Does the Citroen Xsara fail the MOT on vehicle identification more than it should?
The Citroen Xsara records 0.48 vehicle identification failure items per 100 initial MOT tests (2019–2024), against 0.63 expected for a car of the same age mix: about as expected for its class and age (the difference is within its interval or under 0.5 items per 100 tests) (−0.15, 95% interval −0.18 to −0.13). It ranks 535 of 636 models on vehicle identification (1 = most failures above expected).
Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · all models on vehicle identification · check a Citroen Xsara by registration
What exactly fails on vehicle identification?
The most frequent DVSA defect wording in this group on the Citroen Xsara is “Number plate inscription missing or illegible”, recorded 878 times in 2019–2024.
| DVSA defect wording | Items | Per 100 tests |
|---|---|---|
| Number plate inscription missing or illegible | 878 | 0.27 |
| Number plate does not conform to the specified requirements | 473 | 0.14 |
| Number plate missing or so insecure that it is likely to fall off | 191 | 0.06 |
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 327,241 (initial tests) · Method: failure items (major and minor) grouped by DVSA's defect tree; wordings with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
If a Citroen Xsara gets a vehicle identification advisory, how often does it fail next time?
3.8% of Citroen Xsara MOTs with a vehicle identification advisory were followed by a fail in the same group at the next MOT, typically 12.1 months and 4,608 miles later (8,096 advisories followed).
Source: DVSA MOT bulk data (OGL v3.0) · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 8,096 (advisories followed) · Method: the same vehicles followed to their next ordinary MOT · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV
Other pages for this model
Citroen Xsara 1998 · Citroen Xsara 1999 · Citroen Xsara 2000 · Citroen Xsara 2001 · Citroen Xsara 2002 · Citroen Xsara 2003 · Citroen Xsara 2004 · Citroen Xsara 2005 · Citroen Xsara 2006 · Citroen Xsara 2007 · Citroen Xsara 2008 · Citroen Xsara 2009 · Citroen Xsara 2010 · Citroen Xsara in Finland · Citroen Xsara in the Netherlands · Citroen Xsara by postcode area · Citroen Xsara body, chassis and structure failures · Citroen Xsara brakes failures · Citroen Xsara lamps, reflectors and electrics failures · Citroen Xsara noise, emissions and leaks failures · Citroen Xsara road wheels failures · Citroen Xsara seat belts and airbags failures · Citroen Xsara steering failures · Citroen Xsara suspension failures · Citroen Xsara tyres failures · Citroen Xsara visibility failures