Overview & Reviews

Jaguar cars have a long history of elegant styling and sporting performance. The brand was born in the United Kingdom, and for years its vehicles were synonymous with the old-world luxury of the British upper classes. More recently, Jaguar has been under the ownership of other automakers, but Jaguar cars will always bear the unmistakable gleam of traditional English refinement.

The company traces its roots to the Swallow Sidecar Company, founded in 1922 by Bill Lyons and William Walmsley. Based in Blackpool, England, the company produced a popular line of aluminum motorcycle sidecars. Swallow eventually switched its focus to automobile production, changing its name to SS Cars Ltd. in 1933. The first vehicle to carry the Jaguar name was the SS Jaguar 100, released in 1935.

After World War II, SS Cars switched its moniker to Jaguar so as not to be associated with the Nazi paramilitary organization that bore the same initials. Its first postwar offering was 1948's Mark V. The luxury sedan was joined that year by the XK 120, a sports car that was the fastest production automobile of its day — its name indicating its top speed. The XK 120 proved quite popular, and helped Jaguar establish a strong presence in the sports car market.

By the 1950s, Jaguar had begun exporting luxury vehicles to the United States. Created just for the American market, the Mark VII Saloon was introduced in 1951 and was a hit with stateside motorists. In 1956, the car took the prize at the Monte Carlo Rally. Later in the decade, Jaguar added the Mark VIII and Mark IX to its lineup. Meanwhile, the XK became the XK 140 as performance increased. Then came the XK 150 which was obviously even faster, though not quite as curvaceously alluring as the 120/140 models.

The 1960s saw the launch of one of Jaguar's most well-known models. The E-Type (or XK-E as it was known in the U.S.) debuted for 1961. The new sports car, available as either a coupe or convertible, provided performance and refinement wrapped up in an undeniably sexy package. The success of groups like the Beatles and the Rolling Stones and icons like Twiggy the fashion model made British culture a hot commodity during the '60s — a fact that likely had positive implications for Jaguar's popularity in the U.S.

A decade later, Jaguar introduced the XJ6C and XJ12C coupes to join the sedans. At one point, the XJ12 was the fastest production sedan of its day. By the mid-'70s the lovely E-Type was replaced by the relatively bland XJ-S. The 1980s saw Jaguar continuing to raise the bar in performance with the launch of the XJ-S HE and a true world supercar, the XJ220.
By this time, however, Jaguar's cars had also built up a reputation for questionable reliability, electrical problems being the chief source of owners' angst. Increased competition from German automakers and adverse exchange rates didn't help matters either. Without much capital to work with to improve matters, the company decided to pursue a partnership with another company. This decision ultimately led to a full buyout of Jaguar by Ford in 1990.

Ford's influence (and financial support) was evident with the 1997 launch of Jaguar's XK8 and supercharged XKR sports cars. Powering both was Jaguar's new AJ-V8, a compact yet powerful engine that was also used in certain Land Rover vehicles. A few years later, Jaguar made an effort to broaden its product line with the introduction of a lower-priced, entry-luxury compact sedan known as the X-Type. Unfortunately, this model sold poorly, as its modest European Ford sedan underpinnings proved to be a liability. Around this time, Jaguar's old-school traditional styling grew stale as competitors moved into the new millennium with cutting-edge, modern designs inside and out.

Sales plummeted, and Jaguar's financial problems caused further headaches for parent company Ford, which was also experiencing financial turmoil. Ford cut its losses and sold Jaguar (and fellow British premium brand Land Rover) to Indian manufacturer Tata in 2008. Though reliability still remains a concern, new models like the XF and redesigned icons XK and XJ seem to indicate a bright Jaguar future, as they feature modern designs sprinkled with a fair share of classic Britannic charm.

User Reviews:

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  Best Jag weve owned - 2004 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By Martin Horowitz - December 7 - 2:00 am

  Car runs beautifully and handles great but they reduced the back seat too much.Not nearly enough leg room as in the older model. The head room is great and trunk is finally a decent size.

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  FSTCAT - 2002 Jaguar XK-Series
  By eaorgon - December 5 - 10:00 am

  Beauty and the Beast. You cant find a better looking vehicle on the road, and its power rivals the hottest little rattle boxes out there, yet delivers with a grace and style no Teuton can match. Editors complain about a fussy GPS, which is ridiculous...its acuracy will amaze. The interior is divine, all high quality with an outstanding 9 speaker sound system.

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  xjr - 2004 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By jacobmicheal - December 2 - 10:00 am

  this car is very stylish.. very fast for a big sedan.. all aluminum gives it better performance.. turns heads.. supercharged engine sounds nice at high rpms.. great overall vehicle..

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  ba - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By hastings - December 2 - 10:00 am

  i just love the car

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  lemon - 2004 Jaguar S-Type
  By steve centore - December 1 - 2:00 am

  dealership was not truthful,this car was a demo,which they didnt tell me that was in an accident.from day 1,ive had nothing but trouble.transmission stinks,constant vibration in the front end.the brakes are noisey,squeally,major engine parts have been replaced,repaired,the manager of the dealership is of no use,no help;i cant wait for the lease to be up

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  Jaguar S-Type 4.2 - 2004 Jaguar S-Type
  By Kellogg - December 1 - 2:00 am

  This is one fine, luxury appointed, well designed Automobile.

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  the best - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By azfischer - December 1 - 2:00 am

  this car is the best car i have ever drivin. it is great performance and handles great.

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  Ultimate Cats "Meow" - WOW!!!! - 2004 Jaguar XK-Series
  By Brooklyn Lion - November 25 - 10:00 am

  This is an incredibly fun car to drive. It is an eye turner: sleek, sexy and beautiful. Driving it makes you forget the few blemishes it has.

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  Wow, its all Jag - 2005 Jaguar XK-Series
  By RdKing - November 21 - 10:00 am

  When trying to discribe my experience with the jag the word Wow comes to mind. Id say its the most bang for the buck, even though it takes many bucks. I have four of the older models, two XK roadsters, and its preformance is light-years away ahead of the older jags. Its a car I love to drive. I do have to learn how to handle the speed....its fast.

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  I Luv my Vanden Plas - 2005 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By gomccall - November 21 - 10:00 am

  This sedan is without a doubt the best vehicle I have owned to date.As a former Jaguar XJ8 owner in the late nineties,and then a BMW 700 series owner, I can tell you the new Jaguar Vanden Plas is a joy to drive. I have 10k miles on it and have not had to have it serviced once.The computer assisted auto leveling air shocks perform flawlessly giving you that cushy ride without that swaying or bouncing feel.It has an extremely quite ride, in fact, it is much quieter than its brother,the XJ8 model.I could go on and on about all the excellent features this car offers but in closing I will simply say that Jaguar finally got it right this time.