The Ford-Jaguar X-Type station wagon

They’ve been out for a couple of years, but mercifully, I’ve not seen one until recently: a Jaguar X-Type station wagon.

At first, we didn’t believe it, thinking that someone stuck Jaguar letters on a Ford Taurus wagon. But it’s real: In 2005, the Jaguar X-Type became available in a five-door “sportwagon” configuration.

There’s nothing wrong with high-end station wagons. BMW has long offered wagon versions of its 3-series and 5-series sedans, for example. However, at least those cars are BMW through-and-through. That’s not true with Jaguar, which has turned into just another Ford nameplate.

It’s sad to watch the formerly prestigious luxury car marque deteriorate into a rebadge of existing Ford cars. In this case, the Jaguar X-Type is a spiffed-up Ford Mondeo, a European model that used to be sold as the Ford Contour and Mercury Mystique for the U.S. market.

What’s next, a Jaguar F-Type pickup truck?