79.7%
Jaguar XJS
Jaguar XJS MOT pass rate and common problems
The Jaguar XJS passed 79.7% of its initial MOT tests in 2025, 7.4 percentage points above the 72.3% UK average. The item testers recorded most often was service brake performance excessively binding.
Checking a specific car? Its own results, advisories and recorded mileages are in a free MOT history check.
How the XJS 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 XJS is level with the Jaguar average. It is 6th of the 11 Jaguar models in the data. The average XJS arrived at its test 34.1 years old with 80,500 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.
XJS MOT pass rate by age
The same 2025 tests split by the car's age at test.
| Age at test | Tests | Pass rate | vs UK average |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 to 5 years (small sample) | 1 | 100% | 27.7 pts above |
| 6 to 10 years (small sample) | 2 | 50% | 22.3 pts below |
| 11 years and over | 3,109 | 79.7% | 7.4 pts above |
Too few tests fall into some age groups to compare them reliably. The UK average of 72.3% covers cars of every age, so compare like with like.
Where XJS failures cluster
Every failure item recorded on Jaguar XJS cars in 2025, grouped into the DVSA's test areas.
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment and brakes together account for 50.6% of recorded failure items. These are recorded failures across the model, not faults every car has.
The 10 most common XJS MOT failures
Specific items recorded on Jaguar XJS cars that failed their 2025 MOT, as a share of all recorded failure items.
Together these 10 items make up 29.4% of everything testers recorded against failed Jaguar XJS cars. The rest is spread across many smaller items, and one failed test often records several at once.
What to look at on a XJS
The recorded failures above, grouped by area, biggest first.
1
Brakes
Recorded most often: service brake performance excessively binding, rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements, rbt (sp) efficiency less than 50% of the required value and parking brake performance inoperative on one side. 13.6% of failure items.
2
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment
Recorded most often: headlamp aim too high, position lamp not working and rear fog lamp not working. 7.6% of failure items.
3
Visibility
Recorded most often: washers provides insufficient washer liquid and washers not working. 4.5% of failure items.
4
Suspension
Recorded most often: component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength. 3.6% of failure items.
The car's own MOT history matters more than any model average. A free MOT history check shows whether a specific XJS has failed on these items before, or had them noted as advisories. Buying one? See the used Jaguar XJS buying guide.
Already found one?
Check its finance, write-off, theft, mileage and keeper history with a £15 vehicle history report.
Jaguar XJS MOT FAQs
What is the Jaguar XJS MOT pass rate?
79.7% of Jaguar XJS cars passed their initial MOT first time in 2025, from 3,112 tests. That is 7.4 percentage points above the 72.3% average for all cars, and ranks 203rd of 575 models.
What does a Jaguar XJS most commonly fail its MOT on?
The item testers recorded most often on Jaguar XJS cars failing their 2025 MOT was service brake performance excessively binding, on 4.8% of failure items. Next were rbt (sp) efficiency below requirements (4%) and component mounting prescribed areas prescribed area excessively corroded significantly reducing structural strength (3.6%).
Which area causes the most Jaguar XJS MOT failures?
Across every recorded failure item, the largest area was lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment at 27.8%, followed by brakes at 22.7%.
Does this mean every Jaguar XJS has these problems?
No. These are the items testers recorded across every Jaguar XJS 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 XJS'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.