And there it goes... FINALLY!!
So then. nearly a month after originally putting the April car up for grabs, it finally sold, and what have we learned from all this? Well, it would appear that a Jaguar X-type estate is quite hard to sell, and a 2004 Jaguar estate with about 184000 miles on it, and about 8 months MOT left is not worth anywhere near the £1800.13 that i originally paid for it waaaaaaaay back in February, it is infact worth just £1,260.00! Ouch! But atleast it's gone, the guy showed up today to collect it, and he was just a lad, i'm guessing maybe twenty - thirty something. I'm guessing that he didn't have a lot of spare cash, and he probably needed a break, i remember when i was about that age i could never get enough cash together to buy anything half decent, and in all honesty, i'm glad he got a good deal on the Jaguar, and i hope that it serves him well, and wish him the best of luck with the old thing.
What else can i tell you about my month (or two) as the owner of a Jaguar X-type estate? Well, when i bought it back in February it was to be used for a trip to see my friends in Germany, and as you all know, it never got to go in the trip, so it's starring role in my Twelve Cars In A Year thread got pushed back from April, to May. When i origanlly got it the mileage was 182,236 and today, as it drove away from me it was rolling over to 183,358 which means if my basic maths is correct, i covered 1108 miles in my (extended) months ownership. In this time it burned off 27.17 UK Gallons of diesel, which means that i was getting about 40.8 MPG not too shabby considering that a lot of the time i just driving about town in the traffic. Although, the onboard computery type thingy says...
But according to my notes and calculations, as i said it was getting on for 41 MPG, but perhaps the onboard computer under-etimates so as not to lull you into a false sense of security or something.
To be honest i'm struggling to tell you anything about the Jag, my mind has just gone blank, and this is probably due to the fact that as far as cars go, it was pretty average really, it did grow on me by the time i sold it, and when i sold it, i was surprised that i didn't think Good Riddence, i just thought Goodbye. I never gelled with it, and i think that this is probably due to the fact of all the annoyances that i had early on in my ownership of it. I believe that no matter how long i held on to this car i would have never gelled with it, i know this because (and i'm about to go way off track for a moment, so please bear with me...) about three years ago i bought this little, and quite rare beauty...
Now, if you know your Volvos you'll know this is a bit special, if you don't know them, it's a 1978 Volvo 262C Bertone coupé. It's rust free as it came from a dry state and had been looked after fairly well, it runs, drives, etc, infact, it's in pretty good shape. I've wanted one of these litterally since about 1978! I'm not interested in this car, apart from changing the tail light, i've not touched it really. Why? Well, it was such a pain in the
to get in the first place. I won the car on ebay, and pretty much paid up straight away, but then the seller messed me and the people i'd arranged to ship the car around so much that it took over nine months to get the car here, and by the time it got here i was fed up with it. I've kept it because its in such good shape, and so solid i figured that i'll never find another one, but whats the point of keeping it if i'm not interested in it? So right now, i'm at the point where i'm thinking that i will probably sell it. But back to the plot, and back to the Jag. I think that all the trouble i had from the DVLA not letting me take it to Germany because the previous owner had still not sent the documents in after i had owned it for six weeks kinda set the tone for my Jaguar experience a bit. I think that more than anything this event put me off this car from the start sadly, and this is why i never gelled with it. As stated earlier i thought that the ride was too crude, and harsh, and also i didn't feel that the car its self was special enough, i mean, it's a Jag, surely it should feel a bit special. The other thing is i get to drive this car a lot...
The car on the right is my Dads Rover 75estate, Tourer, and it's a good car... Stand by for more pics...
They are very similar, it's also wrong wheel drive, and powered by an agricultural engine...
Jaguar X-type Rover 75
Even inside it's a similar story, infact if you were put into either cars with the badges covered up so you didn't know which you were in i reckon you'd have a job to know which is the Jaguar, and which is the Rover. Like i said, they are very similar cars, except for one thing. The Rover is better. Yes, you read that right, THE ROVER IS BETTER!! Here is why. My Dads Rover has a similar mileage (actually it's abit higher than the Jag) and it's still just as powerful, it's diesel engine will pull all day, with plenty of power. It's as quick as the Jag, even though the Rover is automatic. The ride is smoother, quiter, and more refined, and handles just as well. The seats are more comfortable in the Rover. The bodywork looks similar to the Jaguar, ok, it might not be quite so pretty as the Geoff Lawson designed bodywork on the X-type, but it's not an ugly car by any stretch of the imagination. But here's the clincher, for me anyway, it feels special! The quality, and fit and finish of everthing is better on the Rover than on the Jag, and it just feels special. I know, i can barely believe i'm writing it myself! The other thing is the price difference when these two cars where new, the Jaguar prices ranged from £21,165 - £33,050, whereas the Rover 75 prices ranged from £16,400 - £30,000. So why on Earth would you buy the Jaguar over the Rover as it's more expensive, and in my opinion not as good, well i can only imagine that people were buying the badge. When you buy a Jaguar it's because you want to buy into the whole Jag deal. The old race wins, the E-Type, the D-Type, Steed's wide-bodied XJ in The Avengers, Simon Templars XJS in The Return of The Saint, et cetera. You're buying into the history, the pedigree, and the image, and front-wheel-drive X-Type may well have made this dream easier to realise for more people. Personally i think this is a bit of a shame really. I know i said this before, about my Rover 416 tourer that i had earlier on, but why, when Rover were producing cars as good as the 75 did they end up going bankrupt? I genuinely think that they never got over the reputation they earned during the seventies for poor workmanship and shoddy build quality, and this is a shame. My guess is, if you're still reading my babble, you're wondering why i didn't go and buy myself a Rover 75 instead of the Jaguar? Well, like i said earlier, i get to drive my Dads Rover very often, so i know what they're like to drive, so i felt what would be the point of getting one for this experiment? Plus, i wanted the Jaguar, and i wanted to really like it. The thing is, i've not been put off from having another either, another Jaguar that is, not another X-type, i quite fancy a S-type at some point, although not necessarily any time soon, but if one comes up cheaply enough, i might have a go at it!
Having said all of that, as i sit here reminiscing about the Jaguar it strikes me that the thing i disliked about my time with it the most was not actually anything to do with the car it's self, but more about every armchair motoring experts view of it (and the amount of them who felt they needed to tell me their views!), y'know the one, It's just an old Mondeo mate innit? Well, ok let's get this out of the way here and now. The Jaguar X-type is based on a modified Ford CD132 floorpan as used on the Mondeo, and the multi link rear suspension is also from the Mondeo estate. Also the engine in mine was based on the Ford Duratorq ZSD unit as used in the Mondeo and Transit, and of course some of the switch gear is straight out of the Ford parts bin. But as i said before, whats wrong with that, i don't believe for a second that Jaguar was trying to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. It was just trying to build their car cheaper, and from an economical standpoint raiding the parent companys parts bin makes good sense, and anyway less than 20% of the X-type is shared with the Mondeo. I could understand their arguments if there were no difference between the X-type and the Mondeo, but the fact is they look different, sound different, have completely different dynamics and a totally different ambience. A bit like the Audi A4 and VW Passat, which are also based on a common floorpan, but nobody comments about that do they? I think that Jermey Clarkson once summed up the X-type quite well when he said, "Underneath the X-type is actually a Ford Mondeo, but don't let that put you off. Genetically you are 98% Identical to a Halibut, but it's the two percent that makes the difference. And it's the same story in here, look at all this wood, and leather, and equipment, it feels very Jaguarish." Well done Jezza, you nailed it!
So, is it just an old Mondeo? NO, IT ISNT!
So then. nearly a month after originally putting the April car up for grabs, it finally sold, and what have we learned from all this? Well, it would appear that a Jaguar X-type estate is quite hard to sell, and a 2004 Jaguar estate with about 184000 miles on it, and about 8 months MOT left is not worth anywhere near the £1800.13 that i originally paid for it waaaaaaaay back in February, it is infact worth just £1,260.00! Ouch! But atleast it's gone, the guy showed up today to collect it, and he was just a lad, i'm guessing maybe twenty - thirty something. I'm guessing that he didn't have a lot of spare cash, and he probably needed a break, i remember when i was about that age i could never get enough cash together to buy anything half decent, and in all honesty, i'm glad he got a good deal on the Jaguar, and i hope that it serves him well, and wish him the best of luck with the old thing.
What else can i tell you about my month (or two) as the owner of a Jaguar X-type estate? Well, when i bought it back in February it was to be used for a trip to see my friends in Germany, and as you all know, it never got to go in the trip, so it's starring role in my Twelve Cars In A Year thread got pushed back from April, to May. When i origanlly got it the mileage was 182,236 and today, as it drove away from me it was rolling over to 183,358 which means if my basic maths is correct, i covered 1108 miles in my (extended) months ownership. In this time it burned off 27.17 UK Gallons of diesel, which means that i was getting about 40.8 MPG not too shabby considering that a lot of the time i just driving about town in the traffic. Although, the onboard computery type thingy says...
But according to my notes and calculations, as i said it was getting on for 41 MPG, but perhaps the onboard computer under-etimates so as not to lull you into a false sense of security or something.
To be honest i'm struggling to tell you anything about the Jag, my mind has just gone blank, and this is probably due to the fact that as far as cars go, it was pretty average really, it did grow on me by the time i sold it, and when i sold it, i was surprised that i didn't think Good Riddence, i just thought Goodbye. I never gelled with it, and i think that this is probably due to the fact of all the annoyances that i had early on in my ownership of it. I believe that no matter how long i held on to this car i would have never gelled with it, i know this because (and i'm about to go way off track for a moment, so please bear with me...) about three years ago i bought this little, and quite rare beauty...
Now, if you know your Volvos you'll know this is a bit special, if you don't know them, it's a 1978 Volvo 262C Bertone coupé. It's rust free as it came from a dry state and had been looked after fairly well, it runs, drives, etc, infact, it's in pretty good shape. I've wanted one of these litterally since about 1978! I'm not interested in this car, apart from changing the tail light, i've not touched it really. Why? Well, it was such a pain in the
to get in the first place. I won the car on ebay, and pretty much paid up straight away, but then the seller messed me and the people i'd arranged to ship the car around so much that it took over nine months to get the car here, and by the time it got here i was fed up with it. I've kept it because its in such good shape, and so solid i figured that i'll never find another one, but whats the point of keeping it if i'm not interested in it? So right now, i'm at the point where i'm thinking that i will probably sell it. But back to the plot, and back to the Jag. I think that all the trouble i had from the DVLA not letting me take it to Germany because the previous owner had still not sent the documents in after i had owned it for six weeks kinda set the tone for my Jaguar experience a bit. I think that more than anything this event put me off this car from the start sadly, and this is why i never gelled with it. As stated earlier i thought that the ride was too crude, and harsh, and also i didn't feel that the car its self was special enough, i mean, it's a Jag, surely it should feel a bit special. The other thing is i get to drive this car a lot...The car on the right is my Dads Rover 75
They are very similar, it's also wrong wheel drive, and powered by an agricultural engine...
Jaguar X-type Rover 75
Even inside it's a similar story, infact if you were put into either cars with the badges covered up so you didn't know which you were in i reckon you'd have a job to know which is the Jaguar, and which is the Rover. Like i said, they are very similar cars, except for one thing. The Rover is better. Yes, you read that right, THE ROVER IS BETTER!! Here is why. My Dads Rover has a similar mileage (actually it's abit higher than the Jag) and it's still just as powerful, it's diesel engine will pull all day, with plenty of power. It's as quick as the Jag, even though the Rover is automatic. The ride is smoother, quiter, and more refined, and handles just as well. The seats are more comfortable in the Rover. The bodywork looks similar to the Jaguar, ok, it might not be quite so pretty as the Geoff Lawson designed bodywork on the X-type, but it's not an ugly car by any stretch of the imagination. But here's the clincher, for me anyway, it feels special! The quality, and fit and finish of everthing is better on the Rover than on the Jag, and it just feels special. I know, i can barely believe i'm writing it myself! The other thing is the price difference when these two cars where new, the Jaguar prices ranged from £21,165 - £33,050, whereas the Rover 75 prices ranged from £16,400 - £30,000. So why on Earth would you buy the Jaguar over the Rover as it's more expensive, and in my opinion not as good, well i can only imagine that people were buying the badge. When you buy a Jaguar it's because you want to buy into the whole Jag deal. The old race wins, the E-Type, the D-Type, Steed's wide-bodied XJ in The Avengers, Simon Templars XJS in The Return of The Saint, et cetera. You're buying into the history, the pedigree, and the image, and front-wheel-drive X-Type may well have made this dream easier to realise for more people. Personally i think this is a bit of a shame really. I know i said this before, about my Rover 416 tourer that i had earlier on, but why, when Rover were producing cars as good as the 75 did they end up going bankrupt? I genuinely think that they never got over the reputation they earned during the seventies for poor workmanship and shoddy build quality, and this is a shame. My guess is, if you're still reading my babble, you're wondering why i didn't go and buy myself a Rover 75 instead of the Jaguar? Well, like i said earlier, i get to drive my Dads Rover very often, so i know what they're like to drive, so i felt what would be the point of getting one for this experiment? Plus, i wanted the Jaguar, and i wanted to really like it. The thing is, i've not been put off from having another either, another Jaguar that is, not another X-type, i quite fancy a S-type at some point, although not necessarily any time soon, but if one comes up cheaply enough, i might have a go at it!
Having said all of that, as i sit here reminiscing about the Jaguar it strikes me that the thing i disliked about my time with it the most was not actually anything to do with the car it's self, but more about every armchair motoring experts view of it (and the amount of them who felt they needed to tell me their views!), y'know the one, It's just an old Mondeo mate innit? Well, ok let's get this out of the way here and now. The Jaguar X-type is based on a modified Ford CD132 floorpan as used on the Mondeo, and the multi link rear suspension is also from the Mondeo estate. Also the engine in mine was based on the Ford Duratorq ZSD unit as used in the Mondeo and Transit, and of course some of the switch gear is straight out of the Ford parts bin. But as i said before, whats wrong with that, i don't believe for a second that Jaguar was trying to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. It was just trying to build their car cheaper, and from an economical standpoint raiding the parent companys parts bin makes good sense, and anyway less than 20% of the X-type is shared with the Mondeo. I could understand their arguments if there were no difference between the X-type and the Mondeo, but the fact is they look different, sound different, have completely different dynamics and a totally different ambience. A bit like the Audi A4 and VW Passat, which are also based on a common floorpan, but nobody comments about that do they? I think that Jermey Clarkson once summed up the X-type quite well when he said, "Underneath the X-type is actually a Ford Mondeo, but don't let that put you off. Genetically you are 98% Identical to a Halibut, but it's the two percent that makes the difference. And it's the same story in here, look at all this wood, and leather, and equipment, it feels very Jaguarish." Well done Jezza, you nailed it!
So, is it just an old Mondeo? NO, IT ISNT!
What a blast!! It's 1600cc engine buzzing away under the bonnet propels this little pocket rocket along very VERY well, and having a wheel literally on each corner makes the pin sharp handling nothing short of fantastic!! THIS IS EPIC!!! After the Jaguar this is really is a breath of fresh air, especially with the roof down!!
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