I've always liked the looks of these cars and recently decided that I definitely want one. Should be able to afford one after getting rid of a truck and a couple Mustangs, so I'm trying to figure out exactly what I want to look for.

Normally I steer clear of FWD based vehicles. As long as these aren't miserable to work on, I'll make an exception. I do pretty much all my own work on cars, and am mostly familiar with Ford stuff (Mustang, Ranger, Focus).
I've been doing a little reading and have a couple questions. Are all X-types AWD? I definitely want a manual transmission. Is there any information on exactly what manual transmissions are in these cars? For the most part, I drive pretty slow and unaggressive. A friend of mine does some amateur road coarse racing for fun, and I'd like to occasionally do that if I get a car. Other than rain, we don't have terrible weather around here. I mention that based on what I've seen about the different TC designs, to see what you guys would recommend.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but the 2.5L and 3.0L are essentially fancier versions of the Ford Duratec motor? (Which is really a Mazda engine...) My parents had a 3.0L in their old Taurus, and I actually liked that engine. No complaints there.

As for modifications and upgrades, I'm probably backwards thinking from most people here. I prefer to not have, or be able to remove, a lot of the electrical gadgetry. My truck is manual windows/mirrors and all that. I don't really need/want more options than some music on occasion. So if there are any "delete" mods, I'm all ears.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice with X-type shopping.

 

I'm noticing a TON of sun roofs... Was that a standard feature, or is it possible to find cars without them?

 

This article pretty much answers everything:
The cars : Jaguar X-TYPE - AROnline

The X-Type itself shares something like 19-20% with the Mondeo, so it's not really much of a Ford. The 2.0 (FWD), 2.5 and 3.0 engines share little more than the block with the Duratec. The 2.5 and 3.0 models are always full-time AWD with a 40% front / 60% rear bias. Early two model years had a viscous coupling in the transfer case (central differential), later models substituted that with electronic DSC which is somewhat inferior in adverse conditions.

The car has a lot of electrics, as far as I'm aware.

 

I have seen a few without Sunroofs, just as I have seen a few without woodgrain steering wheels.

 

Most I've seen don't have the woodgrain wheel, but every one that I've seen has a sunroof. I'm assuming the sunroof is probably standard except on a really base level trim like the FWD 2.1 with cloth seats and manual climate control. I don't think anything that basic is even available in the US

 

MIchael, every X-TYpe that you will find in the US will be and AWD version with either the gas 2.5L or 3.0L motor. The 2.0L and diesel variants are only for the European (aka, non-US) market.

As for delete mods, I can not say that I have heard of people going that route. I am sure if you do some looking, there are ways to do that. Take a look at the Volvo S40 cars to see what options you may be able to gleem from them. They are a version of the X-Type too.

If you are planning on road coursing the car, plan on expensive weekends. The car will corner great and power out of the corners well, unfortunately, that is going to also be very hard on the already weak transfer case. With that being said, you might be a good candidate to do some testing for us in that you will most likely end up rebuilding the transfer case and there is a new bearing load that should be applied to the transfer case bearings. With how you would be treating the car, that would answer an outstanding question we have here about whether the transfer case is weak due to case flexing or due to too much pre-load on the bearings.

 

Thanks for that link. It's a heavy read that I'll have to get back to and finish.
I'm leaning towards an earlier year car with the viscous coupling TC, manual and 3.0L... with no sunroof. I've not had good luck with things like the electronically controlled DSC, so I think I'll avoid that.

Just caught this thread, and there seems to be some good ownership info there. https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...-owners-95731/

 

I don't have a sunroof, so no they are not standard. I have the 2.5 and 5 speed, I would recommend getting the 3.0 if you can find a manual 3.0 in your price range. And yes, they are a version of the duratec v6 (part of why I wanted an x type, as I love these V6s). "Delete mods"? I don't know about that. I do, however, "beat" on my car a few times a week since I got it, but mostly just on a few backroads with some nice turns. LOVE the way it handles but I do want to get rid of the understeer. That being said, my car has 170k miles and as far as I know never had the transfer case replaced and my car runs fine. Since I got it in December I have been heal-toe down shifting and driving what most would call, aggressively, since day one with no problems, knock on wood. I plan to autocross (and some day track day events also) mine as soon as I do a few more key upgrades and replace a few parts I feel should be replaced because of the high miles mine has. Get a late build 2004 or newer model, they have better transfer cases and no traction control, and since you don't like extra electrical stuff that's good. I didn't want, and don't have, TC in mine and frankly I see no reason it really needs it. This car is probably the most enjoyable car to drive of the cars I've owned, I had an 06 mustang, and an 80s mazda RX7, an SVT contour, a few rangers, and some others not worth listing, but my x type, although not the fastest, is my favorite.

 

Been reading all night and didn't refresh before posting.
I knew we only had the 2.5 and 3.0 here.
If I get into road coursing (and wouldn't be very serious at all), I'll look into beefing up the transfer case somehow. Are there any other TCs that physically fit the drive train? If there is one that's substantially stronger, I'd consider finding a way to make some room for it. Otherwise it may be worth buying a spare TC and toying with it. My dad comes from an off-roading truck background. I'm sure he has a few tricks to strengthen these things up a bit.

 

Thanks for that bit right there. I didn't read (yet) the traction control difference between the two... or is that accounted for in the electronically controlled TC on the later models?

I was about to post that the only thing which may throw me off an X-type would be a perfectly optioned SVT Contour, at a great price. I don't doubt that the X still has it beat. I'll keep on track here.

 

the 04 and ups have no electronic traction control at all, from what I know. I like that. I really liked my SVT contour, but, the fwd kind of ruined it for me. I mean, it was a really fun fwd, but, still fwd. The X with its 40/60 awd doesn't feel like a fwd car at all and has so much grip. I wouldn't go back to another SVT contour after driving the X type.

 

It is my belief that only higher-spec'd X-Types were sold in the US, probably for image reasons. Mine's an SE, standing for "Special Equipment", which was to my knowledge the top-of-the-range model in 2001, yet it doesn't have a sunroof or woodgrain wheel (which I retrofitted), and at least the satnav was an optional extra.


Let's only use TC for Transfer Case here rather than Traction Control, to keep it clear the X-Type traction control is called DSC by Jag. VC shall stand for the vicious viscous coupling.

But indeed, the early model years had the viscous coupling and an optional DSC (most often seen in sport-spec cars). When they removed the viscous coupling, they very soon afterwards started to fit DSC as standard on all AWD X-Types because without VS or DSC the AWD is fairly useless (open differentials front/center/rear; wheelspin in one wheel means you won't be going anywhere) in slippery conditions.

The later transfer cases are supposedly better when it comes to reliability, but they are inferior in AWD performance. The viscous coupling -equipped TC works by eliminating wheelspin through redirecting torque, while the non-VC TC with a DSC eliminates wheelspin by applying the ABS to the spinning wheels. The latter of which, obviously, wastes power because it's just "killed" rather than redirected, though in real world the difference is probably undetectable.

EDIT:
I seem to recall someone talking about adding external braces on the transfer case for structural support? That would counter the flexing, but isn't the main issue failing bearings?

 

MIchael, to the best of my knowledge, there is no transfer case that will fit in our cars other than the stock one. If you can find one, then I would love to hear that along with a lot of the members here. Sounds like you are someone that can broaden what we can do with our X-Types.

 

1) The car drives like a typical AWD car and does not have ANY FWD traits. That is to say, it drives perfectly, when properly configured (good tires+wheels, suspension in good condition)
2) The X-Type engine, while very responsive, is underpowered for road course racing, and there are not many mods available to improve output.
3) The Jaguar engine is very different in just about every way. While it's based on the Ford design, it's unique and superior.
4) The electronics are integrated. It's not likely to be a worthwhile task to remove them.

I drive a 2.5L, manual trans, X-Type. I have come to really enjoy driving it. I did not purchase the car, and I tend to like "hard core" sports cars. It was my fathers car, and he gave it to me when he died. At first, I was convinced that I would not care for the car. But, I've come to love it! After a few tweaks, the little Jaguar has become my favorite car ever! (and the best too)

I now have 130,000 miles on it (got it with 80K) and I've enjoyed every minute.

I put Redline fluids in the trans and gearboxes.
I put new prop shaft bearings in the transfer case, an easy job. (that's what goes bad)
I modified the airbox and installed a K+N filter (it did help a bit)
I discovered that the car performs better on high octane gas, so I use it.
I installed HID headlights
I installed a switch that disconnects the AC compressor during full throttle (this helps quite a bit)
I installed E-bay drilled rotors and ceramic pads (which don't dust as much) and the pedal is more firm, and the brakes have slightly less power. But the car still stops wonderfully during aggressive driving. And the pads last much longer. Remember, the X-Type has plenty powerful brakes! They are not "honda civic" small. They are more than adequate.

The car is very responsive and did I mention that I love driving it?

 

Thanks for the tips and info. As I mentioned in my intro thread, it'll be a second vehicle so I want to take my time finding the exact car I'm looking for rather than being slightly unhappy about an option I don't like.

As far as deleting electronics... I'm thinking more like windows, mirrors, locks and smaller things like that. For example, the power lock solenoids on the Fox body Fords usually get dripped on causing them to fail and not allow you to lock the door. I just remove them. It's easy to swap manual mirrors and windows into the Mustangs and Rangers as well. I am curious to see if scavenging parts from lesser equipped chassis will work, or aftermarket. Could take some modifications, but that's ok.

Sounds like there's a need for an aftermarket TC on these cars. If you were to retrofit a DSC car with a mechanical TC, like the earlier cars, does that cause issues with the ECU? Are there known chips that eliminate that programming?

 

Talked to dad about transfer cases. He didn't know of any that would work as a replacement. Of course there's always the monumental task of engineering a new TC, but I'm fresh out of school and broke so that probably won't go well. He did have a couple ideas for strengthening and improving the stock ones, which were similar to ideas I had as well. Wouldn't know what to do until we see on in it's natural environment. That means I need to get back to work on selling a couple vehicles...

 

I think that's the 64 million dolor question, and I haven't actually seen any posts about a failed transfer case and what exactly failed, just us talking about how we think it will fail. And while I don't exactly want mine to fail, I would like to know for sure if its just the preload problem with the bearings or if its just the flexing of the actual case, it could also be that the flexing of the case causes the bearings to fail? It seems like speculation thus far from knowledgeable people, but speculation none the less. I do feel a little better knowing I'm not the only one on here planning to put mine to the test some day. So, hopefully we can learn the true weakness of these transfer cases and how to strengthen them. I think its whats keeping many of us from trying to get some real power out of these cars. I know for a fact the duratec V6 can push out 400+hp with a little help from a turbo, but, no one wants to try that in an X type just to have the TC blow out soon after.

 

I was one of those talking about external bracing for the X-Type transfer case. I never got to see pictures of how the case cracked. By knowing direction of the cracking, you can then figure out where the supports need to be. I can not say that I have heard of anyone complaining about a cracked case in the recent past (2 years or so). maybe it was a bad batch of cases? Who knows. It sounds more like a majority of the issues are stemming from improper loading (which could have shown itself as the case cracking) due to how you load the bearings. It would be a very interesting thing to research. Unfortunately, I don't have the capabilities to go after something like this. Wife won't let me buy all the tools I would want and don't have nearly a large enough garage. LMAO.