It's not difficult to imagine the apoplexy that was created among more traditional Jaguar enthusiasts when the announcement came through that the latest X-Type saloon would be driven through the front wheels. Admittedly, the blow was softened by the fact that the original and larger-capacity X-Types send their power to the rear wheels too, but that was only a step on the way to the once unimaginable concept of a front-wheel drive Jaguar.Another barely credible idea was that, in this day and age, it would be possible to buy a new Jaguar for less than £20,000. But not much less. The base model comes in at £19,995, and Jaguar admits that it doesn't expect many people to buy that one. More interest is expected in the version tested here, the SE, which breaches the twenty grand barrier through having more equipment as standard.It's either a sensible piece of platform-sharing within a large company, or a complete and utter outrage (the latter view being held by a surprising number of people), that the X-Type has sprung from the same automotive loins as the Ford Mondeo. It isn't entirely unfair, then, to compare this car not only with the Mondeo itself but also with Mondeo rivals such as the Renault Laguna, the Nissan Primera, the Vauxhall Vectra and so on.Or maybe it is. Jaguar's home territory is the luxury car market, so it should come as no surprise that even the humblest X-Type has more atmosphere and more presence than the high-spec rep cars it is competing against. It's a sign that with this model the company is dropping down to a sector of the market below its natural habitat, rather than reaching up to it as the Ford, Renault, Nissan and Vauxhall are doing.As a result, there is a significant feel-good factor about the X-Type. You may, like me, think it looks more attractive than almost anything else of comparable size and price. You must surely appreciate that its interior is more tasteful.Billed as the two-litre Jaguar, this car actually has a slightly larger engine than that. The V6 unit seems a little out of breath some of the time, but that may be because cars with this badge on are generally quite rapid. It's certainly a smooth unit.But something has gone badly wrong somewhere. The ride is bouncy, the handling is imprecise. Ask the car to do anything at all other than continue in a straight line on a smooth road - such as brake, accelerate, corner, ride over an uneven surface - and it doesn't seem to know what to do.It's almost as if Jaguar was asked by Ford to produce a front-wheel drive car, and did not understand the question. A manufacturer which can make 400bhp go through the rear wheels of the S-Type R without the slightest fuss has tripped over itself trying to put well under half that through the front wheels of the X-Type. You would hardly believe this car had anything at all to do with its close relative, the Mondeo, for the simple reason that the Mondeo is a splendid example of how to make a front-wheel drive chassis work, and the X-Type is a sad example of how not to.Sometimes you drive a car and wonder who on earth it was within the company who said, "Yes, this is fine, don't change a thing, we'll go into production with it." That was exactly what I felt in this case. There simply has to be the ability within Ford's Premier Automotive Group to make the front-wheel drive X-Type handle far better than it does, and I hope it happens soon.Second opinion: It's certainly an odd sensation to feel a Jaguar's front wheels spin as you floor the throttle away from a gravelly T-junction out in the country. About the dynamics: either this was a below-par example of the SE, or the best plan when buying an X-Type is to pay less and go for the Sport, which seems to have more composed suspension settings and is nimbler on hill and moorland roads. You have to hand it to Jaguar for giving its various models an interior ambiance away beyond anything else in the class, and that's exactly the position with the X-Type, especially when you look at features like the maple veneers, and the tremendous range of upholstery options. At first glance, the rear seat accommodation seems pretty meagre, but it's actually good enough for width and legroom, and OK for headroom. With the two-litre (or 2.1-litre) engine I'd go for the five-speed manual transmission, as in the test car, over the automatic option. From a styling point of view, I think the X-Type is let down by the front end, where the twin headlamps somehow seem to be peering myopically ahead. Ross Finlay. Engine 2099cc, 6 cylinders Power 154bhp Transmission 5-speed manual Fuel/CO2 30.7mpg / 219g/km Acceleration 0-62mph: 8.9 seconds Top speed 130mph Price £22,995 Details correct at publication date
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