Used Jaguar XE review and buying guide (2015 to 2024): which one to buy and what to check

Which used Jaguar XE should you buy?

A petrol XE is the safer buy, because the only High known fault on record for this car sits with the 2.0 Ingenium diesel built from 2015 to 2019. On those diesels, particulate filter regenerations that get cut short let fuel thin the oil, and that stretches the rear-mounted timing chain and can destroy the engine, usually somewhere between 40,000 and 80,000 miles.

If it has to be a diesel, pick one that's done plenty of long runs and has had fresh oil every 10,000 miles, whatever the dash reminder said. Cars that lived on short trips are the ones to pass on. There's very little on record about XEs built after 2019, good or bad, so don't take that quiet as a clean record; treat a later diesel with the same care.

The petrol side isn't spotless, it's just thinly documented. One owner's Ingenium petrol auto lurched as it changed down through the low gears, a 2016 car with Ford's 2.0 EcoBoost puffed white smoke on its first cold start in the days after a long run, and a July 2015 2.0 petrol auto kept a transmission noise even after the dealer fitted a new propshaft. Each is a single car, but they're worth asking about.

Which XE engines and gearboxes are the safe choices?

The 2.0 Ingenium diesel built from 2015 to 2019 is the engine to be choosy about, because it's the one with a High known fault. Its timing chain is mounted at the back of the engine and doesn't cope with oil that's been diluted by failed regenerations. Owners have reported chain rattle on a 2015 163PS car at 48,000 miles, and a warning light on a 2016 163PS car at 73,000 miles that a specialist thought could be the chain.

That diesel's AdBlue system shows up in owners' reports too: a warning that the wrong AdBlue had gone in, even with fluid meeting ISO 22241, an engine light blamed on an overfill, and repeat dealer visits for software faults. There's a recall for the underfloor diesel fuel cooler, which could leak fuel, and a 2019 emissions recall covering 2016 to 2018 Ingenium 2.0 petrols and diesels, fixed with hardware and software changes.

The eight-speed ZF automatic has no known fault on record, but test it for hesitation. Several owners have reported it hesitating, one when leaving roundabouts, and another described nothing happening on a gentle press of the throttle before it dropped two or three gears at once. A later report said an adjustment or reprogramming of the accelerator pedal sensor, or a software update, cured it. Early six-speed manuals had a slightly vague shift.

What should you check when viewing a used XE?

On a diesel, the oil change record matters more than anything else: look for changes at 10,000 miles or less, with dates and mileages in the book or on invoices. Don't rely on the dash reminder, as some 2016 builds had a fault that stopped the service message appearing. A service warning that pops up well before it's due points to diluted oil, and so does a cold-start rattle from behind the engine.

Start the car from cold and listen for rattling or buzzing from the engine that fades once you're up to speed, which one 2015 diesel owner reported, and feel for heavy vibration at idle, which on another 2015 diesel was put down to failed vacuum engine mounts. On the drive, check the auto for hesitation away from junctions and whine on the overrun, and make sure the electric parking brake releases cleanly every time.

Several owners have needed rear discs and pads early, at 27,000, 39,000 and 40,000 miles, and corrosion has seen discs and pads replaced at 11,000 miles on one car and on another bought at 8,400 miles, so look for a lip, rust and judder under braking. Check the alloys for corrosion and the sills below the rear doors for stone chips, look for cracks in the windscreen, and try the reversing camera, media system and USB.

Ask for proof that the fuel cooler recall and the emissions recall were done, along with a list of software updates. Parking brakes that wouldn't release have come down to a wheel sensor in owners' reports, one of them with water in it, so ask whether that's been dealt with. One owner's automatic emergency braking didn't work until a faulty camera was changed, so check it's switched on and no warning shows.

Paste the advert into the free check and it runs these against the listing, the MOT history and the DVLA record before you travel.

What does a used Jaguar XE cost to run?