OK, I've mentioned in other areas of the forum that I'm replacing my daily driver, a 2003 Mitsubishi Eclipse GT because it's got 155,000 miles on it and is starting to have mechanical issues and rust problems.

Anyway, I found a clean 2003 Jaguar X Type with 50,000 miles, All Wheel Drive, Stick (5 speed), and in very good condition for $8,500. I'm going to go drive it tomorrow, and maybe offer him $6,500 or $7,000.

Consumer Reports gave it "better than most" as far as reliability and features.
Kelly Blue Book gives it a $6,700 value.

What do you think? Worth it? Are the X types good cars? Anyone here have personal experience with the '03 X types?

 

If everything looks good, go for it.

YouTube - Top Gear - X Type Jaguar in the snow - BBC

 

X-type, as far as I remember, is fundamentally a Taurus with a cat on the hood.

What does this mean? Looks of a Jag, reliability/cheap repair costs of the Taurus. Most Jaguar owners are plagued with reliability gripes, but since the powertrain isn't true Jaguar, you might side-step most of this. Don't expect to be thrilled with the performance, but also take pride in knowing you're driving a Jag for $7K.

 

You summed up my fears, assumptions and general opinion right there. LOL

 

Hahaha I think you'll be fine man. Just go into it with a reasonable expectation of the car and its purposes it will fulfill in your fleet, and you should be happy.

It won't drive like an S-Class, but it won't look as boring as a Camry either.

 

Hmmm... now I'm wondering what mods are available for that Taurus motor...?

 

No earthly. I think the X uses the 2.5 V-6... if the engine was a 3.0 V-6, I would recommend Morona V-6 Racing.

Superchips Tuning (SCT) does excellent work with Ford ECUs. Maybe a basic CAI, otherwise I don't think the market is too big. Might start trolling some Taurus forums...

 

The LAST car you want is a Jag..........especially an X-Type. It is an overpriced Ford Taurus with horrible build quality and high end repair costs.

 

Be forewarned Tom, Ive heard if the hood latch release breaks they are almost impossible to get into

 

Tom, these Jaguar X Types are the same car as a Lincoln LS, which is just a Jaguar X type with a Lincoln Body on it. Also I am told that this Lincoln LS body is also a copy of the BMW 5 Series and was made to compete with the BMW at a much lower cost. I have had 3 x Lincoln LS,s as my primary transport since 2000 and have loved them, and had NO PROBLEMS at all with the, NOT ONE PROBLEM. Can't be bad. Still running a 2006 LS.
TERRYR

 

as a friend of mine once said, beware of Jags with low miles, the low miles is because they were always in the shop. And that one is a lower mileage Jag. I would make very sure that everything makes sense for the low miles and the paperwork on repairs is coherant, because otherwise it may just end up being that nightmare. I mean, the X is a pretty car all in all, but certainly not a toy, a car meant to be a daily driver, so I would expect that car to have around 70K on it at least. probably more, 7 years X 12K at least is 84K on the clock, but no, this one just driven by wife to store and back. Hmmmm.

But if indeed the story is supported and logical for all the paperwork then it might be a really nice little creampuff you've found. Mucho luck with it!!!! Seriously, I hope it works out very well for you.

 

Mopar: Yes, I understand that it, like our Crossfires is simply one brand of car being sold as another. The price difference between it and the Taurus is in the interior amenities - leather, butt warmers, etc. I'm not a Ford fan, so I am leery of this car, but it fits my price range and feature set (the AWD and stick are big pluses).

RickZ: Thanks for the warning. But I am now trained in emergency hood release maneuvers! :P

Terry: Thanks for the first-hand info. That's what I really need to know: what owners think of them.

MDaniels: Thanks, I will keep that in mind as I talk to the owner. It's good advice.

 

Jaguar X-Type Reviews - Carsurvey.org

2003 and 2004 cars get good marks.

2002 cars however, do not. Make sure it's a real 2003, not a 2002 sold in 03. Check the VIN.

 

Tom it's my understanding that the X type is built on the British Ford Mondeo chassis, considered quite a good car in their day. I'd consider one myself, that is if they made a 2 door..........not ready for a four door or for that matter anything that seats more than four!

 

Hey, thanks for all the info guys. It all came to nothing though. I called the guy with the X Type today, and he had just traded it in on a truck! So I went to the lot where he traded it, and took it for a drive. The car was in beautiful condition. The exterior was flawless. The interior show minor wear. The car drove very nicely - solid - no squeaks or rattles. It handled pretty well for a 3,400 lb sedan. Unfortunately, it had the 2.5 liter engine, and only about 190 horse power. I thought that would be enough, as my Eclipse is roughly the same (3,400 lbs and 200 hp). But the car had very little pep.

Beautiful car, but just not really fun to drive.

When I returned to the dealer, I already knew I wasn't gonna buy it unless he gave me a sweet deal. He didn't want to deal. The car had only been on his lot for about 2 hours, so I'm sure he was thinking someone else will be along that will pay more.

Oh well, no big deal. There's millions of used cars out there just waiting for me to test drive them.

 

Ask him if his dealership is participating in the recession. Wave a check in front of his nostrils just to test him...

 

The problem I have with them(besides the fact that it's Ford crap) is that it is a low end car that is being played off as a high end car. The Crossfire is a high end car being played off as a low end car.