Owners have filed 72 complaints on the Jaguar XJS, covering 1982–2011. The system named most often is Fuel System (22 reports). Worst years by volume: 1989, 1990, 2005; cleanest: 1982, 1983, 1986. 4 reports describe a crash, 10 a fire. On average the car was 8.6 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Jaguar XJS
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 72 XJS complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Fuel System 22 Read
Jaguar has been awear of frequent engine fires in the v12 model cars for several years and has run out of replacement ignition harnesss world wide b/c of the problem. They have a faulty designed light distributor caps which have lead to the fires all the deals and expert mechanics are awear of the problem and they wil…
Fuel line failure caused vehicle to caught fire on three different occasions
Fuel leak from fuel injector rail, causing fire
Seat Belts 8 Read
Driver's seat belt won't retract
Driver/passenger seat belts remain fully deployed post use, will partially retract with pushing and pulling several times. Never completely retract, this is a us left side drive 2+2 convertible
The contact owns a 1990 jaguar xjs. The contact stated that the driver's and passenger's seat belts are not locking into place. The contact stated previously there was a recall for the seat belts for her vehicle. The dealer was contacted and they stated that they do not have the part to repair the seat belt and that…
Power Train 5 Read
While driving, transmission line exploded and oil spilled all over the catalytic converter, and vehicle caught on fire. Dealer contacted.*ak consuemr was in motion when smoke emmited from under the vehicle. Consuemr exited vehicle and passer bys let him know there was a fire underneath the vehicle. Oil was still…
Leased brand new car, it had 1,500 miles on it having problem with the ABS anti-lock brake had an accident rear end a car in front. Tt
While stopped in the road waiting for another car. With foot on brake, the car suddenly goes full throttle. Driver has both feet applied on the brake and the car still moves forward burning rubber, and then after a few seconds it goes back to idle. The car does this once or twice a year, the last time doing damage to…
Electrical System 5 Read
Electrical wiring from the fuel pump that runs to the fuel tank caused an electrical shortage which resulted in a fire. Dealer/mfr. Notified and refused to accept the responsibility. Stated that design of the electrical wiring running from the fuel tank was the major cause of fire. *ak consumer states that the wire…
I leased a brand new, 2011 jaguar xj supercharged, and have experienced several problems within the first 1,000 miles, the first of which presents a severe safety risk. 1) the tft digital speedometer display will vanish without warning. When this happens, you have no idea how fast you are going. The problem usually…
Engine dies when slowing down in traffic. Has died out in traffic on interstate highway three times. Dealer cannot find out what is wrong.- has been serviced three times (total of 26 days) since august, and today is being flatbedded back for fourth time because of same problem. Mileage in august 49099 and now 50963.…
Vehicle Speed Control 5 Read
Just google "jaguar throttle body" and see how many problems customers are having. My 2005 xj8lwb with less than 60,000 miles experienced a throttle body failure while traveling on the interstate. I lost power as the engine went to idle speed and an "engine fault" message alerted me that there was a problem.…
Accelerator pedal jams in up position. To clear accelerator pedal, driver must tap upper face of the pedal with the ball of his foot. The pedal will not jam again unless the driver takes his foot off the pedal. To unjam, repeat procedure above. Note when engine is in neutral or turned off, the pedal works perfectly
The throttle sticks, causing the vehicle to lurch forward. The dealer has replaced the throttle and problem remains
Engine And Engine Cooling 4 Read
Vehicle fire due to catalytic converter overheating
Vehicle will intermittently shut off/loss of power which could result in an accident.dealer cannot determine defect
Vehicle is in park and it will move on level ground or on incline, and will not remain still. Dealer contacted and identified another problem. Said may be connected with the first problem. Transmission fluid is leaking into the engine coolant, the radiator should be replaced and transmission should be serviced
Suspension 3 Read
Consumer was driving 55mph, when the vehicle started pulling to the left and right, causing the consumer to lose control of the vehicle, resulting in an accident. Please provide details
When braking at low speed, a loud thunk is heard from the left front suspension, investigation showed that the top of the front crossmember had broken away, the inner end of the control arm was no longer attached to the car. Nlm
Vehicle vibrates to the point that it cannot be driven and has been unable to be repaired
Tires 3 Read
The contact owns a 2006 jaguar xj type. The vehicle has two continental conti touring tires, line size 235/50/18 on the front of the vehicle. While driving at approximate speeds of 70 mph, the vehicle began to abnormally pull to the right. The dealer advised that the tread on the passengers side had separated and was…
I drive a 2005 jaguar xjr that has defective tires, pilot sport extra load. Michelin issued a recall in february 2006 at which time the tires were replaced. Subsequently, michelin notified the NHTSA that it was recalling these tires for a different problem. The tires are subject o a noticeable blister on the sidewall…
While driving about 35/40 mph tire on the front passenger's side exploded. There was no crash. Tire not original equipment, p235/60r15. Tire was taken to a firestone dealership. Dealer refused to replace tire. Owner still has tire. DOT # hyvejba507
XJS years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 2008 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2006 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | — | |
| 2005 | Air Bags | — | — | |
| 1996 | Electrical System | — | 1 | |
| 1995 | Electrical System | — | — | |
| 1994 | Engine And Engine Cooling,power Train | 2 | — | |
| 1993 | Electrical System | — | 1 | |
| 1992 | Steering,suspension,structure | — | — | |
| 1991 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | 2 | |
| 1990 | Engine And Engine Cooling,fuel System, Gasoline | — | — | |
| 1989 | Engine And Engine Cooling | — | 3 | |
| 1988 | Fuel System, Gasoline | 1 | — | |
| 1987 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | — | |
| 1986 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | — | |
| 1985 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | 2 | |
| 1984 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | — | |
| 1983 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | 1 | |
| 1982 | Fuel System, Gasoline | — | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 62 |
| Average complaints per series | 1.2 |
| Worst single series | 3 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 8.6 years |
A model average of 1.2 hides a worst series at 3. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
- The original window sticker and factory options
- Full research report as a PDF for the pre-purchase inspection
- No ads, on every page
- No ads, no tracking — and much more
How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the XJS?
By complaint volume, 1989, 1990, 2005 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which XJS years are the cleanest?
1982, 1983, 1986 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Jaguar XJS have?
72 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 1982–2011. Of those, 4 describe a crash and 10 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.