2005 Jaguar XType SPT Wagon
Bob Plunkett
Date Posted: 8/2/2005
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IDYLLWILD, Calif. -- A blanket of wet snow coats the narrow Banning-Idyllwild Panoramic Highway, which winds up pine-coated slopes of Mount San Jacinto high above the California desert at Palm Springs.
The icy pavement slows traffic as drivers try to maintain traction while plowing through the slippery stuff, but that's not how it works in our test vehicle, which simply refuses to slip.
Reason behind this car's sticky tires is a computerized mechanism which applies the forceful power of a transversely-mounted six-cylinder engine to all four of the wheels all of the time.
This device normally divides the engine's torque with forty percent sent to front wheels and sixty percent to the rear ones, but on slick roads a viscous coupling automatically transfers more force to whichever set of wheels -- front or rear -- can get a better traction bite.
Then factor into this physics equation the car's weight distribution biased toward front wheels by about sixty percent -- which is a reverse of the torque split.
The result: There's uncanny balance with the vehicle in motion, so much so that wet or icy pavement and tight road curves fail to upset it.
What car can charge up a snow-coated mountain road at reasonable speed and hold a taut line around all of the curves without slipping or skidding and sliding?
It's the X-Type 3.0 Sportwagon, a five-door and five-seat station wagon of compact dimensions with luxurious appointments from Britain's classy coachmaker, Jaguar.
Assembled in England at Jaguar's Halewood plant in Merseyside near Liverpool, the new X-Type 3.0 Sportwagon joins a 2005 X-Type lineup with V6-powered sedans.
All X-Type models stock the permanently-engaged all-wheel-drive (AWD) system as standard equipment.
Front half of X-Type Sportwagon is virtually the same as the sedans, including a front-end treatment and engine compartment, the cockpit and front-seat side doors.
The styling is elegant with sleek skin draping over a sensuous form that projects the familiar slink of a Jaguar prow with signature round headlamps offset by a twin-port grille ringed in chrome.
Rear quarters vary, however, as Sportwagon has the roofline and flanks extended to fashion a station wagon's rear cargo bay with tail-side liftgate added.
There's more chrome trim on the Sportwagon and steel rails added to the roof, which supports a standard power-controlled moonroof.
Seven-spoke alloy wheels at 17 inches are also standard with all-season tires, and 18-inch wheels and performance tires are available.
Bottom section of Sportwagon's tailgate tucks inward to the bumper as the top section with a tip-out window cants forward into the roof so in profile the tail looks like a rear-pointed wedge and seems more sleek and curvy than the typical squared-box station wagon.
The wagon uses the same platform as X-type sedans with a wheelbase of 106.7 inches, although the body extends for 1.6 inches longer to 185.5 inches and there's slightly more overhang evident at the tail.
Sportwagon's back bay brings a flat floor with four spring-loaded D-rings added to lock-down a load of cargo.
There's a detachable cover over the luggage space with a net to corral the gear.
And a smaller compartment is concealed below the floor deck for stowing precious gear out of sight of prying eyes. Within this space a 12-volt power point is aboard for recharging a hidden computer, perhaps, or mobile phone.
Seatback of the back bench splits 70/30 and each side folds down independently to increase the size and capacity of the cargo compartment.
With both seatback sides down, cargo room measures about 50 cubic feet, which exceeds the stow space of same-class station wagons from Germany.
Sportwagon's cabin is an elegant environment with soft leather hides covering all seats and glossy hardwoods trimming doors and dashboard and console.
There are twin front bucket seats flanking a central console in front of the bench in back.
A revamped instrument cluster contains round analog gauges with black faces and chrome rims.
Sportwagon's cockpit comes with eight-way controls for the driver's seat and four-way power movement for the front passenger's seat, along with electric windows and an automatic climate system, plus leather and wood on the steering wheel with finger switches to operate the audio system, cruise control and a Bluetooth-based mobile phone.
Standard external equipment ranges from front and rear foglamps to heated windshield washer jets and power heated mirrors.
X-Type as a station wagon contains a strong powertrain and handles with agile manners to match the sedan.
The engine is a dual-cam V6 which displaces 3.0 liters to explain the nameplate of X-Type 3.0.
This plant makes as much as 227 hp at 6800 rpm and the torque runs up to 206 lb-ft at 3000 rpm.
A five-speed automatic, fitted with Jaguar's J-pattern gate for automatic as well as clutch-less manual shifts, is the only transmission available for Sportwagon.
Crisp steering control stems from a rack and pinion system with speed-sensitive and variable-ratio power assistance from ZF.
Brakes show a disc at each wheel with the front ones ventilated and all linked to a four-wheel anti-lock brake system (ABS) with electronic brake distribution (EBD).
Passive safety elements apply frontal and side air bags plus curtain-style air bags above front and back doors.
And a computerized Dynamic Stability Control (DSC) mechanism, which can correct potentially dangerous car movements when wheels slip laterally, is on the option list as coupled to emergency brake assist (EBA).
Then the optional Premium Package brings rain-sensing windshield wipers and electro-chromatic mirrors plus eight-way power controls to the front passenger seat, memory function for driver's seat and door mirrors, and a 320-watt Alpine sound system through ten speakers.
MSRP for X-Type 3.0 Sportwagon totals to $36,330 and the Premium Package adds $1,950 more.
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| 2005 JAGUAR XTYPE SPT WAGON VEHICLE SPECIFICATIONS |
| Description: |
Compact luxury station wagon |
| Model Options: |
Compact luxury station wagon |
| Wheelbase: |
106.7 inches |
| Overall Length: |
185.5 inches |
| Engine Size: |
DOHC 3.0-L V6 |
| Transmission: |
Auto/5/J-gate |
| Drive: |
Rear/front drive, AWD |
| Braking: |
Power 4-disc, ABS/EBD opt. DSC/EBA |
| Airbags: |
2 (front), 2 (side), 4 (side curtain) |
| Gas Mileage: |
city/hwy. 18/24 mpg |
| MSRP Price: |
$ 36,330 |
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