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Citroën Xsara, Buying guide, MOT record, UK numbers and recalls

14,662 Citroën Xsaras are licensed in the UK. In 2025 they passed 51.2% of initial MOT tests, 21.1 points below the 72.3% UK average.

Looking at a specific Xsara? Check its finance, write-off, stolen, mileage and keeper history. £15, no account needed.

Citroën Xsara at the MOT

51.2% of 19,659 initial tests passed in 2025, ranking the Xsara 564th of 575 models.

First-time pass rate, 2025

Share of initial tests passed, retests excluded.

  • Citroën Xsara51.2%
  • All Citroën modelsThe Xsara is 12.3 pts behind63.5%
  • All cars72.3%

Where Xsaras fail

Share of all failure items recorded on Citroën Xsara tests in 2025.

  • Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment29.4%
  • Suspension17.6%
  • Body, chassis, structure13.6%
  • Brakes11.3%
  • Tyres7%

The items testers recorded most often were prescribed area strength or continuity significantly reduced (5.5%), position lamp not working (5.3%) and stop lamp not working (4.7%).

The MOT page lists every common Xsara MOT failure. For one car's own results and advisories, run a free MOT history check.

Full Citroën Xsara MOT record

What to look at on a viewing

The Xsara's most common failure areas, and what a tester checks in each.

  1. Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment

    Walk round with every light on: headlights, brake lights, indicators, fog lights and the number plate lamp. Check no warning lights stay on after starting.29.4% of Xsara failure items

  2. Suspension

    Listen for knocks over bumps, check the car sits level, and look for leaking shock absorbers and split rubber gaiters.17.6% of Xsara failure items

  3. Body, chassis, structure

    Look underneath and along the sills for corrosion, and check for damaged or poorly repaired panels.13.6% of Xsara failure items

Citroën Xsaras in the UK

14,662 were licensed at the end of June 2026. The number licensed has fallen 94% since the end of 2014.

Change since 2014
−94%from 232,575 licensed
Typical year of first use
2006half of those licensed at the end of 2025 were first used in 2006 or earlier
Declared off the road
16,75453% of those registered, under SORN

Licensed Citroën Xsaras since 2014

Licensed at each year end and in the latest quarter.

Show the figures
DateLicensed
End of 2014232,575
End of 2015203,218
End of 2016172,637
End of 2017139,563
End of 2018109,967
End of 201985,640
End of 202067,400
End of 202150,922
End of 202240,052
End of 202330,991
End of 202423,185
End of 202517,182
End of June 202614,662

How old they are

Licensed Citroën Xsaras by year of first use.

A further 95 were first used before 2000.

Show the figures
First usedLicensed, end 2025
2010919
20091,729
20081,791
20073,119
20063,235
20051,948
20041,657
20031,110
2002796
2001485
2000153

Xsara engines and fuel

1.6 litre engines made up 72% of Citroën Xsara MOT tests in 2025, followed by 2.0 litre at 22%. Petrol accounts for 60% of licensed Xsaras and diesel for 40%.

Engine size at MOT, 2025

Share of 19,650 initial MOT tests in 2025.

  • 1.6 litre72.4%
  • 2.0 litre21.6%
  • 1.7 litre3.4%
  • 1.4 litre2.2%

Fuel type, licensed Xsaras

DfT licensing statistics, June 2026.

FuelLicensedShare
Petrol8,84660%
Diesel5,81340%
Gas3<0.1%

Citroën Xsara recalls

8 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Citroën Xsara. Each covers vehicles built in a set period, so a recall does not mean every Xsara is affected.

  1. Oct 2009 R/2009/099

    Rear damper may become insecure

    Xsaras built Apr 2009 · 54 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    The rear dampers lower fixing bolts may become loose.
    Remedy
    Recall affected vehicles to check conformity of damper lower fixing bolt and replace if necessary

  2. Dec 2008 R/2008/196

    Seatbelt restraining ability may be affected

    Xsaras built Apr 2008 · 238 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    Welding on front R/H seat frame may not be robust enough by the seat buckle. Restraining ability may be impaired in an impact.
    Remedy
    Recall affected vehicles to check and replace seat frame if in affected batch.

  3. Jul 2008 R/2008/091

    Accelerator pedal may work loose

    Xsaras built Apr 2008 · 30 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    The accelerator pedal plate may have been fitted with nuts that are not of the correct specification. In time the nuts may work loose making the pedal feel insecure.
    Remedy
    Recall the vehicles that are likely to be affected to replace the three accelerator pedal plate fixing nuts.

  4. Jun 2003 R/2003/103

    Brake servo vacuum pipe may detach

    202 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    Vacuum Servo Pipe may become detached resulting in loss of servo assistance
    Remedy
    Replace vacuum pipe

  5. Nov 2000 R/2000/121

    Potential loss of brake vacuum assistance

    Xsaras built Jan 1999 to Dec 2000 · 2,611 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    Possibility of failure of the vacuum pump drive dog leading to a loss of brake assistance.
    Remedy
    Recall the potentially affected range of vehicles and replace the drive dog on those equipped with a Magneti Marelli vacuum pump.

  6. Sep 2000 R/2000/100

    Suspension ball joint may disengage

    Xsaras built Jul 2000 to Aug 2000 · 3,648 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    There is a possibility that due to incorrect machining of the suspension ball joint clamp bolt hole on the pivot the ball joint may disengage.
    Remedy
    Recall affected vehicles and check and replace pivot if necessary.

  7. Apr 2000 R/2000/040

    The passenger air bag might remain active when the deactivate mode has been selected

    Xsaras built Nov 1999 · 569 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    Due to a possible fault within the control switch the passenger air bag may not be deactivated when the switch is in the off position.
    Remedy
    Likely to be affected vehicles will be recalled and the function of the deactivation control switch checked. Should a defective switch be found it will be replaced with a quality assured unit.

  8. Feb 2000 R/2000/005

    Possibility of loss of brake servo assistance

    Xsaras built Sep 1999 to Oct 1999 · 9,088 vehicles across the whole recall

    Defect and remedy
    Defect
    There is a possibility that the brake servo valve may not function correctly resulting in loss of servo assistance to the braking system.
    Remedy
    Recall affected vehicles for the inspection and possible replacement of the brake servo valve.
How to check a specific Xsara for recalls

Other Citroën models

The most-tested Citroën models in 2025, against the Xsara's 51.2% MOT pass rate.

All 21 Citroën models

Citroën Xsara FAQs

How many Citroën Xsaras are there in the UK?

14,662 Citroën Xsaras were licensed in the UK at the end of June 2026, with a further 16,754 declared off the road (SORN), according to DfT vehicle licensing statistics.

Is the Citroën Xsara reliable?

MOT data does not measure reliability. It records whether a car met the roadworthiness standard on the day of its test. What it does show is a 51.2% first-time pass rate for the Citroën Xsara across 19,659 tests in 2025, below the 72.3% average for all cars.

Has the Citroën Xsara had any recalls?

8 DVSA safety recalls launched from 1992 to October 2026 name the Citroën Xsara. The most recent was published in October 2009. A recall applies to vehicles built in a set period, so check a specific car on the GOV.UK vehicle recall checker.

What should I check before buying a used Citroën Xsara?

On the car itself, start with the areas it most often fails on: lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment, suspension and body, chassis, structure. Then check the individual car's own records. Outstanding finance, insurance write-offs and police stolen markers are not part of the MOT record, so they take a history check.

How do I check a Citroën Xsara's history?

Enter the registration of the specific car. A Carpeep car history check reports outstanding finance, write-off category, stolen markers, mileage history, previous keepers, MOT and tax status, import and export markers and scrapped status in one £15 report.

Already found a Xsara?

Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.

Across the 1,548 vehicles of every make Carpeep has checked since November 2025, 19% had outstanding finance recorded and 13% an insurance write-off. More on the Citroën history check. To confirm a car's identity, see the Citroen VIN check.

  • Outstanding finance
  • Write-off records
  • Stolen markers
  • Mileage history
  • Previous keepers

MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025 (class 4 initial tests, retests excluded), which also gives the engine sizes. Licensed, SORN, fuel and registration figures are from the Department for Transport vehicle licensing statistics (VEH0120, VEH0124, VEH0160). Recalls are from the DVSA vehicle recalls data, with recalls launched up to October 2026. Government data is used under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability. History-check findings are anonymous counts from reports bought on Carpeep, each vehicle counted once, and are published only where at least 100 vehicles returned an answer.