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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  Its fun..............now - 2002 Jaguar X-Type
  By stlouisjag - October 25 - 2:00 am

  As I write this review I finally have my car back from 2 weeks in the shop. This was my fourth visit lasting 2 or more days over the past 6 months. Clearly disappointing and unacceptable. Most people I know questioned my decision to buy a jag based on quality but I told them that was the "old Jaguar". This story seems to have a HAPPY ENDING.... When I drove my car home last night (after having a new transmission computer installed?) I honestly thought I was driving a completely different vehicle. It was quiet, responsive, shifting smooth as silk, in short... A BLAST TO DRIVE!

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  Cats, Bimmers, Soobies 25K mile update - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By K Kear - October 22 - 4:10 pm

  A constant maintenance nightmare!!! Every 5K I take the car for service and a list of problems to correct under warantee. 4 attempts to fix the outside temp guage, now turn signal/highbeam switch broke and not fixed right. Terrible Continental tires wore out at 20K miles even after 5K mile rotation and alignments every 10K miles. Guess I wont be buying this one out of the lease. On the positive side, it gets 24.4 MPG when using 94 octane and everyone still thinks I paid 70 grand for it.

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  great car - 2004 Jaguar XJ-Series
  By vr - September 16 - 10:00 am

  If you like a big comfort type of ride the XJ Jag is top of the line. Its not as tight or quick as a Bemer, but not nearly as expensive and a whole lot better looking. Gas mileage sucks.

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  Street glider, scene styler - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By mg200 - August 28 - 10:00 am

  White leather, AWD, moon roof with split rear seats, navigation (with gas stations!!), garage control, electronic seats - what same-class vehicle has these options? Critics mention the sluggish 2.5 acceleration - this matters if youre downgrading from an XJ/S. For the same price, you can drive a Mercedes shell, and "turn the dial" for seat control and use paper maps. The X type - take it skiing, take it touring, take it home...

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  Lousy Seats - 2001 Jaguar XK-Series
  By socalh2oskier - August 16 - 5:00 pm

  Gorgeous car. The engine is smooth and powerful, and the interior is terrific! BUT, the seats are terrible. I would expect seats that are firm but comfortable, with good lower back support and stiff side bolsters to hold you in place around corners. Instead, Jag uses soft, uncomfortable seats that deny a driver the pleasure of experiencing the cars capabilities...Try to going around a corner at anything but granny speed and youll end up on the other side of the car!

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  S-Type 4.0 - 2001 Jaguar S-Type
  By Celcisjr - August 15 - 2:00 am

  I am the proud owner of a S-Type 4.0. I hope this vehicle turns out to be reliable. the S-Type is a real head turner.

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  The Gage Report - 2003 Jaguar X-Type
  By Chrissyeye - August 4 - 10:00 am

  I purchased a pre-owned 2003 - 3.0 in June of 2004. Owning a Jaguar has always been my dream. Now that the "kiddies" are gone, I have one and I love it. I have all the options except navigation. I am waiting to see what the AWD does in the Chicago snow. I would definately buy another. Just one thing, for the price I think the car should have a bit more of a super- charged engine, a little more get up and go or possibly a better transition when vehicle is shifting gears and a better suspension or tires even, could feel a little more softer over bumps, and God knows Chicago has plenty of those. Other than that, this 50s plus female is "In Love with her car".

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  Nice Car - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By Chambersec - June 27 - 2:00 am

  So far very good reliability (always a concern with Jaguar). Fun to drive. Get lots of approving looks. Great paint finish. Like folding rear seats.

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  My first Jaguar - 2005 Jaguar X-Type
  By mike - June 25 - 5:40 am

  This was my first Jaguar and I was thrilled to own it. It is an amazingly beautiful car. I still cant stop looking at it. The interior is very pleasing and comfortable. However, my car visits the shop on average once a month for stupid things like locking making noises, trunk leaks, gas door wont open, oh and 2 transmissions later.

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  Good deal for the money - 2004 Jaguar X-Type
  By Abdoman - May 7 - 8:00 am

  My car has the sport package. Never really liked Jaguar before, but this car has really grown on me. Very good power, but the torque curve is too peakey - the real power is in the 3-4k range which kills gas mileage. The engine is the real downfall of this car. Dont get me wrong 0-60 in 6.6s is good. Handles very well and looks very good. Clutch is a little tricky, very good brakes.