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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  My new S Type. - 2004 Jaguar S-Type
  By Starrider - October 2 - 10:00 am

  In the short time we have owned the S type, it has performed great. It is just as we expeted.

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  A lot of car and style for the price - 2002 Jaguar X-Type
  By mattklu - October 2 - 10:00 am

  I looked at the C class Mercedes, the Audi A4, and the BMW 3 series and for the price the X type is by far the best value. Throw in all-wheel drive and it was a done deal. The car looks great, handles well, has excellent braking and rides very smooth while touring on the highway.

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  Improved Driver features - 2003 Jaguar S-Type
  By Sams 2003 Jag - October 2 - 10:00 am

  Having purchased a new 2001 S-Type and enjoyed it for 2 plus years, I traded it in for a new 2003 4.2 S type after seeing the improved design regarding placement of navigation display, telephone,audio and climate controls. The car is a pleasure to drive. Excellent handling and great power. Head room and trunk space are a little tight.

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  Very pleased owner - 2004 Jaguar XK-Series
  By jackson - October 1 - 6:33 pm

  This car is an extremely pleasant car to drive. It has the combination of power and luxury (something hard to find). The V8 twin supercharged really comes to the party!

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  Jaguar XJ8 - 2005 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By Steven Bragg - October 1 - 1:06 pm

  My 2004 XJ8 is a quality luxury automobile which handles like a dream. It gets the best fuel economy in its class, with 18 mpg in the city and 28 mpg on the highway. It has a plush interior with leather and real wood trim, telescoping and electronic tilting steering, rain-sensing wipers, rear collision avoidance radar, electronically adjustable pedals, and many other luxury accessories and features. The styling is elegant. The over-all body length is shorter than previous models, but the wheel base is longer: giving it better handling than previous models. The weight of the vehicle is about 1,000 pounds less than previous models of XJ series, resulting in better fuel economy.

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  BETTER THEN MERCEDES - 2006 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By Anthony G - September 28 - 1:13 pm

  After having a S-Type and E-500, the Vanden Plas is by far the best car I have ever owned. If your looking for a Jaguar go for the XJ8L or the Vanden Plas. Style, Comfort, Performance, and Touch Screen Navigation are great! This car also looks better then any Mercedes on the Road including the S-Class!

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  Im in love! - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By Chickenkh - September 26 - 10:00 am

  Overall I am very pleased with my X- Type. I love the feel and look of the car. Test drive one, and you will fall in love!

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  So Elegant - 2004 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By NoCurfu - September 26 - 10:00 am

  This car is so luxurious and the power is amazing. It looks very inocuous from the outside but you should have seen the look on the kids face driving the Mustang that I totally left flat at the stop light! The leather feels great and all the buttons and upgrades (I also have the GPS) are very nice. I am not a big fan of 4 door cars but needed one for hauling around my precious child. This is certainly a wonderful car to drive until I can get back into a sporty 2 door (can you say XJR??!!).

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  NOT THE SAME OLD JAG - 2004 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By DON OKLA - September 26 - 10:00 am

  HAVING SPENT A LOT OF TIME LOOKING FOR A LUXURY AUTO THE LAST CAR I THOUGHT I WOULD END UP WITH WAS THE 04 XJR BUT AFTER DRIVING IT THATS ALL I NEEDED AND I WAS READY TO WRITE THE CHECK I ENJOY POWER AND COMFORT AND IT PROVIDES BOTH AND FORD OWNERSHIP HAS MADE THE RELIABILITY ISSUE A NON ISSUE IF YOU ENYOY DRIVING THIS IS CAR IS THE BEST OF THE LOT

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  Stype R - 2003 Jaguar S-Type
  By KEllison - September 26 - 10:00 am

  The car is wonderful. Its looks, the quality, the finish, the fit..all first class. The engines whine is so neat to hear yet its not overly invading into the cabin. All I want to do is drive the car. Even a few BLOCKS!!! The dealer was top notch also. The style vs. the sporty nature of it is something that words cannot describe. People stop me all over the place asking me what it is and are stunned at its looks.