How sad:

Jaguar design boss admits X-Type was a mistake - Autoblog

It's very unfortunate when a company feels like it needs to disparage it's heritage-worse it's very recent heritage-- a car built up to 2009--. I guess Jaguar came into existense the day they hired Ian Callum and started making the bland euro-boxes they now sell. I bet that makes owners who bought the car new and still potentially own it feel super good.

 

Mark, Thanks

I am 100% with you and in fact, I would actually not only have an axe to grind with the Jaguar boss' and that Ian Callum should know better than to knock a car which I think is amazing!

Firstly this blog we are referring to is simply just a blog and a poor one at that.

It is based on hearsay and there are actually few real quotes apart from the words added for reasons of slander, gimmickry and trashing of a previous Jaguar brand which struggled for identity and was taken over by a buyer with the mass market in mind-FORD!

This is not the Jaguar I see before me or behind!

I also am convinced that the writer of the article must have read the beano more than myself........ha ha, but then again he hasn't even got a sense of humour and let's face it...

Only Jeremy Clarkson can truly trash a car and you end up believing him, whatever the car is!

Jaguar is a breed of it's own and I love my X Type.

I will always have an X Type on my drive or in the garage!

Actually when it comes right down to the wire, I feel the writer is coming from a Jag Hater perspective, I meet these people and they judge you to be a snob, even when they have probably never been in one or dare I say it driven one.

Hang in there Spike, maybe we are a different breed and I would be happy with that, FULLSTOP! For USA Spec (PERIOD!)

A lot of people say they want to have a car that gets them from A to B.

I disagree,because I drive a Jaguar and I want something else:

A car that takes my breath away, makes me smile like an idiot when someone is watching me driving, a car that makes me complete and not just any other dithering idiot!

And of course the Jaguar takes me somewhere else, a world of panacea, beauty, enchantment, Passion, Feeling and overwhelming sensations of the Nth Degree!

I have never ever had a car that makes me feel the way I do, about YOU! Thank you X Type!!!

It rather irks me so to think any member of management in Jaguar would even deem to think of a "Rival for any BMW"......

as I have the view that does not aspire to resemble anything like a Modern German car, yes they are good, they are reliable, ooh most of them are rear wheel drive and yes in the sports car okay, but Jaguar make them too, so BMW .... Farewell...Aufedersein and Toodleoo! By Jove

Regards, Stu

 

Wow somebody needs a

Pretty awful write up considering the X type is in fact a pretty great car all round IMO.

Yes it has its flaws and yes it borrowed heavily from the Ford Mondeo ( not a bad thing IMO as the Mondeo was / is such a success story )

If you didn't know any better, you'd swear that was written by an Anti Jag individual!

 

Whats funny is they use more quotes from ford guys than Jag. Honestly I can agree that as a whole, the X-type did NOT do what Jag hoped it will. That however does not take away from the fact that its a GREAT car. It does seem like this article is by someone that has something against Jags. I mean they didn't even bother talking much about the new 3 series fighter that Jag is coming out with. I'm happy about this car, they are even making a coupe version, sedan and wagon too of course. I mean an "affordable" Jag coupe??? yes please.

 

I mean, how do we know the current cars (for those who care for them) are also not a "mistake"?? Was the X type not the best selling Jaguar during its run, or am I incorrect? The guy who gave the original interview to Piston Heads, Julian Thompson, is one of the head designers at Jaguar. He even implies that the car's design is boring and disproportionate, (not in those words). What's sad is that they are going to churn out this little Euro-box, and claim they "got it right" this time around. Sigh.

 

My 2 cents..

I don't think this was or is a direct slam on the X-type Model, so don't let it hurt your pride....I see this as an advertizing ploy to hype interest in the new Baby Jag that's coming out...and to show that even the best of automakers and their design engineers can look back in the mirror and admit they made some mistakes and have learned from them going forward...I don't think in any way Jaguar (in spite of the times it was run by Ford) is falling on the proverbial sword...It's like a slap to themselves to wake up and notice the competition isn't going to be any less merciful...I don't see this to take it personal if I still owned my X-type..I see a phoenix in the making...

 

as a concept the X-type was great.......but they failed in execution.

The mistake they made was the way they put it together. taking left over pieces from ford and slapping it together.

I had an X-type, i liked it, i didnt love it. i would never get one again....but i would get the X-type replacement (XS)

 

A good friend of mine had an X and it was a good enough car.
It looked like a Jaguar and felt like a Ford Mondeo (which is what it was). Although that's not such a bad thing, as the Mondeo is a cracking car.
The X Type is a far better looking car than some of Jaguars latest Eurobox offerings IMO..

 

This blog reminds me of a episode of Top Gear where they were showing a older XJS that had been gone through or reworked by say "KWE" and they were basically implying that all XJS' were rubbish and had crappy electrical connections etc. What they failed to mention was the XJS was made for 21 model years and the last cars produced were completely reworked cars from say a 1978 or 1988 version.

I am sure that a 05 to 09 X-type had many upgrades and improvements over some of the first X-types. This is not a cut on the early X's but to say it is unfair to imply that all the X-types were equal. That is like saying a 1996 Corvette is as big a disappointment as a 1984 Corvette. Unfair to lump all the years or series together as so often is the case. What manufacturer is not going to continually improve their product as time goes by? Does not mean that each year is always an improvement but that in a 5-10 year span you should expect to see updates and improvements that make the car more reliable and refined.

I will say that it is hard for any manufacturer to try and enter a segment of the market that is already well established. I can think of so many times when GM or Ford made claims they were putting out a new car that was going to give the Accord or Camry a run for the money-Does the Chevy Corsica ring any bells? I bought a brand new Corsica in 1989 and did not even make it home from the dealer without the alternator going out on the car. Then I could not take on a trip without the MAF sensor going out. Makes it a little hard to want to believe GM is worth buying again after that ugly episode.

I am sure many a X-type owner came away wishing they had bought a 3 series after having some goofy issues pop up or worse, but rejoice as in the end it just makes the X-type more affordable to all of you in the used market. Just remember it is sites like this that make owning a car like the X-type not such a scary proposition and each time some little problem comes up you can usually find a way to tackle yourself without having to take out stock in your local Jag service dept.

I would be delighted each time they say a car like the X-type was a mistake as you can figure your next X-type just got a little cheaper to purchase. Let the car speak for itself and just enjoy the ride.

 

I would not say that it hurts me personally, but I will admit it does sadden me when I see bastions fall, and for me, Jaguar, since its beginings has been a bastion of extraordinary looking, lean, graceful cars that stand out from all others in the road. This is no longer the case. It just makes it worse that current Jaguar designers now take cheap shots at previous models. I am sorr,y but the current designers like Callum and Thompson arent half the artist that men like Lyons, Malcolm Sayer or Geoff Lawson where.

 

Well then, I guess they (Jaguar) will continue to make the same mistakes over and over again. As the new XF base model has as it's engine,,,, gasp,,,,, a FORD Ecoboost, 2.0L, direct injection, 4cylinder.

That's a rather absurd argument,, Autoblog. Especially considering the history of Jaguar and Ford. They are not the same cars, nor even the same exact parts, never were and never will be.

I won't make the claim that the X-Type is the worlds greatest car. But, it certainly fits the mold as an inexpensive Jaguar. It is responsive to drive (something many cars today are not) , it's comfortable, it's good looking and it's obviously a Jaguar. With well over 130,000 miles on mine, I cannot complain one bit. It still looks good!

 

I remember really wanting an X when it came out. There was nothing "awkward" about the (exterior) design to me. I felt it was a leap forward, from the old way of "big for big's sake" to a more toned, fit design!

 

i think the rear end of the car is awkwardly designed.

the front is sexy...but the rear just looked weird

 

I on the other hand find the rear very nice, that curve over the rear wheels...

Yet I don't really love the front

 

I'm the same way haha, I like the rear better than the front. I'll like it better when I finally get the front lip on though.

 

My turn to rant I guess lol.....

I think it is just sales speak to hype up the new car - raising its profile by saying that the X-Type it is replacing was not the car they wanted to build. Trust me in five or six years they will say the same about the XS I suspect - but then Jaguar's only real interest is in selling the mid to top range models which we all aspire to own *and* have the largest profit margins.
For the slot that the X-Type fills it does a *great* job - it is cheap to buy for what it is, it has Jaguar heritage stamped all over it, being seen as obviously a Jaguar on first sight by anyone, and it has the Jaguar exhaust sound and presence on the road. Jaguar will always struggle to see a good profit margin in the low end of the luxury market but would rather do so than miss out - and that is *our* gain...
As for the discussion about the x-type being 20% Ford... the first ever Jaguars if I remember (after Swallow Sidecars) were other manufacturer cars rebuilt with Jaguar body shells etc.. it is what they have always done.. take a good car (in our case the Mondeo chassis) and refine it - the result being a car totally different in character to the starting point... It is what Jaguar has done since day one - and as much as people may knock their method.. It works well and I am very happy to have been able to afford and own one (but should an XJ happen to come along .... lol)

 

Some thoughts from previous post from today ;
"As for the discussion about the x-type being 20% Ford... the first ever Jaguars if I remember (after Swallow Sidecars) were other manufacturer cars rebuilt with Jaguar body shells etc.. it is what they have always done.. take a good car (in our case the Mondeo chassis) and refine it - the result being a car totally different in character to the starting point... It is what Jaguar has done since day one - and as much as people may knock their method.. It works well and I am very happy to have been able to afford and own one (but should an XJ happen to come along .... lol)"

If I am understanding what you are saying I would disagree with that statement. Jaguar has a rich history of designing and building their own cars. Take the XK120, E type, XJ6, XJS etc. If I am not mistaken it was after Ford bought out Jaguar that you started to see on some models Fords influence on the cars and in the case of the X-type you have a Ford platform that got Jag's added touches and flare. This is to be expected as it is very expensive to design a car from scratch.

The surprise to many when dealing with the X-type was opening the hood to the X-type and seeing a Ford engine and transmission with added components. Of course Jaguar did not have a V-6 at the time so it makes sense they would have used the Ford running gear but I must say the first time I saw this on the X-type I was a bit taken back. I was not prepared to see a Jaguar with a Taurus engine sitting under the hood and as I remember the Ford stamps were all over the engine.

Does not seem to be a boost to a marque name like Jaguar to have a Ford engine etc. powering your car. Just my 2 cents on that subject but keep in mind the X-type was supposed to compete with cars like the BMW 3 series so I am sure many perceived the X-type as nothing more then a reworked or dressed up Ford car.

 

The thing about the duratec V6 is it actually was not designed by Ford, but Porsche and I think Cosworth had a hand in the heads or something, but I cold be wrong about that. Also, the aston V12 was based on the duratec V6, basically 2 of them mated together. Jag also didn't just throw a ford duratec into the X type, they designed an intake manifold, and I believe the compression is higher and a few other things are different. The Jag ecu is also tuned differently. They also use these V6s in the Nobles too, and the turbo ones make 400+ hp. They are a very under-rated engine. I fell in love with the duratec V6 when I first got an SVT Contour and is a big part of why I wanted the X type. Its sad that it as considered a bad move on Jags part by many people.

 

As I've said so many times before, for me, the plus point was having the FORD running gear.

Thats 20% of components proven, tried n tested and readily available.

Maybe its an American "thing" no disrespect to our cousins across the pond, but I struggle to see why FORD gets such a bad name over there.

For many years here in the UK we've had a love affair with Ford, from the Zephyrs & Zodiacs, Cortina & Capri, Escort, Sierra, Fiesta and many more.......

 

It's really this simple for me; the statements made about the x type are editorial opinions. My opinion is simple. I love my X type. It's a Jaguar. Regardless of who owned the company, whose parts bin they grabbed from, it's a Jag.