A pattern of chronic advisories relating to oil leaks, perished rear suspension bushes, and front wheel bearing play has been evident across every MOT test on this Jaguar since 2014, indicating components that have been slowly degrading rather than being rectified between examinations. The most recent recorded test on 1 October 2021 returned a pass with no defects recorded, which on the surface looks clean but sits within a record where every previous pass carried multiple advisories covering the same trio of concerns: persistent oil seepage, worn rear shock absorber rubber bushes, and slight play in both front wheel bearings. A failure did occur on 12 November 2019 for an insecurely attached offside front anti-roll bar with a loose bolt, alongside the same cluster of advisories that had appeared at the 2017 and 2015 tests, suggesting that flagged wear items have been carried forward from one examination to the next without intervention. An earlier failure on 25 May 2017 was caused by an inoperative nearside front position lamp, a relatively minor lighting defect, while the 2007 pass recorded no defects at all. The overall trajectory is one of stable but unfinished maintenance: the vehicle has remained roadworthy enough to pass the test each time, but the repetition of identical advisories over a decade points to slow deterioration in suspension and drivetrain sealing that has not been actively addressed.
The recorded mileage of 844 miles against a 1964 build date equates to roughly 14 miles per year averaged across the vehicle's life, an extraordinarily low figure even for a classic of this age. The MOT history itself spans from February 2007 to October 2021, covering fourteen years with seven recorded tests, and the mileage progression between these entries cannot be verified because odometer readings are not listed in the data supplied. What can be observed is the irregularity of testing: a long gap from 2007 to 2014, then annual or biennial tests between 2014 and 2021, indicating the car was likely off the road for extended periods and used only sparingly when presented for examination. For a vehicle of this profile, the mechanical implications of such low mileage are significant: prolonged standing allows oil seals to dry out and weep, rubber components such as the perished rear shock bushes and perished offside front tire flagged in 2015 to harden and crack, and wheel bearings to develop flat spots or corrosion pitting on the race surfaces. Coolant and oil leaks, both of which have been user-entered or advisory-noted at three separate tests, are particularly characteristic of engines and cooling systems that are run only briefly and infrequently, as seals do not get the heat cycling required to maintain their condition.
Given the advisory history, a prospective buyer should focus the pre-purchase inspection on the specific components that have been repeatedly flagged. The rear shock absorber rubber bushes should be physically examined by hand for perishing and cracking, and the rear suspension should be bounced on a ramp to feel for any clonking or excessive vertical movement that would indicate the bushes have finally failed rather than merely worn. The front wheel bearings on both sides warrant careful listening at low speed on a test drive: any humming, grating, or rumble that rises and falls with cornering load would confirm the slight play noted in 2017 and 2019 has progressed into a serviceable defect. Steering should be checked for slack, particularly at the nearside drag link end ball joint that was flagged in 2014, by rocking the wheel side to side with the engine running and feeling for delayed response or clonking through the linkage. The underside of the engine and sump should be inspected for active oil dripping rather than just staining, and the cooling system pressurised if possible to identify the source of the coolant leak noted in 2014 and 2015, paying particular attention to hoses, the water pump, and any classic-specific weak points such as the heater matrix.
Finally, the structural and ancillary items that appeared only once in the record still deserve attention because age-related deterioration in a 62-year-old vehicle is unlikely to have improved since the last test five years ago. The offside front anti-roll bar drop link and its mounting bolt, which caused the only major failure in 2019, should be checked for tightness and the integrity of the bush, as anti-roll bar hardware on classics frequently works loose again if only the bolt was refitted rather than the bush replaced. The nearside front position lamp circuit that failed in 2017 should be verified for correct operation including the main beam tell-tale, which was noted as very dim on the same test and may indicate a failing dashboard bulb or earthing issue that has worsened. Although MOT testing only covers corrosion affecting structural integrity, a buyer should personally inspect the sills, jacking points, and rear subframe mounting areas for bubbling or advanced rust, as a Jaguar MK II of this vintage is known for rot in these locations and the test records contain no information about body condition. A road test of at least twenty minutes with varied speeds and corners is advisable to bring the drivetrain up to operating temperature, which is the only reliable way to confirm whether the chronic oil leak and coolant seepage are currently active or have stabilised.