X Type or S Type and what to look for?

[mneame]

After owning several Imprezas I need something a little more family orientated and was thinking of either the S Type or X Type. Are there any additional points to the usual when looking at a used car that I should be aware of? I've never owned a Jag before so any help would be much appreciated. My budget is for a car around the £4k mark so one of the slightly older ones.

Cheers,

Matt.

[Simpo Two]

I'm not sufficiently qualified to give you a meaningful list, but if anyone says the S-Type is based on a Mondeo, give them a slap - that's the X-Type. The S-Type is (correct me if I'm wrong) a Lincoln Town Car underneath.

I've had my 2001 3.0SE for over four years and despite a few issues, I like it so much that I'm currently looking to buy another one. There's not much legroom in the back but the split/fold rear seats make it surprisingly versatile.

[pete5570]

Both are decent cars, people seem to prefer the manual X types as the auto ones can play up. I've read on reviews that the 2002 onward S type is the best one to go for as they are better built and have a better interior. Read up on these models as much as you can, there are loads of sites out there. Also have a look on usedjags.com to give you an idea of what you can get from a specialist.

[tr7v8]

Simpo Two said:

The S-Type is (correct me if I'm wrong) a Lincoln Town Car underneath.

.

You are wrong as the post 02 cars have some of the Ford chassis pressing (I think), the rest is pure Jaguar & hence why they are miles better.
I'm on my second diesel S the first was an 54 SE this one is a high spec 56 Sport.
Bloody good cars & my dealer experiences have been good, not cheap but good. Make sure you test everything or get someone who has one to test it for you. Subtle ride issues etc. are not obvious especially if you've been driving a non-Jag car previously. For instance I had a subtle rattle & ride issue, turned out to be a knackered bush in the complex rear suspension, around £80 or so.
Brakes are another thing not expensive but the handbrake (electronic) can be a PITA.

[ErnestM]

S-Type (and current XF) are based on the Ford DEW98 platform and is/was shared with the Lincoln LS and Ford Thunderbird (last gen). The DEW98 was the basis for the D2C platform (current Mustang).

I have owned the Lincoln LS and currently own the S-type (wife's car) and X-type (my car - in the shop - again). the better riding of the two is the S-type IMHO. I've also had less trouble out of it. In fact the only real issue was an AC compressor problem.

X-type is Sport 3.0 manual. It is quite fun to drive, when it works.

Thinking of trading the X-type on an XF(R) or Supercharged.