Questions about X-Type

Hi. I'm new here and have a couple of questions about the Jaguar X-Type Sedans. I have always loved the styling of these cars and noticed that used ones can be had in the upper teens, pricewise. However, I am 87 miles from the nearest Jag Dealership. I have also read other owners' experiences, and it seems like the ratio is about 50/50 between those who say they are junk (drivetrain, transmission problems) and those who say they are awesome cars. I know Consumer Reports does not give Jaguar kind ratings, but then again, they don't give good ratings to ANYTHING unless it's a Honda or Toyota. This has been the case for years,and as a consequence, I don't put much faith in what they say. Bottom line: Are Jaguars good reliable cars, or are they a brand to avoid? Also, I've heard that the X-Type is scheduled to be discontinued by 2009. Does anybody know?

Reply to
Sills
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Greetings, A few thoughts about this subject. First off -- Consumer Reports has no idea what they are talking about. Never have. In 1986, my family bought 3 vehicles. A Ford Crown Victoria, a Subaru Station Wagon and a Nissan 300ZX. The 300ZX was rated as one of the worst cars on the road -- the Crown Vic was supposedly one of the best. Nearly 20 years later, I have 280,000 miles on the 300ZX and the other two have been crushed for scrap.

ANY car is only as good as it's owner. Period!! If you expect to be able to ignore the X-Type and have it run forever with no care like you would a Toyota -- it will be the WORST car you have ever owned. If you educate yourself and get the service manuals and do some of the work yourself -- the car will become part of your life and it will always run well.

I have two perfect examples of this: My buddy has a 2000 XJR. This car is now 6 years old. Two months ago, the battery died and he was so angry he was prepared to sell the car. I was surprised the original battery lasted 6 years. So he went out and bought a cheapie replacement battery and it died within two weeks. He was actually so angry with the car that he placed an ad for the car in the newspaper to sell it before he called me. We took the battery back to where he purchased it and discovered that it had a manufacturer's defect in one of the cells and the battery was bad. Because of this, he now thinks Jaguars are terrible cars!!! (I MAY be buying an XJR CHEAP)

The other example is my 1988 XJ40. The '88 was supposed to be the worst Jaguar ever made. Whilst it does have some niggily irritating problems, I now have 228,000 miles on the car and I expect another 100,000 - 200,000 out of it before it finally goes away. Then again, I do all my own repair work!!

So the best thing you can do is find a car that has been regularly and WELL serviced. It should give a long period of faithful service.

Webserve

Reply to
webserve

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, my mechanical skills rank about the same as a mentally-challenged gerbil. I would expect Jags to be quite expensive in maintenance and repairs, but I'm used to that. I own a Volkswagen Golf,a good car, but expensive to maintain. Since I have everything done by the pros, my R&M run about $1000/year, NOT including oil changes. I suppose a Jag X in the 30K price range may be $1500-2000/year, but I love their styling..... I am torn between trying to remain loyal to VW or getting a beautifully-styled car and taking my chances. Here's another question: Is the 3.0 in the X-Type the same engine as the base S-Type? I ask this because of the talk of X-types being discontinued by 2009.

Reply to
Sills

Reply to
EdFielder

Dont confuse the light-weight Ford V6 with that engine though...

Reply to
Blake Dodson

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