HISTORY
Jaguar introduced the Sport model with the X300 to increase its appeal to younger buyers but with the later X308, the Sport was initially short-lived. Here’s why.
WHEN THE new XJ ‘X300’ models appeared in 1995, there was a lot of talk about how the new model was tailored to appeal to a new generation of Jaguar buyer: someone who was younger, more dynamic and more upwardly mobile than the model’s traditionally conservative and older customers.
To appeal to the new demographic, the X300 was offered in an all-new ‘Sport’ trim, just £1000 more expensive than the entry level XJ 3.2, but equipped with the sports suspension from the XJR and a range of Sport-only colour schemes, along with a darker and less traditional cabin.
It quickly became one of the best-selling models in the range, accounting for just under one-in-eight sales. It was stylish, reasonably well-equipped and brought Jaguar ownership into the reach of both fleet and private customers who may never previously have considered it.
So, when the X300 was replaced by the X308 in 1997, it made every bit of sense for the Sport model to continue. This time however, Jaguar had a newcomer waiting in the wings in the form of the soon-to-berevealed S-TYPE, which would also introduce a new V6 engine and pricing more aligned with the smaller mid-size executive class dominated by the BMW 5-Series.
As a result, the range was rationalised, although the Sport remained and was available only with the entry-level 3.2-litre V8 engine and not the 4.0-litre.
Nevertheless, it was a core part of the model range for the first 18 months that it was on sale. Unlike its predecessor, however, sales were much slower as Jaguar had instructed its dealers not to discount the model heavily, as it had younger buyers and particularly fleet customers very much in its sights with the upcoming new model.
The S-TYPE made its debut at the 1998 British Motor Show and the first examples were delivered to customers in early 1999. Although its styling was very much influenced by heritage cues, the original target market for the S-TYPE was buyers under the age of 50. A target that it never really achieved, as instead the S-TYPE appealed to a lot of more mature XJ customers who were happy to downsize as they got older.
Later on in 1999, for the 2000 model year, Jaguar revised the XJ model range with a view to shifting it further upmarket and creating more of a gap between it and the new S-TYPE.
In its press kit for the 2000 model year XJ, Jaguar said “The new, rationalised XJ range retains the entry level XJ 3.2 but the 3.2 Sport has been discontinued as Jaguar now has an all-new car that is more in keeping with the needs and demands of the people who would previously have bought it.” An interesting perspective and one that, in the fullness of time, d
