Jaguar brings more gear for less dough with the 2004 X-Type

The slight decline in last year's X-Type sales prompted the Jag team to freshen up the entry-level luxury sedan that made up more than half of all Jag sales the year it was introduced. What they've essentially accomplished is bringing you, the bright young faux-Brit, more car for less money. The X-Type is now quieter overall and more stable due to numerous suspension enhancements like the inclusion of equal-length front driveshafts. The interior has been revised ergonomically, for instance there are buttons that no longer catch long fingernails. I am not kidding. The engine choices were carried over from the preceding X-Type, two V6s with either 2.5 or 3.0 liters of displacement, both of which can thankfully be mated to five-speed manuals. The Ford Mondeo heritage is barely discernible, which by all accounts is a good thing, but the Ford connection does help keep the Jag within financial reach— lease deals are available for $3,000 down and $279 a month.