Vehicle: 2004 Jaguar X-Type 3.0 wagon with X1-Premium, X2-Sport, X3-Weather, 18″ R performance tires, DSC and Xenon headlights
Price as tested: CDN$60145

Performance: As usual, X-Type is powered by 1 of 2 engines. Both are Duratec-based V6 which divided into 2.5L and 3.0L. Our tester is equipped with latter which has 227 hp and 210 lb/ft of torque. In terms of responsiveness and refinement, this powerplant is truly a mix review. Compare to the last 6 3.0 V6 I drove, Jag’s unit feels less refined, less responsive and rougher than equivalent Mazda unit. Although Jag might be a heavier car than Mazda, there is no way this engine feels so much rougher than its PAG silibing. The throttle response feels downright sluggish when pushed. Lack of seat-of-the-pants performance is an understatement to describe this engine. If 3.0L feels like that, I can’t imagine how doggy 2.5L feels.

While the tranny is pretty willing to up and downshifts, it won’t compensate for its sluggish powerplant’s performance. As for the J-gate shifter, its awkward to use since you have to move a “J” style from D to any other gears. While its a Jaguar tradition, they should start researching on manumatic tranny along the line of Porsche’s Tiptronic system.

Handling: X-Type’s chassis is definitely not a sloush given its based on the highly rated European Ford Mondeo platform. Its stiff and lack of flex. However, there are problems during the transformation from a Ford to a Jaguar. It just feels more like driving a Ford than what a “real” Jaguar should be. Although they claimed its AWD system is rear-bias, it feels nothing more like a FWD with tons of understeer when pushed without the benefit of AWD through corners. The weight transfer of the system is really questionable. On the other hand, steering response is more than adequate but feels numb. There are plenty of body rolls and understeers through corners. In terms of ride comfort, the sports suspension makes it feels bouncy on rough roads without giving it handling advantage over standard one.

Brakes: The pedal feel of X-Type is better than average with 4-wheel discs and ABS.

Interior: X-Type interior is another mix review. Although its already been better than the first one I drove back in 01, it still fell short of the competitors. The instrumentation gauges are clear and analog, while the Connlly leather seats are comfortable (also seat linings finally lining up properly). Now, let’s get to the things that I dislike. Firstly, the interior feels cramped. There aren’t much legroom and headroom for both front and back passengers, even in a wagon with higher roofline. Secondly, there are still plenty of cheap and shiny plastic that come directly from Ford’s parts bin. All those switchgears have a low-rent feel that completely out of place in a car costing 60 grand. While the cargo space has cubbyholes, the plastic and handle on the back feel flimsy. The plastic hatch handle has a feeling that its going to break after use.

Conclusion: European Ford Mondeo is, indeed, a great family car. On the other hand, Jag engineers completely missed the marks when transforming a great family car into a piss poor entry-level luxury car. It just doesn’t hold a candle to Audi, BMW and Mercedes compact sportswagons. Considering Volvo and Saab also have a foothold in sportswagon segment, its even tougher for Jag to break into it when all of them have far superior executions than X-Type.

OVERALL VERDICT FOR 2004 JAGUAR X-TYPE 3.0 WAGON
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Performance: 2/5
Handling and ride/fun-to-drive: 2/5
Interior/ergonomics/user-friendliness: 2/5
Fit-and-finish/build quality: 2/5
Cargo/accessibility/layout: 2/5
Value-for-money: 1/5

Overall rating: 2/5