Jaguar X-Type Estate: month 5
Arrived: June 2008
List price (including options): £23,900
Average economy: 36.0mpg
The Jaguar X-Type Estate has been -
Very busy indeed. As per usual the X-Type remains the household's default choice for doing the dirty work of motorway miles. A weekend that saw over 1,000-miles pass beneath its wheels saw the Jag undergoing its first scheduled service at the main dealer - completed in double quick time.
We're loving the -
Painless, physically and mentally at least, manner in which the service was carried out. Given the rate of accumulation of miles of late I overshot the specified 12,500-mile interval by a few hundred miles. As such I booked the car in at short notice, about an hour to be exact, but the staff at the Jaguar dealership in Peterborough managed to fit it in with no bother and had all arrangements in place, including a courtesy lift, in time for my arrival. I had a phone call notifying me of completion of the work within two hours of the car being left with them.
But not so impressed by -
The expense. Given that the first service amounts to not much more than an oil change, the bill for £270 came as something of a jaw dropper. In fairness, I had been quoted before hand so it was an aftershock rather than the initial seismic event but having been forewarned I took a few minutes to make a few phone calls in the interests of science. The findings were a little surprising: Ford will service the almost identically engined Mondeo ST TDCi for about £100 less. In fairness to the Jaguar technician, having verified that the schedule of work was identical for both cars, when asked what the price differential was down to he responded "The Jaguar stamp in the book."
This difference in price is possibly what pays for the impressive dealerships - I'd rather have the money, personally speaking. Further putting this into context, VW will relieve you of around £140 for the equivalent service of a Passat TDI, and that's at 20,000-mile intervals.
We're looking forward to -
Getting the hectic Christmas and New Year schedule out of the way; something well over 1,000-miles in a week or so, transported almost entirely by the X-Type.
