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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  From BMW to Jaguar - 2005 Jaguar S-Type
  By Sandi Voigt - November 21 - 10:00 am

  I owned 3 BMWs and wanted a to try a Jaguar. I love it so far!It is a very nice comfortable car and handles well.

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  baby jaguar - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By Rhode Island - November 21 - 10:00 am

  The little jaguar does everything you ask it to do and is a lot of fun to drive to boot. Handles great with the all wheel drive yet gives a pretty good ride. The longer you own it the better you like the car. It is not flashy but understated. I think people who dont own one just dont understand.

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  2 years and still enjoying my X - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By Varilux - November 16 - 1:03 am

  Purchased a certified used 5 spd/2.5L X-Type in 3/05 (had 12k miles). 2 years and 18k miles later, the only issues have been a popping air vent (fixed under warranty) and a drivers door handle that intermittently sticks. Handles like a dream (the AWD is amazing), but could use just a bit more punch in 1st gear. Acceleration from 20 mph on is just fine. Quiet ride and gets compliments everywhere I go. Very satisfied with performance, reliability, and gas mileage (24 mpg with 50/50 highway and local driving, and I tend to punch it a lot). Looking to upgrade to either a 3.0 X-Type Sport or used XK8 next year.

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  Pleased... Indeed! - 2006 Jaguar X-Type
  By Sandra M. Lamb - November 12 - 3:40 pm

  First Jag ever purchased and I am very satisfied and pleased with its performance. Takes off at the drop of a dime and leaves everything behind it in its dust! Handles a curve in wet or dry conditions superbly. Comfortably seats my family of four including my 6 foot husband. Interior is butter soft and so classy and elegant holds true to JAG reputation. Interior works well with Liquid Silver exterior and mesh grill...heads turn when we drive by for a second look. Love the Sports car feel in a Luxury Sedan! Im truly PLEASED INDEED with this vehicle and strongly considering buying the XJ or XJ8 for my husband.

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  Love my Jag! - 2002 Jaguar X-Type
  By walt_beth - November 11 - 10:00 am

  This is my first Jaguar and I love it more and more each day. The car is very luxurious, moreso than the bmw, lexus and mercedes we test drove. So far no, problems, but we are worried about the reliability after reading the edmunds report.

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  funcar - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By siena - November 7 - 10:00 am

  at this point, one month, I am very pleased with the auto.

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  The Best Car - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By Lawrence Sher - October 31 - 10:00 am

  I have never ever experienced such a nice car. It is well built, solid and drives so nice, the 4 wheel drive is fantastic, to all out there from and ex BMW and Mercedes the Jag is 10 times better and sitting on those leather seats smelling the rich leather wow, I just cant wait every morning to get to my car.

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  Poor Quality Parts and Finishes - 2006 Jaguar X-Type
  By Bad News - October 29 - 10:00 am

  Major disappointment! At under 30,000 miles and after having kept it in perfect condition, the interior began to literally fall apart! And what did Jaguar senior maintenance manager have to say? She hung up on me when I demanded to know who her boss was since she didnt want to take my complaints seriously. All told - $1800 to get it fixed! Never buy another Jaguar again! Cant wait to unload this one!

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  Excellent car!!! - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By johnadarin - October 25 - 2:00 am

  I love the power, the beauty and the 4 wheel drive in the snow and ice. The rear seats fold down which allows me to transport things on occasion. Great buy and beautiful fast car

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  S-type two years later - 2000 Jaguar S-Type
  By richardwechsler - October 24 - 10:00 am

  After comparison shopping (Volvo bi- turbos, BMW 540) bought a demo S-type in August 2000. Two years later I can report that the experience has been perfect - I mean PERFECT! Since delivery NOTHING has gone wrong with this car - not only no big things but not even a loose stitch in the upholstery or a rattle. Its been 100% reliable. I am an aggressive driver and appreciate and use the ABS and traction control features regularly. The engine is silky smooth with an appropriate growl which comes in at about half throttle. The transmission is good - not great. Slowly depressing the throttle gets you accelerated much faster with less fuss.