Deal on a Jaguar X type?

I saw a car for sale today that I think is a steal...A 2002 Jaguar X type, manual transmission, 25k ish miles, for $14,985. It is still under factory warranty for another 25k miles or 2 years. Beautiful white car, perfect paint, perfect leather interior...spotless car all around.

Anyone own or have driven an X type? Sunny, what say you? Driving impressions? Also, very important, do the back seats fold down into the trunk?

 

I think it sounds like a good deal. The X type Jaguar has never been the sales success Ford had hoped for.

Residuals are quite low.

I've been thinking about a pre owned X type myself as a daily driver.

Good luck

JB

 

Hey Jordan, thats a good price on it. Is it a clean title though? Thats a bit low so I don't think this is a dealership, so it makes me wonder why they are selling it at that price. The '02 cars had some issues. Most of them minor, however one thing to check for is to make sure that all the recall items have been taken care of. If its a dealership car, than this should be easy for them to look up. There is a big issue with transmissions for the '02 and the rest are minor stuff such as a buzz from the in cabin temp sensor fan.

The rear seats do fold down and I spent several hours driving a 3.0 Sport through the canyons (Mulholland, Topanga, Stunt Rd) and the chassis was stiffened, so with the AWD, it has a good feel on the highway and when pushed is fun. You want the 3.0 otherwise it will be gutless even around town but thats not necessarily a bad thing for a mostly commuter kind of car.

Does it have the moonroof as well? I can't recall if that is standard. Is it the 2.5 or the 3.0? Sport package? Premium package? Factory warranty only goes 4 years or 50k miles unless its a dealership car and it qualifies for Select Edition warranty. The Select Edition is the best used warranty program out there, 2 years extra and raises the mileage cap to 100k but it will cost you a couple grand extra.

Honestly, if you can spend a little more I think you would be happier with the Audi A4 1.8T. The transmission, interior, and chassis are better not to mention there is a huge aftermarket for it where as there's zero for the X-Type. When you get bored with it, you can mod it or get rid of it.

As far as reliability is concerned, the power train is solid if not overly abused, but the car isn't as well screwed together as an XJ, from quality of interior components and assembly and power train.

My recommendation is drive it and the Audi. I would include the RX-8 in this list since its in your range ONLY if the pass through in the back would accomodate your bass, but I don't think so.

Drive it and then tell us what YOU think!

Sunny

 

I like the xj but the xtype is more affordable and seems nice. What do you think of an xtype as a family car for a family of four? Is the warranty any good really? And are they expensive to own/maintain? My family is looking into a new car with AWD and this is one nice car!

 

I think you would be insane to choose an X-Type considering their depreciation. The rear leg room is very close to an XJ but its not very roomy. It depends on how big the family is number wise, height wise. Jags are uncomfy for anyone that exceeds the 6ft and/or 200lb barrier.

The Jaguar warranty is good to excellent, the dealership service is average good to excellent but bad seeds do exist in the dealership network just like the other premium marks.

If you buy a used one from the first two years of production, they can be more expensive than an XJ to maintain.

For an optioned X-Type, just think, you could also choose a Volvo S60R AWD. BRILLIANT chassis, twice as comfortable as the Jag (seriously, sit in one and then the Jag and you will know what I mean). Its better put together than the Jag, not to mention a heck of a lot faster and more understated.

If it sounds like I don't like the X-Type, its ok, it has its strong points but price (and depreciation), reliability (to an extent), and how well it does against its rivals are not strong points. If its a used Select Edition 2003 3.0 X-Type than it would be worth consideration in my opinion.

The Audi A6 Quattro's are too expensive and most AWD cars out there are more expensive if you are intent on choosing a premium brand. I consider the S60R one of those rare beasts thats worth more than their MSRP.

Sunny

 

NNNNNOOOOOOOOO!!!

Stay well clear of the X-type! They are riddled with problems with the 4 wheel drive system and they have horrid build quality! Just ask any tech at a Jag dealership, heck even the sales guys will tell you to stay away! I have repaired a few of these things and they are just awful. Although I do like the interiors, and the over appearance of the car, mechanicly they are a nightmare. If you do decide to get one, buy an extended warrenty becuase you are going to need it!

 

Tom, what would you recommend instead? Thanks for the backup on the X-Type.

 

Well my family in terms of volvo likes the s80 best (size comfort etc.) however I really like the peformance of that s60r and the look of the natural leather. If only I could make the final deci$ion!

the xtype seems like a ford taurus with the jaguar curves on the front end.

 

I had the first year of production car for 2 years and only had minor niggles. If you got 2 year warranty, go for it, the price seems low enough, for you not to loose too much on depreciation.

 

Jordan,

Call that Audi guy already!!!

 

You could post a poll??
Seriously, Jag dealers can't give'em away. 2.5's are slugs. I'd rather have a new Civic, Corolla, or Kia than a used, no warranty X. Seat doesn't fold IIRC.

 

I thought the early cars had a hum in the axle or driveshaft they couldn't fix in the early cars.... I've only heard bad, bad stories......

 

Don't forget X type are Ford Mondeo in disguise

 

Jaguar was doing well in the reliability department aside from a few technical design flaws with the early V8 engines. Throughout Jags history, their engines have been incredibly solid except the rest of the parts added on generally caused the problems. Engine problems were a first in '98-early '00 due to water pump, timing chain tensioner, t-stat, and the impression the tranny and diff never need servicing.

With a bit of knowlege and a small $2k or less investment, the V8's were stout cars aside from the fickle ZF 5-speed or MB transmission they used. Consumers were convinced these were sealed for life units and that they didn't need servicing. What the consumer didn't know is that with servicing, they were able to survive twice as long, in other words, as long as the rest of the vehicle.

The last of the inline sixes were so reliable, replacement parts are hideously low. Engines are in very low demand, used/tested engines with low miles are less than $500 USD each and used/tested transmissions are $1,000 USD, sometimes less.

This all changed with the X-Type.

I used to know an individual who worked at J.D. Powers on consumer surveys for autos and its no secret the reliability gains made were reversed with the X-Type came out. Its also no secret why its being discontinued in '07 either.

The best Jag reliability, value for money, and be somewhat exclusive is a pre-owned 4.0L S-Type. The 3.0 is still derived along with the X-Type engines from Ford power plants that have been strengthened to do the job. That spells problems down the road, in my opinion. The design life of a Jaguar inline six or V8 engine is 300k miles. I know plenty on the forums who are 200k miles or higher. I can't say the same for the Ford power plants.

There is a reason why a 3 year old X-Type goes for $5k more than a 10 year old XJ (15k vs 10k). TexasCarsDirect (no affiliation, great wholesaler) has a '03 S-Type R with 1.5-2.0 years warranty for $32k. Why on earth would you bother buying a new X-Type? LOL!

Sunny

 

Correct - aka contour in the USA.
Also the contour is not a bad car. I particularly like the SVT version, but they are not Jags. If you buy an Xtype buy it so you can fool people who are not in the know. Otherwise get a real one.