Model Reports 4 min read Updated 18 Oct 2026

Citroen Xsara 2004: reliability & common MOT faults

In 2025, 50 in every 100 first MOTs on a 2004 Citroen Xsara were passes. Most common reason for a fail: Individual sidelight or tail light (front).

Summary

The 2004 Citroen Xsara follows the pattern of the model years either side.

At a glance

How 1,850 first tests went in 2025.

Passed first time
50 in every 100
Did not pass first time
50 in every 100924 failed first-attempt tests
The typical car
21 yearsabout 106,251 miles
First tests counted
1,850

What failed most often

  1. Individual sidelight or tail light (front)13 in every 100 failed tests
  2. Brake light8 in every 100 failed tests
  3. Headlight8 in every 100 failed tests

How we count this. Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Only Class 4 cars on their first MOT of the year are counted. A car that fails and is fixed at the test station still counts as a fail in the first-attempt rate. These are raw results, not adjusted for age, mileage, or peer mix. The MOT does not test engine or gearbox internals.

Note:

These are patterns across 2004 Citroen Xsara vehicles in 2025, not a prediction that any one car will have them. Faults are grouped by part of the car. They come from MOT defect codes, not manufacturer bulletins, recalls or a diagnosis of any one car.

Seat belts and restraints

Two faults. The strongest is the seat belt mounting area (front): 7.9 times as often as on similar cars.

Figures below are measured across the 917 of 924 failed first attempts (99.2%) that recorded an odometer reading in 2025. Mileage is needed to compare like with like.

We only list faults with at least 20 failures and a rate of about 2.0 times that of similar cars, which keeps one-off results out of the list.

Seat belt mounting area (front)

Failed on 48 first tests7.9 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

A seat belt anchorage likely to become detached in the event of a collision is graded Dangerous. The load bearing structure near an anchorage, called a prescribed area, is Major when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Anchorage points are inspected for all seat belts fitted, except a belt with no corresponding seat.

Seat belt mounting area (rear)

Failed on 21 first tests2.4 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

A seat belt anchorage likely to become detached in the event of a collision is graded Dangerous. The load bearing structure near an anchorage, called a prescribed area, is Major when its strength or continuity is significantly reduced or it is inadequately repaired. Anchorage points are inspected for all seat belts fitted, except a belt with no corresponding seat.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Body and structure

One fault: vehicle structure condition (front), 4.5 times as often as on similar cars.

Vehicle structure condition (front)

Failed on 34 first tests4.5 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Structure that is fractured, deformed, corroded, modified or inadequately repaired is failed on rigidity only if the overall structural rigidity of the vehicle is significantly reduced. Structure that is likely to affect steering or braking adversely is graded Dangerous. Prescribed areas are not covered here, as they are checked under other sections, including brakes and steering.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Lamps and electrical

Two faults. The strongest is the side repeater indicators: 3.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Side repeater indicators

Failed on 54 first tests3.3 times as often as similar carsLikely evidence

What it means

Sequential or dynamic direction indicators are not a reason to fail. Where a side repeater is required, it is allowed to be part of the front direction indicator if it has a marked wraparound lens, or an amber light coming through the front lens when viewed from a set distance to the side of the rear bumper. A lens defect with no effect on the emitted light is Minor, and one that adversely affects the light is Major.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 29 first tests, 5.3 times as often as on similar cars.

Individual direction indicators (rear)

Failed on 36 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Direction indicators must be amber, though vehicles first used before a set date may have white at the front and red at the rear when the indicators are combined with stop or position lamps, and sequential or dynamic ones are not a reason to fail. A lamp that is missing, inoperative or has more than half of a multiple light source not functioning is graded Major. A flashing rate outside the permitted range is graded Minor.

Also noted as an advisory

Testers also noted it as an advisory, worn but not yet failing, on 26 first tests, 2.4 times as often as on similar cars.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage. Advisories count notes recorded on failed first tests only.

Steering

One fault: steering rack (front), 2.7 times as often as on similar cars.

Steering rack (front)

Failed on 29 first tests2.7 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Steering gear casing retaining devices dangerously loose, or visible relative movement to the chassis or bodywork, is graded Dangerous. A casing not properly attached, or fractured, is Major, but a fracture that affects the stability or attachment of the casing is Dangerous. A gaiter damaged but still keeping dirt out is Minor, and Major once missing or no longer doing so.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Brakes

One fault: flexible brake hoses (rear), 2.6 times as often as on similar cars.

Flexible brake hoses (rear)

Failed on 24 first tests2.6 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Testers reject a flexible brake hose for being excessively damaged or chafed only if it is severe enough to expose the reinforcement. Slight damage, chafing or twisting is graded Minor. A leak is graded Dangerous on a hydraulic braking system and Major on an air system, and a hose damaged and likely to fail is also Dangerous.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Suspension

One fault: anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front), 2.2 times as often as on similar cars.

Anti-roll bar linkage ball joints (front)

Failed on 61 first tests2.2 times as often as similar carsPossible evidence

What it means

Excessive wear on an anti-roll bar linkage ball joint is Major. A joint likely to become detached is graded Dangerous.

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

Advisories

Other things testers noted as worn or close to failing, more often than on similar cars.

An advisory is a note from the tester about something that has not failed yet. It is an early warning, not a fail. Advisories for the faults above are shown with those faults.

Exhaust system (rear)

Noted on 62 first tests2.0 times as often as similar carsElevated evidence

Data: UK MOT open data, 2025. Counts cover advisories recorded on failed first tests only, compared with cars of the same age and mileage.

MOT pass rates

How first tests ended, and how the pass rates are counted.

Passed first time
50in every 100
Passed on the first test.
Fixed at the station
8in every 100
Failed, then fixed at the test station the same day.
Failed
42in every 100
Did not pass, and were not fixed at the test station.

First-attempt pass 50.1% of 1,850 first tests (2025): only cars that passed first time count. Official-style pass 58.4%: cars fixed at the test station also count as a pass. The 8 fixed and the 42 not fixed make the 50 in every 100 that did not pass first time.

Petrol and diesel

First testsPassed first time, as tested
Petrol1,05550
Diesel79550

Figures are in every 100 first tests.

Same model, other years

Passed first time in every 100, all tested in 2025.

40608010020042010Older carsNewer cars
40608010020042010Older carsNewer cars

Newer cars are younger, so look for a jump rather than the climb. A year earlier (2024), when these cars were a year younger, 49 in every 100 passed first time.

YearPassed first timeFirst tests
200151 in every 100560
200252 in every 100903
200352 in every 1001,258
2004 This car50 in every 1001,850
200549 in every 1002,145
200651 in every 1003,582
200749 in every 1003,429
200849 in every 1001,965
200953 in every 1001,821
201052 in every 100954

FAQs

Short answers about how to read this model-year guide.

The 2004 Citroen Xsara follows the pattern of the model years either side. Its main cause of failure was Individual sidelight or tail light (front), about 13 in every 100 failed tests. In 2025, 50.1% of 1,850 first MOTs on the 2004 Citroen Xsara passed first time (PRS: items fixed at the station the same day, counted as a fail). The official-style rate including PRS is 58.4%. Among 924 failed first-attempt MOT tests (test year 2025), Seat belt mounting area (front) appears more often than on similar cars (5.2% of those tests; 48 observed failures; about 7.9× more often than similar cars). There is no single reliability score here; this is a pre-purchase checklist built from DVSA open data, not a guarantee for any individual car.
Ranked by how often they were actually recorded, the items that most often failed a 2004 Citroen Xsara at the first attempt were Individual sidelight or tail light (front) (12.9%), Brake light (8.3%) and Headlight (7.9%), each as a share of the year's failed first attempts. That is what goes wrong most often on the car. The common faults table shows a different measure: faults that are unusual compared with similar cars.
Among failed first-attempt tests we highlight patterns that appear more often than on similar cars. Top example: Seat belt mounting area (front) (5.2% of those tests; 48 observed failures; about 7.9× more often than similar cars). These are statistical signals, not a diagnosis of any individual car.
Seat belt mounting area (front) shows up more often than on similar cars (5.2% of those tests; 48 observed failures; about 7.9× more often than similar cars). That does not prove a design fault. Age, mileage, and how the car was used still matter. Treat it as a pre-purchase checkpoint, not a manufacturer service bulletin.
Common MOT problem areas for the 2004 Citroen Xsara include Seat belt mounting area (front), Vehicle structure condition (front), Side repeater indicators. These are the faults that stand out compared with similar cars, not a complete list of what can go wrong on any individual car.
Advisories flag issues noted at the test and are not a fail rate. We show advisory patterns that appear more often than on similar cars among failed first-attempt tests, separate from common failure rows. Use them as early-warning checks, not as a pass/fail score.
This page highlights MOT failure patterns for the 2004 Citroen Xsara (registration year) using UK DVSA open data for the selected test year. Patterns are compared with cars of a similar age and mileage. It is a buyer checklist from MOT defect statistics, not a full service history or manufacturer service-bulletin list.
No. MOT tests do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronic modules. Patterns here come from MOT defect statistics only and should not be read as engine or gearbox reliability scores.

About this data

How this page is built and what it can (and can't) say.

These figures come from UK MOT open data for this model year. We surface common failure patterns against similar cars, not a full reliability score, and not a pass/fail verdict on any individual vehicle.

2024 2025

What we include

UK Class 4 cars only. Normal MOT tests (not retests); first test per vehicle per calendar year; results pass, PRS, or fail.

Same-day repairs

PRS means the car failed items that were fixed at the test station and then passed the same day. We count PRS as a first-attempt fail in headline rates so same-day repairs do not hide problems.

How we compare

We compare this model year with other Class 4 cars of similar age and mileage in the same test year. This model family is left out of the peer group so the car is not measured against itself.

What this does not cover

  • MOTs do not cover engine internals, gearboxes, or many electronics; this is not a full reliability score.
  • Common faults come from MOT defect stats, not manufacturer TSBs or recalls.
  • Age and mileage matching reduces, but does not remove, differences in how cars were used and maintained.
  • If the data for a car is too thin to say anything useful, we say so rather than guess.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

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