2002 Jaguar X-Type AWD review from North America

Transmission recall at 8,000 miles.

Moon-roof not retracting.

A/C not cooling.

A/C smells of mildew.

Trunk latch replaced.

Dash coming apart. Screwed in several times.

Gas tank not registering proper fuel amount - replaced twice.

"General system Fault." Car stuck on road.

Shifter making clicking sounds when braking - shifter replaced.

Constant wind noise during highway speeds.

Other "minor" recalls.

I've owned a 2002 Jaguar X-type 3.0 AWD for five years. I bought it new in NY. I recently traded it in for a 2007 Honda CRV.

I've had so many issues with the X-type. It started as a joke when the salesman asked me how the Jag was running. At first, I said, "Okay." Later after the many trips to the service department, I told him, "Well, I'm gradually replacing this car piece by piece under the 4 year warranty." At that point, he stopped asking me about the car for the fear that it might effect his other sales.

The moon-roof had a problem retracting, I had the gas tank replaced twice because it wasn't registering the proper amount of fuel, I had several "minor" recalls taken care of including the transmission replaced (minor recall?), the trunk latch fixed, the dash screwed in several times, and the A/C was not cooling.

Then a constant mildew smell from the A/C that wouldn't go away. The air cabin filter was replaced twice and "sani-fresh" was done several times, but the smell remained. I checked into a possible leak either coming in from the windshield during rain, or from the inside A/C condenser from condensation not properly draining, but was told that if it was leaking from there, the entire floor would be wet (it wasn’t).

I also had clicking sounds coming from the shifter when applying the brakes, and the entire shifter had to be replaced (of course, after I put a dash kit in and I couldn’t remove the wooden piece to put on the new shifter).

I also had an unresolved problem with constant wind noise from air coming into on the driver’s side door at highway speeds. A problem that only turning up the radio seem to resolve (LOL).

In the end I was glad to see my X-Type go. I wasn’t happy that the dealer took me for a ride on the trade-in price, giving me less than Kelly Blue Book value. This was probably because the Honda Finance Manager wanted the car for his wife and low-balled the price (shame on him! I do hope he gets what he deserves!). Just the same, now it is no longer my headache.

In the end, I always wanted to own a Jag ever since the XJ6 was produced. I can say that I owned one for five years. Now, I never want to own one because they are truly a piece of ….!

I have never seen a poorer quality car produced in my life. Even with a four-year bumper-to-bumper warranty (which they definitely apparently need), you will never get me in one of those cars again.

I own a few Hondas (including motorcycles) and I’ll stick with them. I shouldn’t have to be on a first name basis with the Jag service manager as I was.

The 2007 Honda CRV EX has the same luxury (heated leather seats, heated side-mirrors, McPherson and multi-link suspension system, disc brakes, AWD, XM radio, same MPG, stainless steel exhaust system, storage galore, etc) that the X-type does.

The only four real differences are that the CRV uses a 4-cylinder 2.4L engine (very torquey!) to the X-Type’s V-6 3.0L engine. The CRV uses regular gas versus the X-type’s premium gas (the CRV gets slightly better gas mileage).

The CRV is infinitely more reliable than the X-type (not one problem or recall yet with the CRV).

The last difference is that the CRV costs $26,000 versus $42,000 for the X-type, a $16,000 difference!

So, my humble advice is to save your money and buy TWO reliable cars for the price of the unreliable extremely poor quality X-Type. This is my honest opinion, and I have over two inches of repair records to objectively back up my position.

Do I still love Jags? Absolutely! For both their looks and their prestige. But instead of the car, I’ll stick with their key chains, hats and shirts. Those items are the only items that have yet to disappointed me. I hope others find my X-Type experience insightful.