Originally Posted by JOsworth

HI, Mr Correction here... The X-type shared the platform with the Mondeo, that is correct. The Taurus was a separate platform that was only used on that car and FWD mini van. No Jaguar and Taurus are related. The Taurus's platform died in 07. The eventual replacement, the Five Hundred, was actually based on a Volvo platform...



What an @ss! Go ahead and print this and show him if you like... But honestly don't go anywhere near this moron with anything you want fixed properly.

The next idiot that says that, ask them to point out the shared parts! Now for a typical "JOsworth rant"...... Beware, it's long!

First of all, Jaguar in the early S Type did use some shared source parts. But that was a real marketing disaster. So, what they (Ford) did was allow Jaguar to design common components then make Jaguars more unique. Hence, the reason the center stack and controls all seem to look the same in the XJ, X Type, and later S Type. This is also why the interior got refreshed in 2003 (2002.5 UK). They didn't change drastically the seats and door panels if you notice. Just the dash and center stack. It was all to integrate new Jaguar components. Also, the idea that the S Type is a dressed up Lincoln LS is also technically wrong.. The opposite is actually true. The Lincoln is a dressed down Jaguar. Jaguar wanted and started development of a mid-sized sedan in the 90's. They wanted to go back to two sedans in the lineup since the original sports sedan had morphed from the Type II into the XJ and the XJ had grown into a near full size luxury car. Their problem however was funding. Here is where Ford ownership helped. They backed the program since they too needed a sport sedan. So, basically Jaguar designed the platform, Ford created a premium version of the 3.0 V6 and provided their transmission. Jaguar adapted their main V8. The rest is history. One of the best midsize sedan platforms was created. I say this because to this day it remains one of the best in forms of structural integrity and balance. In fact, it was only slightly modified to create the XF. Also, it was planned to be the basis of the 2005 Mustang but in the end, the Mustang team realized that it was soooo well done that there was no way they could build the Mustang on it and still remain on budget. So, a small rear stamping was the only part that carried over.

Now, the X Type and Mondeo is another thing all together. There too, the deviation from the original Mondeo is large but I'm sure it is discussed further in the X Type forum.

This whole theory that modern Jaguars are just "rebodied" Fords is totally wrong... In fact, Ford actually did the smart thing back in the day but it cost them a fortune. They had lost their way in the world of cars since spending so much on the booming truck market. So, they started acquiring car makers for their engineering. Jaguar, Volvo, Mazda all played a part. As a result, the Five Hundred / Taurus is a Volvo, the Fusion and Focus a Mazda and so on. Now, since selling off the brands, they are now relying on their European division to handle the cars. We have yet to see the real fruits of those since current cars, even the European derived ones, are still rooted in other platforms (ie the new Fiesta and Mazda 2 are platform mates)( the "new" Taurus is based on the old Taurus, a Volvo).

It really drives me nuts when supposed experts in cars really have no clue. A supposed well regarded local mechanic got me going as well. I had taken the Dodge Caravan to them to fix a common A/C line issue. I then asked him, while picking up the van, if there were things that came up on my car he could work on it... His answer, "Sure, it's just a Taurus".... I then asked him to point out where on my car were the common Taurus items... He pointed out the engine, transmission, suspension front and rear. I then proceeded to educate him on what it really was...to the point where he could only say.."wow, I didn't know that"... I never talked to him after that.
See, people on here in the UK are at a slight advantage. Since Jaguar's are much more popular there, there is a greater amount of service people available to you. Here in the US, it is much more difficult to find service people that even have a clue what they are looking at..

K, rant over....

Originally Posted by clubairth1

Wow JOsworth!! What a great and informative post!!!

I am a bit confused by the OP?? What is a Jaguar S Type XS??

Do you have a X type or a S Type?
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Originally Posted by RealmCenter

Sorry for the thread hijack.

Originally Posted by JimC64

Hey there, here's my take.....

In a similar position some time ago when I bought a cheap n cheerful Renault Clio to teach my sons to drive in, it had just been MOT'd by a garage local to the guy I bought it from.

Turns out there were some similar issues with clunking, possibly even steering related. I was told that the steering rack was pretty much on its way out ( how the hell I mssed it I never know - anyway )
I called the garage that did the MOT and basically blufefd him by saying I'd beento two independent garages who both failed the car for the following reasons etc etc........I was just about to call VOSA and did he have any comments before I did?

He basically pleased with me to bring the car into give him anothr chance to look at it, which I did, and he agreed with the fault and asked if I'd like him to do the repair at no charge to me as a gesture of goodwill?

I ended up going down that route and everyone was happy.............might be worth considering?

Originally Posted by oakstar

From what I can gather, the XS trim was a diesel trim pack, similar to the Sport.

nope, mine's a petrol 3.0V6 and it's more similar to the R in it's day (2006) 2007 version wasn't quite as nice IMO :-)

Originally Posted by JOsworth

Great Information.... In my opinion the XS is one of the neatest specials in the S Type lineup... My theory of it being a diesel was that the ones I found were all diesels.. Now I stand corrected. Hmm, I wonder if it came with a 4.2 as well?

That is even nicer than the 2008 only "satin" edition with the satin finished wood....

I love this place... always learning new things....

Originally Posted by oakstar

4.2 - well this is the only one i've ever seen - 2006 Jaguar S-Type 4.2 V8 Sport 4dr Auto Saloon

the XS special editions are mostly 3.0V6 and pretty rare over here too.

cheers