Used Jaguar X - Type Estate (2004 - 2010) review

X ESTATE RATED

JAGUAR X - TYPE ESTATE (2004 - 2010)

(7.2 out of 10)

REVIEW DATE: 08 Jul 2005

Models Covered: (5 dr Estate 2.0, 2.5, 3.0, V6 petrol 2.0, 2.2 diesel [base, Classic, S, Sport, SE, Sport Premium, Sovereign])

JAGUAR X - TYPE ESTATE (2004 - 2010) USED CAR MODEL GUIDE

There's a lot to like about the Jaguar X-TYPE Estate. Its clubby feel and sophisticated air renders it largely immune to the ageing process suffered so severely by more cutting edge rivals. The best models lie at either end of the range in the shape of the 2.0-litre Classic diesel and the 3.0-litre Sport. Plump for a car in a modest colour and you should be onto a winner.

The Jaguar X-TYPE Estate was something of a late entrant into a market already stuffed with quality products sporting covetable badges. A subtle reskinning of the X-TYPE saloon, the Estate was bought by a younger clientele seeking the lifestyle advantages of a hatchback with the sleek styling of a Jaguar. The marque's first production estate, the X-TYPE offered a wide choice and attractive pricing, the rear end styling resolving many of the questions raised over the saloon car's lines. Small wonder it's been popular ever since. Used examples aren't anything like as commonplace as the four-door car but it's worth persisting if you've got a specific model in mind.

JAGUAR X-TYPE HISTORY

If you're a student of all things automotive, you probably know the background to the Jaguar X-TYPE and can skip most of this. If not, the X-TYPE at first represented Jaguar's shot at taking on the likes of BMW, Mercedes and Audi at their own game. Quality issues and the lack of entry-level models meant the saloon didn't get off to the best start in life, but as the range fleshed out a little more and diesel models were added, the X-TYPE became a more convincing proposition. Yes, there were still those who decried it as a rebodied Ford Mondeo but by and large, these were people who had never driven a Mondeo. For those in the know, that was a compliment. The launch of the Estate model came in January 2004, the range consisting of the front-wheel drive 2.0-litre petrol and diesels and the all-wheel drive 2.5 and 3.0-litrre petrol versions. By the autumn of 2004, the Sport Premium and Sovereign trim levels had been added but the biggest change came in 2005 when a 2.2-litre diesel engine was added to the X-TYPE Estate line up.

WHAT DO I GET FOR MY MONEY?

Although it takes a little adjusting to, you can see the appeal in the sleek shape of the X-TYPE Estate. Of course it's based on the saloon car's floorpan, but from the door pillars back, all the body panels are different and with an entire new roof and a revised rear subframe, the Estate is so much more than a saloon with a glazed box on the back. A large part of the challenge in making a good estate is to retain a modicum of torsional rigidity in the chassis and Jaguar have succeeded in this regard, the X-TYPE Estate being significantly stiffer in the body than a BMW 3 Series Touring. What's more, overall weight has only increased by 65kg as a result, model for model. Even if Jaguar had a long history of producing estate cars, you'd have to say the X-TYPE Estate is an impressive achievement. For a 'first time effort', it's little short of remarkable. Of course, the company has benefited form all of the technical expertise of the Ford empire, an outfit known to have built one or two estate cars down the years, but nevertheless you have to tip your titfer to the Browns Lane crew. The split fold rear seats allow for one, two or all three rear passengers to be accommodated comfortably and when folded flat, there's a whopping 1,415 litres of cubic capacity to clog with lifestyle accoutrements. Compare this with the 1,184 litres of the Audi A4 Avant, the 1,345 litres of the BMW 3 Series Touring and the 1,384 litres of the Mercedes C-Class Estate and you'll appreciate that the Jaguar is no pretty pretender. Instead it offers genuinely extended capabilities over its saloon sibling. The luggage bay is covered by a retractable tonneau and optional cargo nets prevent smaller objects from being battered during spirited cornering. Chromed spring-loaded D-rings and tie-down straps will take care of larger objects. The best bit about the rear luggage bay is the underfloor secure area which yields two deep storage sections with a 12v power supply system so that you can discreetly charge a mobile phone or a laptop computer. The rear window can be opened separately to the hatchback so that smaller items can be popped inside without lifting the tailgate and it's even possible to program the key fob so that you can open the rear window remotely.

WHAT PRICE AM I LOOKING AT?

If you were expecting the Jaguar X-TYPE Estate to fall out of bed price-wise, may I gently steer you in the direction of a Rover 75 Tourer. The five-door variant of the X-TYPE starts at just under £16,000 for the desirable 2.0-litre diesel variant on an 04 plate, with 2.0-litre petrol models a couple of hundred pounds less. This will buy the entry-level Classic trim and you'll need to fork out another £400 for SE or Sport trim. Those looking for the four-wheel drive cars - what purists would dub a 'proper' X-TYPE - should be prepared to hand over a fair bit more. A nicely specified 2.5 SE, again on an 04 plate, hovers around the £18,000 mark and the 3.0-litre models are clustered around £21,000. Insurance is straightforward. The 2.0-litre models are Group 14, the 2.5s Group 15 and the 3.0s fall into Group 16.

WHAT SHOULD I LOOK OUT FOR?

If your last experience with a Jaguar was one of the unlovely XJ40 models from the eighties, then it may be time to reacquaint yourself with the brand. Some of the first saloon cars were a little looser in terms of internal fit and finish than Jaguar would have cared to admit but the production experience curve soon saw to any minor niggles and all the Estates are very well screwed together. In most respects, there's no appreciable quality difference between an X-TYPE and a Mercedes C-Class. Some buyers have complained about audio system reliability but by and large the X-TYPE Estate is instrumental in helping Jaguar make an astonishing ascent in customer satisfaction surveys. Once a duffer, the marque can now hold its head high.

HOW DOES IT DRIVE?

If you're after the full-on X-TYPE experience you need that 3.0-litre. Fire it up and you'll be greeted with a muted growl before it settles to a distant rumble. You'll initially feel that this is going to be a sporting drive, tilting at a 3-Series rather than a C-class. Indeed, although the suspension is admirably supple in its absorption of ridges and ruts, there's not a great deal of body roll, the X-TYPE feeling taut and eager. When coupled with the automatic 'box, it's easy to forget that 40% of the drive is directed to the front wheels. The steering takes a little getting used to. Gone is the usual Jaguar steering feel, that remote, oily slickness that distanced drivers from the road. In its place is a ZF Servotronic variable-ratio system which seamlessly reduces the amount of assistance as speed builds. It's a great system for motorway cruising, with just the right amount of feel around the straight ahead point, but get a bit enthusiastic into the corners and the tardy turn-in along with the odd feeling that you need to turn the wheel far more than is at first expected will take some getting used to. Likewise, the automatic gearbox, even when switched into sport mode, can't really keep up with the demands of being pitched through a series of twisty bits. Still, that's what Jaguar makes the X-TYPE Sport for. The chubby windscreen pillars restrict visibility through tighter bends, but otherwise the Jaguar is a genuinely impressive packaging job. For a British car it adopts a groundbreaking competence in ergonomics, with all switches, minor controls and access points being intuitive to operate. Rear legroom isn't the best, especially if there are long-legged drivers up front, but that's par for the course in this class. Get a bit brutal with the right hand pedal and, with a 3.0-litre underneath you, you'll despatch 60mph in 6.9 seconds, the X-TYPE launching off the line without drama whilst making a strident high-pitched yelp as the gearbox hangs onto each gear, peak power arriving at a stratospheric 6,800rpm. The 231bhp engine will punch the car up to 143mph, although this sort of driving won't get you near Jaguar's combined fuel consumption figure of 27mpg. Despite its stiff, no-nonsense chassis feel and tight suspension, the luxury accoutrements and unwilling steering and transmission of the SE version don't encourage press-on driving, all of which make the Sport variant a far more satisfying model. The 2.5-litre is less satisfying for the keen driver, with the 2.0-litre being surprisingly zippy, able to hit 60mph in 8.9 seconds and keep going until 130mph.

BY ANDY ENRIGHT

PARTS INFORMATION

(approx based on 2004 X-TYPE Estate 3.0) Spares for the X-TYPE hover around the compact executive average. Despite the fact that pub bores may denigrate it as a Mondeo, nipping down to your local Ford dealer to pick up spares is often likely to result in a wasted journey. Front brake pads are around £45, whilst rears are £30. Expect to have to fork out around £175 for a new clutch assembly and around £485 for a new exhaust system. A replacement headlamp unit costs around £220.