75.9%
Jaguar XJ
Jaguar XJ MOT pass rate and common problems
The Jaguar XJ passed 75.9% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 3.6 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the XJ compares
Initial MOT tests in 2025, retests excluded. A car that failed and was repaired at the test station counts as a fail.
79.4%
Jaguar average
72.3%
UK average, all cars
The XJ runs 3.5 points behind the Jaguar average. It is 8th of the 11 Jaguar models in the data. The average XJ arrived at its test 18.1 years old with 93,516 miles recorded.
A pass rate records whether cars met the roadworthiness standard on test day. It is not a reliability score, and part of any gap reflects how old the tested cars were.
XJ MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
Jaguar XJ cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 93.1% of MOT tests. For cars aged 11 years and over that fell to 73.5%, a drop of 19.6 percentage points.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years | 419 | 93.1% | 20.8 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years | 4,386 | 84.5% | 12.2 pts above |
| 11 years and over | 19,470 | 73.5% | 1.2 pts above |
That is a steep decline with age, so the headline rate flatters older examples. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where XJ failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Jaguar XJ cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Suspension and lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment together account for 44.4% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common XJ MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Jaguar XJ cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 34.9% of everything testers recorded against failed Jaguar XJ cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a XJ
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Suspension
Recorded most often: ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn, linkage ball joint dust cover ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, coil spring fractured or broken and component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength. 20.5% of failure items.
2
Tyres
Recorded most often: tread depth below requirements of 1.6mm and condition has ply or cords exposed. 5.8% of failure items.
3
Steering
Recorded most often: track rod end ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt. 3.6% of failure items.
4
Noise, emissions and leaks
Recorded most often: malfunction indicator lamp inoperative or indicates a malfunction. 2.6% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific XJ has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Jaguar XJ buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Jaguar XJ MOT FAQs
What is the Jaguar XJ MOT pass rate?
75.9% of Jaguar XJ cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 24,281 tests. That is 3.6 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 255th of 575 models.
What does a Jaguar XJ most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Jaguar XJ cars failing their 2025 MOT was ball joint dust cover no longer prevents the ingress of dirt, on 8.4% of failure items. Next were pins and bushes pin or bush excessively worn (5.1%) and track rod end ball joint dust cover excessively damaged or deteriorated so that it no longer prevents the ingress of dirt (3.6%).
Which area causes the most Jaguar XJ MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was suspension at 28.7%, followed by lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 15.7%.
Do older Jaguar XJ cars fail their MOT more often?
Jaguar XJ cars aged 3 to 5 years passed 93.1% of MOT tests in 2025, against 73.5% for cars aged 11 years and over.
Does this mean every Jaguar XJ has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Jaguar XJ that failed in 2025. They show where the model most often needs attention, not the condition of any individual car.
How do I see a specific Jaguar XJ's MOT history?
Enter its registration on the free Carpeep MOT history check to see that car's own test results, failures, advisories and recorded mileages.
MOT figures are aggregated from the DVSA MOT Anonymised data set for 2025: class 4 initial tests, retests excluded, with failure items from failed tests (advisories and minor defects excluded), licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. MOT results describe roadworthiness at test, not mechanical reliability.