Category: Large Family 
Price Range: £21,558 to £32,080
Good value, well-equipped, capable cruiser, pleasant auto box, economical, low emissions.
Stodgy on cornering, too softly sprung on bumpier roads, cabin feels old-fashioned, poor residuals.
Sometimes it does feel like and old man's car, but you get plenty of kit for your money. German rivals are better to drive.
Jaguar has worked on developing more comfortable seats and for the most part that has paid dividends. The seating in the front and back is supportive even though it feels quite soft and cosseting, although we were disappointed by the absence of lumbar support in the front. There's plenty of flexibility with the seating adjustment so it is easy to get comfortable without too much faffing about. Steering adjusts for rake and reach, too.
We weren't that enamoured by some of the switchgear - it just looks a bit old-fashioned and although the none of the wood finishes in the car are fake, they just look a little bit, well... establishment.
This is a value buy, though. Standard S spec includes Bluetooth phone connectivity, auto wipers and headlamps, front fog lamps and heated screen. You'll also get 17" alloy wheels, (18" on Sport Premium), a leather spoke steering wheel, metallic paint and cruise control.
Sat nav will cost you an extra £2000 and if you want you can get the premium 320W 10-speaker sound system (£640) and a DAB radio (£350). It is slightly irritating that you have to pay extra for iPod connectivity too.
SE, Sport Premium and Sovereign trim levels offer sat nav and TV tuner as standard. All this is good stuff - a BMW 320D ES with the same spec will cost you £6665 more.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Jaguar X-Type
wrote on 11 01 2007
wrote on 06 09 2006