Jaguar X-Type to be put out of its misery

Jaguar has decided to pull the plug on its compact X-Type sedan, ending the British marque's foray into the junior executive market.

Production of the unloved sedan is set to end by December, and as a result, Jaguar's Halewood plant in England, where the X-Type is made, is expected to lay off 300 employees. However, the British government will provide a $44 million grant should Jaguar's owners decide to re-tool the factory to build Land Rovers.

Ford, then owner of Jaguar, had high hopes when it launched the X-Type back in 2002. While it won rave reviews for its handling, with its all wheel drive system, there was very little else going for it, which was essentially a re-bodied Ford Mondeo.

The X-Type is the highest volume Jaguar ever, with more than 350,000 produced in eight years. But sales were discouraging, with the car withdrawn from the US market in 2008 and used versions going for bottom dollar. With this announcement, the X-Type has finally been put out of its misery.