The cars : Jaguar X300/X308 development story

With Ford’s money behind it, Jaguar was going places during the early-1990s – and the X300 was a clear indication that Uncle Henry wanted the best for the Leaping Cat, sticking rigidly to marque values… perhaps too rigidly.

Ian Nicholls charts the history of the impressive X300/308 and wonders what might have been…


Back to the future

The cars : Jaguar X300/X308

IN 1989 the Ford Motor Company took total control of Jaguar Cars Ltd, and once again, after five years of independence, the Coventry company came under the control of a large corporate motor vehicle manufacturer. However, unlike British Leyland, Ford was not cash strapped, and had high ambitions. One of the reasons Ford bought Jaguar was to gain a foothold in the world luxury car market. This was in the same year that Toyota had created the Lexus brand, and turned the market on its head.

In July 1990, Ford nominee Bill Hayden succeeded Sir John Egan as Jaguar Chairman, and on his first visit to Browns Lane, was reputedly shocked to find out how shoddy the place was. Jaguar was going to need major investment in order to produce cars of the quality expected of them. At the time of the takeover, Jaguar produced three basic model lines, the XJ40, the Series 3 XJ12 and the XJ-S, which had actually just enjoyed its best year. In addition, the company was working on the XJ41/42 and the XJ90, which was intended to replace the XJ40 saloon.

Ford ordered a thorough review of Jaguar’s activities. Jaguar’s own Sales and Marketing department felt the XJ41/42 was a “huge disappointment” and many other non-engineering parts of the company agreed with them, feeling it failed to reconcile design specification and design requirements. With Jaguar now in financial difficulties the XJ41/42 sports car was axed.

So what do we know about the XJ90?

Jaguar historian Paul Skilleter, writing in 1991, reckoned that the XJ90 was a facelifted XJ40 four-door saloon, also known as the X90. Prototypes were run in the late 1980s with a variety of engines; the XJ91 was the V12 version; the XJ92 was both a Daimler and/or fitted with the forthcoming AJ26 V8 engine. And then there was the XJ93, a Daimler and/or fitted with the AJ26 V8 and the V12.

Jeff Daniels, on the other hand, maintained that “prototypes ran, powered by a variety of engines including the AJ26 V8 engine, but the project was abandoned around 1990 and probably with good reason, given the likely cost”. However, the go-ahead for the AJ26 was not given until 1990, and it took twelve months for a running prototype to be built, which perhaps discounts Jeff Daniels’ claim.

On the subject of the XJ90 and the cancelled XJ41/42, Roger Putnam, the then Sales and Marketing Director, said in 1996: “At the time a wholly new successor to XJ40, called XJ90, was being planned. Having scrapped XJ41 and XJ42, simply because it was impossible to reconcile design specifications and market requirements, we had to do a complete review of what Ford’s chequebook would stretch to”.

Further clarification came from former Jaguar Technical Director Jim Randle in a 2004 interview with Michael Scarlett for Jaguar World Monthly. Randle stated. “When Ford took over, we got the replacement for XJ40 in place, which was called XJ90, and that was a re-styled job, slightly taller, slightly longer, a very pretty car, which we finished off while Ford was there in fact. (Bill) Hayden, when he saw it, said he was going to have an orgasm! But everything hit a stone wall in 1991. The car had to be stopped – after I left, they took the centre section of XJ40 and put the nose and tail of XJ90 on, and that became the car (X300/308) that then ran on.”

At the time of writing no images of the XJ90 have reached the public domain.

X300 arrives… and impresses

Whatever the truth of the matter of the new model’s development, the saloon that emerged in September 1994 was an extensively reworked and re-skinned XJ40, a car that had it origins back in the days of British Leyland. In order to produce the saloon to the required quality, Ford invested an impressive £110m on newer manufacturing equipment at both Castle Bromwich and Browns Lane. This was to also benefit the XJ40 in terms of improved quality in the twilight of its production life.

The development cost of the X300 itself came to £90m between 1991 and 1994. At launch Jaguar boasted of how much of the car had been re-designed and re-developed and was more reliable than the outgoing XJ40. Jaguar did not actually state that X300 was a re-style of XJ40, but pundits noted that the wheelbase was the same and drew the correct conclusion. In fact, there was an easier way to tell, the interior of the X300 was pure late model XJ40.

The exterior styling as pure retro, harking back to the Series 3 Jaguar XJ, and was, if anything, even better looking. Although the styling was by Geoff Lawson and his team, the decision to go with the retro look is generally credited to Ford, although Jim Randle’s account suggests that the pre-takeover Jaguar was already working on this styling approach.

Revised interior of the X308 took away the XJ40 familiarity of the X300...
Revised interior of the X308 took away the XJ40 familiarity of the X300…

Why was the retro look adopted? Possibly because Jaguar had stumbled with the XJ40. Although the XJ40 had been launched to widespread acclaim, early examples had suffered from electrical, steering and suspension problems. To quote Clive Ennos who took over from Jim Randle as Jaguar Technical Director: “And the XJ40 was produced remarkably, with about 300 people. Unfortunately, however, it needed a little more development when it got out into the field”.

Regrettably, the quality issues with the early XJ40s damaged Jaguar’s reputation as a luxury car manufacturer, particularly in the important American market, an arena that Lexus had now entered with its more contemporary looking LS400. In the 1980s, the Series 3 had firmly established Jaguar as a quality manufacturer, a status the XJ40 came close to destroying. With the X300, Jaguar hoped to re-kindle fond memories of the Series 3.

The X300’s retro styling was a risky move in comparison with the state-of-the-art designs from the likes of Lexus, BMW and Mercedes-Benz. By the time Clive Ennos joined Jaguar, its Whitley development centre had 1050 engineers working there, and Ford-style working methods were used to develop the X300. Clive Ennos commented in 1996: “There was no really affordable and containable cycle plan at that stage. Once a cycle plan had been put together, we had a superb talent base here in the engineering group… That was excellent in that we were very open-minded and could take on board some of the Ford processes and disciplines, and use them to really excellent effect. So the X300 was the first programme on which we pulled together”.

The X300 was the first Jaguar to benefit from computer-aided design (CAD) with the data of the new body shape electronically stored for use in the manufacturing process. Jaguar claimed there was more headroom in the X300 than the outgoing XJ40. As mentioned earlier the interior from the XJ40 was retained apart from a new design of seats. Jaguar claimed the new body shape was more aerodynamic – and it needed to be, as fuel tank capacity had shrunk from 19 gallons (86.4 litres) to 17.8 gallons (81 litres).

The engine story

Supercharged straight-six in the XJR was good for 322bhp...
Supercharged straight-six in the XJR was good for 322bhp…

Engines for the X300 were the venerable V12 and a revised six-cylinder AJ6 engine, now re-christened AJ16. These revisions were intended to answer criticisms that the AJ6 was not as refined as it should be; indeed one journalist likened revving an AJ6 to thrashing a Morris 1100! In late 1989, the Lexus LS400 had made its debut with its 4-litre 32-valve V8. To Jaguar engineers, brought up with the tradition that mechanical refinement could only be arrived at through the use of six- and 12-cylinder engines, the refinement of the Lexus V8 came as a shock, because it was considerably smoother and more economical than the 4 litre AJ6.

The Jaguar engine did retain a torque advantage however. As related earlier, Jaguar embarked on its own V8 engine programme, the AJ26, in 1990, that was due to arrive some time in the future – and that’s why the AJ6 received a programme of revisions to become the AJ16. In 4-litre form, power was up to 245bhp and torque similarly improved to 289lb ft.

The supercharged 322bhp XJR also arrived to challenge the BMW M5 but the 313 bhp V12, which was carried over from the XJ40, remained the pinnacle of the range. However, in terms of numbers, it was having real trouble making a case against the grunty new XJR. The V12 was vulnerable to emissions legislation, and demand for the engine evaporated globally once the six-cylinder XJS was fully on stream.

The X300 V12 was codenamed the X305, and was better engineered than its predecessor, the XJ81. That car developed a reputation for wearing out its mechanical parts twice as fast as the six-cylinder XJ40, something that was rectified with its replacement. The X305 appealed to those who wanted a luxury car with all the trimmings, while the XJR had more sporting appeal. Wheel size went up from the XJ40’s 15-inch to 16-inch, although the XJR had 17-inch alloys.

Jaguar X300 figures

3.2 AJ164.0 AJ164.0 AJ16
Supercharged
6.0 V12
Maximum Power216bhp
5100rpm
245bhp
4800rpm
322bhp
5000rpm
313bhp
5350rpm
Fuel consumptionN/AN/A23.4mpg18.4mpg
0-60mph7.9secs7.0secs5.9secs6.8secs
Maximum speed138mph144mph155mph
(limited)
155mph
(limited)

In June 1995, Jaguar announced the long wheelbase X330. This became the standard bodyshell for the 4-litre Sovereign in October 1996. A sign of things to come was on 17 February 1997 when Jaguar’s engine factory at Radford (the former Daimler factory) produced the very last V12 engine. In fact it was only two months later on 17 April 1997, that the very last XJ12 came off the Browns Lane production line – swiftly to to become a museum exhibit. For all its reputation for smoothness, engine technology had moved on 1971 and noise suppression techniques had allowed more economical smaller capacity engines to catch up. In its final months the X305 had only been available to special order, anyway.

In all, only around 3400 X305s were manufactured. The X300 ceased production in August 1997 to make way for the V8 powered X308. The production run of 92,038 meant that the X300 had sold well but, with an average annual production of just over 30,000 cars, it showed Jaguar had not yet managed to reclaim the ground surrendered by the XJ40 in 1989/90 – even though the X300 was a much better car. The X300 was, in fact, a phased evolution of the original XJ40, and the next step was the X308.

From six to eight… X308 arrives

Few external changes, but a revolution in the engine bay...
Few external changes, but a revolution in the engine bay…

Visibly the revised interior was most important change to the X308, which finally did away with the last vestiges of the XJ40 dash and centre console. Externally, there were only minor cosmetic changes. However, 30 per cent of the underbody changed, and the amount of high-strength steel in the body was doubled. Wheel size went up to 17-inches on the standard cars, giving the X308 a more contemporary stance.

The most obvious change was the powertrain, with a new 32 valve V8 engine mated to a five-speed automatic transmission. There was to be no manual option and, with Sports mode on the automatic box, the chances were that only a minority of diehards would want one. The X308 was naturally christened the XJ8, and was joined by a new-generation supercharged V8 XJR. Jaguar claimed its new V8 could match the legendary V12 for refinement.

The new engine, dubbed the AJ26, made its debut in June 1996 in the XK8, was later to be re-christened AJ-V8 for PR reasons – but the AJ26 designation continued to be used within Jaguar. The new V8 was available in both 3.2- and 4.0-litre variants, and outclassed the AJ16 engines in every department, including weight. Overall, the X308 was 200lb lighter than the outgoing X300, with much of that down to the new power unit. Designed to provide refined power, to meet forthcoming emission regulations, and to match the competition, the AJ26 met all its targets.

The 4.0-litre produced 290bhp, easily beating the Lexus for sheer power and refinement. Discussions on a new engine began before the Ford takeover and the arrival of the Lexus V8 hastened the project along. As the lead engineer on the AJ26 later said. “Lexus launched a fantastic new V8 engine in 1990 that really set all-new standards in terms of refinement, and BMWs are renowned for their performance – but we knew we had to exceed their achievements”.

Supercharged XJR engine was good for 370bhp - enough to go M5 chasing...
Supercharged XJR engine was good for 370bhp – enough to go M5 chasing…

Once Ford had taken over Jaguar, the Coventry men managed to convince the parent company that they needed a bespoke engine. Jaguar Powertrain Director Trevor Crisp takes up the story: “The decision on number of cylinders was far less obvious as we had to balance the frequently conflicting requirements of refinement, cost, economy and emissions. Our market research clearly indicated that refinement was a priority, and to achieve the programme objectives for this feature we believed that we needed a minimum of eight cylinders. A short stroke ‘six’ was considered but rejected due to the anticipated hydrocarbon emission problem and increased weight of the reciprocating components.

“Ten cylinders were rejected on the grounds of inherent design imbalance, and twelve cylinders for cost and increased friction giving poorer fuel consumption. By concentrating on reducing the reciprocating weight and increasing the rigidity of the engine and transmission structure, we also considered that we could obtain refinement levels equal to, or better than, our existing V12 engine. A vee configuration, of course, gives a very compact package and greater freedom of design for the whole vehicle”.

Unlike his predecessor, the now deceased Harry Mundy who led the design of the AJ6, Trevor Crisp delegated the design of the new engine to David Szczupak, who had been with Jaguar since 1985. Szczupak and his team designed a compact, light V8 that even had ribbed cylinder heads made by Cosworth in an effort to reduce vibration. The engine had Nikasil plated bores to save weight, something BMW were also using at the time. It was a decision that was to come back and haunt Jaguar…

Jaguar X308 figures

3.2 AJ264.0 AJ264.0 AJ26
Supercharged
Maximum Power240bhp
6350rpm
290bhp
6100rpm
370bhp
6150rpm
Fuel consumption23.5mpg23.7mpg21.6mpg
0-60mph8.1secs6.9secs5.3secs
Maximum speed140mph150mph155mph
(limited)
Daimler Super V8 combined supercharged power and top-line luxury. Not a big seller, though...
Daimler Super V8 combined supercharged power and top-line luxury. Not a big seller, though…

As well as the XJR, which was a supercar bargain, the supercharged engine was also available in the top of the range Daimler Super V8, which replaced the Daimler Double Six as the flagship model. The supercharged engine again used an Eaton blower, this time the M112. Because the AJ26 V8 was more compact than the AJ16 inline six, this enabled a second bulkhead to be fitted in the engine bay, which not only provided an extra barrier against noise and vibration entering the cabin, but allowed many important parts of the electrical system to be fitted behind it, out of harms way.

Unfortunately, early on in the life of the V8 engine, Jaguar discovered that some high sulphur petrols attacked the Nikasil bore linings in the AJ26 engine and the company was forced to replace whole engines under warranty. X308 production ceased in December 2002 after 126,260 examples had been built. Whether this affected demand for the model is difficult to quantify, as BMW were similarly afflicted, but even the added refinement of the V8 engine was unable to boost demand to put Jaguar back into profit.

The X308 was replaced in production by the all aluminium X350.

Run-out XJR-100 was spoiled in the ride department by those 20in rims...
Run-out XJR-100 was spoiled in the ride department by those 20in rims…
Ian Nicholls
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47 Comments

  1. Hi Keith,

    Well written and very interesting, but the Daimler picture looks like it is in the wrong place. Ragards.

  2. Nice read, one thing, the very last comment is wrong I think…
    XJR100 are fitted with 19″ x 8.5″ BBS montreal wheels. Not 20’s. Supersport CATS suspension. Superb handling.

    • Correct…..The X308 was never offered with 20″ wheels. The offsets on the BBS wheels precluded it.

  3. Additional to v8-icon’s comments, the XJR-100 was not a ‘run-out’ model but a limited-edition model to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the birth of the founder of Jaguar.

    • Correct. The XJR 100 with its 19-inch wheels (and also XKR 100 which according to the press pack had 20-inch wheels) also served to showcase a number of new trim-related R-Performance features which buyers could specify on regular production XJR and XKR variants.

  4. very interesting and informative article I must say. i have a 1997 x300in a most wonderful Antigua blue and it drives beautifully and is my pride and joy!! I have owned four previous Jaguars and I loved them all. Wonderful cars!! I must say from an aesthetic point of view I do not like the shape of the Stypes, x types or the fk models!

  5. A friend of mine had a 1995 Daimler Double Six lwb, and it was an awesomely quick car, and a sublime motorway cruiser. I loved it. It was a deep blue metallic too.

  6. Have just bought a 1995 XJR with 95k on the clock. It is still awesome, and this one came with the optional Sovereign spec interior. All this for £850.00! Bargain of the decade, although I also love the 4 wheel drive X Types for everyday motoring!

  7. I have just bought a manual 3.2 XJ300x. Its cool and is averaging 28 mpg which is great but the 4.0 is the one to have. The 3.2 was a pointless addition in my opinion

  8. I’ve had a ’94 XJR for the last couple of years. It’s great, and in the other ‘best’ colour for an X300 – Flamenco red.

  9. Thank you for that great detailled Story. I’m from Switzerland and – yes, even Swiss people like Jaguars – I do own a 1999 XJR. I love that car.
    Does somebody know, what day was the first X308 build at Browns Lane.

  10. I owned a XJ8 for 7yrs,a truely fantastic car. Best driving experience Leeds to Monte Carlo. Could manage the whole trip in a day in total comfort.

  11. That is such a nice looking car! I’m one of the few (it seems) that likes the look of the X-Type too.

    I’m glad that they went in another direction with the XF and the current XJ, but the X300 will always be the pinnacle of this style, even nicer looking than the XJ6 Series 2.

    I’m not sure what people ever saw in the XJ Series 3, it looked too much like the face lift of the Series 3 Marina for me!

  12. Great, informative article – thanks.
    I was lucky to find a 1999 Super V8 Daimler which had been exceptionally well looked after – my personal choice as ‘the last real Jaguar’
    It had been converted to lpg and, driving a lot in France, with lpg at less than €0.80, I run at a petrol-cot-equivalent of some 40mpg!
    Love the car in spite of the massively over-complicated systems and electronics which have given rise to a few glitches that have needed sorting.

    Logis

  13. Bought a LWB Jaguar Sovereign a few months ago and haven’t stopped smiling since. They are so cheap at the moment and I believe a great investment, so much car for so little money you cant go wrong really. Find one with a good service history and an Independent specialist to keep the maintenance costs down and you will not regret purchasing a bit of motoring history. Jag engines are awesome!!

  14. I have a 1995 XJ12 which is wonderful, but needed new head gaskets and lots of other stuff, including a fair bit of bodywork. Great car though – love it.

  15. I have just bought a 1997 3.2 litre X300, was always worried about the reliability of Jag even though I have always wanted one. Have had a great 95 7 series BMW but I have to say there is a feeling you get when you drive a Jag(the magic carpet ride) has 87,000 kilometres on clock and needed a good clean but I love this car. Consumption is high for a 3.2 but the car is well worth it. Happy for people to e-mail for ownership tips, mike@teamglendene.co.nz

  16. I bought new in October ’95 an XJ6 3.2 litre SVP. This was a basic XJ6 with a few extras that Jaguar needed to get rid of, the most noticeable being the lattice alloy wheels from the XJ40. It was Carnival red with Oatmeal half leather seats.
    This was the first of many new Jaguars over the following twenty years, and whilst not without initial problems solved by Jaguar themselves at Browns Lane, was in many ways the most ‘special’, It looked fantastic both inside and out, and felt truly unique compared to the opposition.
    Its a pity that the current crop of cars in their line up have become rather generic and similar to their German opposition.

  17. Interesting article, however I take issue with the claim about the AJ26:

    “The 4.0-litre produced 290bhp, easily beating the Lexus for sheer power and refinement. ”

    The LS400 update launched in 1997 had 290bhp, and I don’t recall anyone saying at the time that the refinement on the AJ26 was better than the Toyota 1UZ-FE. I do not believe either the Jaguar engine itself or the installation in the stone age X308 platform were a patch on the “unlimited budget” Lexus, and I’d challenge anyone who has driven both to honestly claim otherwise. Time has also shown that the early AJ26 cannot hold a candle to the Toyota for robustness and reliability.

    This is not to detract from the leap forward over the always slightly disappointing AJ6/AJ16 straight six engines that the AJ26 V8 represented. Considering that the development budget for the entire engine must have been at least one order of magnitude lower than Toyota’s it was impressively competitive. Sadly it was not until six years had passed and the 4.2 AJ33 appeared that the engine finally had all of it’s major weaknesses resolved.

    • Hmmm….well….I have driven both but owned neither . The Lexus was a very worthy machine, but utterly without charm or sparkle, and anyone who thought its chassis was a match for that of the Jaguar is, frankly, deluding themselves . The Lexus was a kind of up market Ford Granada, and one can well see why it was a great success in the USA but a complete flop everywhere else – a boulevard cruiser, fine on straight, flat roads but all at sea on more testing routes . The Jaguar was a much more complete package as a driver’s car , quiet, refined with an exceptional ride/handling combination , but its electrics were perhaps its major shortcoming. That having been said, the only LS of which I had extensive knowledge was fine when new but a very expensive lemon later on

      • I cannot disagree about the charmless nature of the LS400, however it is a car that you find yourself growing to respect more and more with time and use due to the incredible depth of quality and competence displayed in every aspect of the car.

        I’d just as soon have a well sorted X300/X308 to go for an enthusiastic drive, that’s for sure, however the X300/X308 is exceptionally poorly packaged and can be generously described as “snug” in the front and nothing better than “cramped” in the back. If I wanted more interior space I’d have bought an LS over a W140 Mercedes any day of the week, let alone the execrable W220.

        That said I don’t think the X300/X308 was really competing with the S-Class/7 series/A8/LS by the mid 90s, they had all grown substantially in size and left the XJ to compete with the upper echelons of the class below. You’d have been more likely to cross shop between a BMW 540i and an XJ8 than considering it as an alternative to a 740i.

        My point was intended to be entirely about the power output, robustness, and refinement of their powerplants however, an area where the “Japanese Mercedes” moved the game forward substantially.

        • Exactly right. The XJ40 and X300/308 were always too small and snug to properly compete with the top-line Mercedes, BMW, etc. Even with the long-wheelbase, the headroom was terrible… but a lovely car.

      • The Toyota Lexus was always intended for the USA Lexus being an acronym for Luxury Export to USA, the LS was an absolute success for Toyota, taking 60% of the target market, BMW 7-series and Mercedes Benz S-class sales crashing, MB even cancelling a planned release of an S-class for further development work, during the 10 year development of Lexus, Toyota research evaluated cars by Jaguar and Audi cars were dismissed by Toyota as not a threat to the LS Lexus in the USA , and how they were.

    • True, the Lexus/Toyota engine was extremely smooth and reliable – I owned both in 1996 (before the Lexus jumped to 290hp) – but the Jaguar was more charming and had more magic… Then, we bought a 1998 with the V8, and it was every bit the Lexus-engine’s equal… Except, you are right, history shows they didn’t get that engine right until the 2002 and 2003 X308 model years (with the cylinder liners and improved timing chain tensioners)… However, in subsequent years, the 4.2 liter version of the same engine was finally brought to “perfection” and is still lauded today as one of their best engines.

  18. Just adding a comment on the question of relative longevity, survival comparisons are rather interesting. Of the XJ8 from 1997-2001 or so, peak level was 9136 in c.2001 and there are still 3276 on the road. For the LS, the 2001 figure was 5153 and there are now only 876 left. Drawing conclusions from these sort of statistics is always chancy, but it does not flatter the Lexus

  19. What sets the Jaguars apart from the Lexus is the lack of badge engineering, the LS was (despite denials and court cases) no more than a rebadged Toyota. Likewise the other models all had equivalent Toyota versions:

    Lexus ES = Toyota Windom; also closely related to the same year Toyota Camry
    Lexus IS = Toyota Altezza
    Lexus SC = Toyota Soarer
    Lexus GS = Toyota Aristo
    Lexus LS = Toyota Celsior
    Lexus RX = Toyota Harrier

    • Weren’t Wolseleys over here upmarket versions of Austin Morris cars? The Wolseley Six was an upmarket Austin 2200, admittedly a very nice car, and the top of the range Farinas always had Wolseley badge. It’s Toyota’s way of marketing cars that use Toyota engineering, but are more upmarket and nicer to drive than a Toyota.

  20. While the X308 was a leap forward from the X300 and XJ40, it seemed to cement the opinion that Jaguar’s designs were stuck in the sixties, with the S Type and X Type imitating sixties Jaguars. While BMW, Mercedes and Lexus moved on with their designs, Jaguar under Ford ownership seemed obsessed with retro designs and also the age profile of Jaguar owners increased. Luckily Tata have moved the company on and ditched Ford’s obsession with copying the 1968 XJ6.

    • Jaguar’s styling may have moved on but it’s not really helped sales of their saloons. The XE, XF and XJ are all heavily outsold by their rivals

      • I don’t know what to make of Jag’s new styling direction. I’m pleased they’ve moved on from Sixties pastiche, but is the new look making enough of an impression on the British buying public? I’ve heard people saying the XE looks to similar to the Kia Optima. The Optima is a nice looking car, but probably not the comparison that Jag wants.

        What’s the deal with the XE? It’s been on sale for three years now, but I still don’t see many on the roads. Is it hitting Jag’s sales targets?

        Wikipedia says *worldwide* sales of 24k in 2015 and 44k in 2016.
        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_XE#Worldwide_Sales

        Regardless of Brexit and recent anti-diesel sentiment, those sales numbers look pretty poor to me.

        • It is sad to see, I hoped that the XE would be a success as a real successor to the 75, but in my opinion a symptom of many factors:

          – The small saloon market is shrinking as buyers move to SUVs. Jag’s F-Pace has been reasonably successful, as are the LR models. Ford USA will no longer build sedans. In Europe many manufacturers have already given up.
          – At first glance it could be mistaken for a previous generation XF. Usually small execs are designed to ape the largest model (eg. A4 looks more like an A8 than an A6) – in this case it maybe should’ve been as forward looking as the XJ.
          – The small exec market is difficult to crack, just look at Lexus. C class/A4/3 series have it sown up. Jag is in a difficult place in that it has alienated the traditional Arthur Daley / golf club image from their saloons (indeed they might find egress from their SUVs a bit easier), however that image may still persist for the thrusting young exec.
          – Dieselgate when Jag were chasing the 320D/A4 TDi market. Doesn’t help that their Ingenium engines have a bad reputation.
          – From my personal experience, the dealers. Walk in in “software engineer uniform” (jeans and T shirt) to a BMW showroom, the salespeople are all over, more coffees than Costa. In the Jag showroom, totally ignored. (And to be fair, Lexus next door was guilty too). What happened to the X-type memo that Jag dealers should expect a broader clientele?

        • Mercedes sold nearly 46000 C Classes in the UK alone last year, it’s shocking how common it is on the roads these days!

          • C class is a regular top 10 seller. A shame the XE couldn’t poach these sales.

    • From 1998-2003 the XJ was not meant to mimic BMW or Mercedes flagships, merely match drivetrain performance and smoothness. As far as ride quality was concerned Jaguar was still world class and you knew you were getting a bit of retro English style inside and out as well as a more intimate interior, for better or worse. My issue with the new XJs is they appear bloated and less distinctive. The rear end just needs a tire on it and viola, ’84 Seville.

      The pre 2002 BMW 7 series was the only contemporary that was anywhere near as distinctive style-wise. After that it was the famous loaded diaper design you couldn’t get rid of! The S class was a bit cheap looking as Mercedes was hitting quality lows.

      I’ve owned a few XJ8s and currently I use a ’99 XJR and 99′ XJ8 as daily drivers. These cars can be had for about the price of a 15 year old Camry and known mechanical flaws (timing chains, water pump) have upgraded replacements available. Plenty of know how and experience is easily found on internet repair forums. Nikasil hasn’t been an issue in the US since high sulfur gas was phased out in 2003. If you want a car that doesn’t look like everything else on the road and can still keep up with most modern sedans short of a Tesla or a modern M5 get clean X308 XJR. They can be had for under 10K but I doubt they are getting cheaper.

    • Perhaps they did the “heritage styling” a bit too long, but it was not Tata who ditched it… After taking inspiration from previous XJ’s – all very worthy – the X350 was the last XJ with styling cues from the Series 2 XJ – front fascia, door handles, rear fascia, etc. Jaguar itself designed the “NEW XJ” for 2010 – not Tata. Tata inherited the run-out and face-lifted X350 for 2008 and 2009 and then had the 2010 New XJ ready to go.

  21. In my view, the XE is just incredibly bland and anonymous. It doesn’t stand out in any way from the crowd, being neither classy, sporty, desirable, or individual. It just looks like nothing and everything.

  22. I must admit, every time I see an XE, at first glance it looks like the XF (and the XF looks nicer I think). Also I haven’t seen that many XE’s on the roads despite it being available for a while.

    • I actually think something was lost with the side profile of the current XF, that 3rd window which seems to be a trend to make saloons an fastbacks look longer than they are. The 2 window mk1 just looked less fussy.

      • I assume they did that to make it look different to the XE!

        Similar to the Rover 600 and 800 really…

  23. Seem to be a lot of xe in Essex!

    I think jag have got a lot of catching up to do in the marketplace and that will take time. Remember Mercedes and BMW and Audi do a lot of lease hire which pushes up numbers and jag are behind in this market, which the German three have grabbed from the big Americans.

    I do thing the xe is a bit too safe and should have had a bit more curve in its body line, like the new e and I pace seem to have. Not sure if making it look like the xj would help sales as that’s an odd looking bugger

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