Jaguar X-Type

Jaguar X-Type 2.0D Sport Estate

2004 (04)

Purchased my example (manual) when it was 3 years old and it is probably the only car I have owned that I will drive until it gets scrapped. Extremely comfortable drive and with the uprated suspension present in the Sports variant can also be extremely exiting. Holds the road superbly and has the character of a much smaller vehicle.

Interior is quality full, stitched leather. The seats are extremely comfortable and I have driven 400 miles before without a break and have not suffered the consequences as in many cars. Equipment level varies depending on the options selected. Mine is fairly low in on-board 'toys' but I had been specifically searching for the Sports variant with a manual gear box in preference to having a bunch of gadgets that I am never likely to use.

In terms of performance I do not find it lacking. The Ford derived 2.0d engine has plenty of torque and acceleration, particularly in 3rd gear and above this is superb.

Reliability has been excellent and the only real issue I experienced was a turbo pipe becoming detached.

This car was purchased in preference to a BMW 5 series estate, purely because the Jaguar (not being rear wheel drive) has more boot capacity. I certainly do not regret it.

As far as running and servicing costs go, fuel economy is superb for a car of this size. I average 45MPG and on a long motorway run this can increase to 50+. Also, as consumable parts are mainly Ford derived, I am quite happy getting the vehicle serviced in 'normal' garages and not tying myself to an over-priced Jaguar main dealer.

Depreciation appears to be quite high initially. When purchased at 3 years old mine cost £10995 which is less than half the new retail price. However, I frequently see 04 plate examples in local dealers marked at around 6 - 7k five years later do depreciation must flatten after the initial period.

The only (very small) criticism is that as is common with many turbo diesel engines, the exhaust gas recirculation valve has a tendency to 'gum up' particularly after a lot of short journeys. This is evident by quite a lot of black smoke being produced under reasonably hard acceleration in 3rd and 4th gear. I have reduced the issue by fitting an EGR blanking plate but I would say the valve still needs to be cleaned with each service. Once again this is not a problem peculiar to this vehicle but maybe the way it encourages you to drive makes the issue more evident.

Finally, to those people who say that the Jaguar X-Type is 'just a Mondeo', compare the build quality of the two. There is a big difference.

I have regretted many car purchases in the past and this is certainly not one of them.

Mr J Beardon