Jaguar X-Type: Why It Could Never Escape the Ford Mondeo

The Jaguar X-Type was one of the most ambitious projects in the company’s history. Ford wanted it to bring Jaguar into a much larger premium market and compete directly with the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class and Audi A4. But the X-Type quickly became controversial. Its connection to the Ford Mondeo, conservative design and limited launch range created problems before the car had a chance to establish its own identity. In this video, we look at how the X-Type was developed, why Jaguar chose this strategy, how the car was received in Europe and North America, and why a model designed to transform Jaguar never achieved the success Ford expected.