Jaguar XJ 2003: MOT failure rate for its age

29.8% of 12,987 MOT tests of the Jaguar XJ first registered in 2003 failed at the first attempt (2019–2024; retests excluded). Against this model's own normal rate at the same ages the index is 97.1 (95% CI 94.0–100.1; 100 = normal for this model at that age): the 2003 build year is no different from other years of the same model at the same age.

Jaguar XJ built in 2003 at a glance
Measure	Value	Unit	Compared with	Years	Tests
Failed first time	29.8	%	all ages tested	2019–2024	12987
Index against this model at the same age (95% CI 94.0–100.1)	97.1	index	100 = normal for this model at that age	2019–2024	12987
Rank among this model's 23 build years	8	of 23	1 = fails least for its age	2019–2024	12987
Tested in 2024	1821	tests	median 109,407 miles	2024	1821

Built 2003 against Jaguar XJ normal for the age: first-time MOT failure share at each age, age 16: 30.3% vs 32.1%; age 17: 30.2% vs 29.8%; age 18: 30.6% vs 30.4%; age 19: 28% vs 30%; age 20: 29% vs 30.5%; age 21: 30.2% vs 30.8%. Axis from 0% to 40%. DVSA MOT bulk data, 2019–2024.

Check a 2003 Jaguar XJ by registration · All Jaguar XJ MOT statistics · Download the build-year table (CSV)

Data release dvsa-2024-v2 (24 Sep 2026) · page updated 30 Sep 2026 · full dataset (v5).

How does the 2003 Jaguar XJ fail at each age?

Cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21 between 2019 and 2024. Each row compares their first-time failure share with what this model normally shows at that age, after allowing for the overall failure level of each test year.

Jaguar XJ built 2003: first-time MOT failure by age, against the model's normal rate at that age (2019–2024)
Age	Tests	Failed, %	95% interval	Normal for this model at that age, %	Index (100 = normal)
16	2,536	30.3	28.5–32.1	32.1	94.4
17	2,266	30.2	28.4–32.2	29.8	101.4
18	2,222	30.6	28.7–32.6	30.4	100.5
19	2,130	28	26.1–29.9	30	93.2
20	2,012	29	27.1–31	30.5	95.2
21	1,821	30.2	28.1–32.4	30.8	98

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,987 (initial tests) · Method: normal rate = this model's first-time failure share at that age across its build years (cells of 400+ tests), adjusted for each test year's overall level; cells of 30+ tests, under 500 marked rough · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

What fails most on the 2003 Jaguar XJ?

The most common failure group on cars built in 2003 is suspension: 45.8 items per 100 first tests, against 23 across all build years of the Jaguar XJ. These counts are not age-adjusted: cars built in 2003 were tested at ages 16 to 21.

Failure items per 100 first tests, Jaguar XJ built 2003 against the Jaguar XJ in all build years (2019–2024, not age-adjusted)
Failure group	Built 2003, per 100	All build years, per 100	Items
Suspension	45.8	23	5,944
Brakes	20.6	11.3	2,670
Lamps, reflectors and electrical equipment	16.7	12.5	2,169
Visibility	10.8	7.5	1,406
Steering	10.1	4.4	1,314

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 12,987 (initial tests of this build year) · Method: failure items grouped by DVSA's top-level defect groups, per 100 initial tests; groups with 30+ items · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How does 2003 compare with the years around it?

Among the 23 published build years of the Jaguar XJ, 2003 ranks 8 (1 = fails least for its age). 2002: index 99.9. 2004: index 101.3.

Jaguar XJ build years: index against the model at the same age (2019–2024)
Build year	Index (100 = normal)	95% interval	Verdict	Tests
1998	98.2	92.1–104.3	no different (rough estimate)	3,071
1999	105.5	98.5–112.6	no different (rough estimate)	2,518
2000	106.7	100.8–112.7	worse (rough estimate)	3,620
2001	98.4	93.4–103.4	no different	4,819
2002	99.9	94.8–105.1	no different	4,620
2003	97.1	94.0–100.1	no different	12,987
2004	101.3	98.0–104.6	no different	11,809
2005	98.4	94.3–102.5	no different	7,855
2006	104.5	100.6–108.4	worse	9,425
2007	102.8	98.7–106.8	no different	8,735
2008	96.9	92.1–101.7	no different	6,154
2009	100.9	94.3–107.5	no different (rough estimate)	3,627
2010	94.3	90.0–98.6	better	8,616
2011	97.1	92.8–101.4	no different	9,539
2012	97.3	91.8–102.7	no different	6,401
2013	110.5	104.8–116.2	worse	7,086
2014	109.4	103.1–115.6	worse	6,475
2015	99.1	92.6–105.6	no different	5,989
2016	95.0	88.7–101.3	no different	6,879
2017	81.5	74.3–88.7	better	4,920
2018	86.0	76.3–95.7	better (rough estimate)	3,089
2019	89.7	73.6–105.8	no different (rough estimate)	1,275
2020	77.2	45.6–108.7	no different (rough estimate)	322

Source: DVSA MOT bulk data · Window: 2019–2024 · n = 139,831 (initial tests) · Method: observed failures against those expected for the same model at the same ages, test-year level adjusted; verdict follows the printed one-decimal bound · Updated: 30 Sep 2026 · Release: dvsa-2024-v2 · CSV

How to cite this page

MOT Risk Index (2026). Jaguar XJ 2003 MOT statistics (data release dvsa-2024-v2; full dataset motriskindex-families-2024-v5, DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22975051), updated 30 September 2026. motriskindex.co.uk/cars/jaguar-xj/2003/

How every figure is calculated: methodology. Age, test year and build year are tied together (age = test year − build year), so the test-year level is taken as observed, not estimated.

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