pass). That's a 11.6-point spread across 55,375 older tests and 2,266 newer ones — year of build makes a material difference on this model.
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.
My Motor World · affiliate
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Owner reports · Honest John
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
More engaging to drive than German rivals. Characterful. Diesel is very strong. Excellent overall refinement.
Normal tyre life on Dunlop 245/45
Rear light clusters prone to moisture ingress.
TPMS valves prone to failure.
Source: honestjohn.co.uk · 3 reports indexed
Recall history
The XJ has 21 official UK vehicle recalls covering defect details, remedies, and affected build dates.
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 XJ 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.