By: Phil Weedon

Phil takes a break from German hot hatches and takes a tour of British car plants in a Jaguar S-type

Our S-type in Newcastle. Well Gateshead to be precise, but overlooking the Baltic Gallery.

MY CARS

Some of you will be disappointed to hear that the Jaguar S-type in question is in fact a modern one as opposed to the classic one from the Sixties; the much-maligned underdog, often overlooked in favour of the MkII. No, instead this particular Jaguar saloon is the one first unveiled in 1998 at the same Birmingham International Motor Show that a certain Rover 75 was also introduced at.

The BMW developed Rover 75 was the better car, but it would be the S-type that would out-live it by two years before being replaced by the XF. So the oldest examples of the S-type are now 13 years old, and you’d be foolish to dismiss them. Early ones had a bit of a reputation for unreliability and plasticky Ford bits, but they got better over the years and fundamentally they’re a good car, regardless of the American Lincoln LS underpinnings.

Take our example; purchased as a project car for sister publication Jaguar World in 2010, it had covered 82k miles but looked immaculate, had full service history and was for sale at an independent car dealer for £3700 – at that time, not bad money for a facelift car (they were introduced in early 2002).

We’ve had to do a few things to it, such as a thorough service, new brakes, new radiator and front wheel bearings – but aside from that it was a straight car through and through and has since proven to be a reliable performer. It’s now covered over 131,000 miles, so nearly 50k in the past two years. Its British Racing Green paintjob could do with a good polish, one of the alloys needs a refurbish, while it’s also an undesirable spec, being the underpowered 2.5 V6 with a manual box. But in practice it goes well enough, is pretty frugal on the unleaded and is supremely refined on a long run.

As I proved recently when I had need to drive all round England in one weekend, taking in four cities in just two days; as I soon realised, three of those cities have strong links to the motor industry, in one form or another…

The engine is not the most potent of performers, but it’s smooth, refined, frugal and reliable.

LONDON BOUND

Our start point would be CCB Mission Control in Peterborough − next stop London. The S-type can handle this sort of journey with aplomb. Once on the A1, heading south, it’s a smooth climb to motorway speeds and there it will sit unfazed and utterly refined. The 2.5-litre V6 petrol unit may not be the most electrifying performer, but it’s smooth and refined when cruising. And with it purring away in fifth gear, it’s modest on the unleaded too.

Going into town, the crowded streets make us wish we had an auto; but these thoughts are only fleeting. The clutch pedal can sometimes feel a little weighty, but the gear change is precise enough. It’s amazing though how one expects a sixth gear these days, such is the speed of progress. Thirty years ago, a fifth ratio seemed a luxury, now six forward cogs are considered the norm.

Despite being on the road for around two hours when we reach our first destination of Blackheath, we are still feeling fresh, the sumptuous leather seats providing plenty of comfort and support.

After a day in London, time is pressing. We now have to make a heroic drive back up the A1, past Peterborough and on to Newcastle. The North East is now a motor industry hub itself, having been home to Nissan for 25 years. The company’s Washington plant, near Sunderland currently produces the Note and Qashqai models, so no major rivals for our Birmingham-built S-type, but it’s good to see a world class motor manufacturing facility and supply network thriving in this part of the country, an area blighted for years by the decline in its previous dominant industries of coal and shipbuilding.

NORTHERN LIGHT

Thanks to a Jaguar-loving Deputy Prime Minister (John Prescott), the journey north up the A1 is a lot better than it used to be. All the roundabouts north of Peterborough have been removed, so progress is uninterrupted. And at the time of night we’re travelling (around 10pm) there’s hardly another soul on the road. We arrive in Newcastle about half one in the morning, ready for bed but not in the least bit strained.

After an overnight stop with a friend who lives in a gorgeous 17th century house in the shadows of the famous St James Park football stadium, we awake feeling refreshed for the next part of our journey. It’s off to Liverpool, another iconic northern city and, like the North East, home to car manufacturing. Vauxhall builds the new Astra at its Ellesmere Port production facility today but it started with the original Viva HA. Aside from Vauxhall’s plant, there also Ford’s former factory at Halewood, which built the Anglia from 1963 and then the Escort from 1968 through to 2000; at that point, the site was transformed to build the Jaguar X-type. Today it’s home to the Land Rover Freelander and Range Rover Evoque.

OLD AND NEW

Our reason for going there is not to celebrate the past; it’s to attend a MINI show, held at a recently redeveloped area of Liverpool’s quayside. The Echo Arena neighbours the historic Albert Dock, from where shipping was the mainstay for many years; nowadays only a maritime museum recognises this past, the rest is just cafés and shops. But it’s a lovely place to visit. First we have to get there. The A1 south is easy enough, but then we pick up the A66, a fabulous road that crosses along the ridge of the north Pennines. It provides stunning views of craggy countryside, dry stone walls, hills and dramatic landscapes that stretch out for as far as the eye can see. One is reminded that this must have been a well-trodden route for our hauliers, and it’s incredible to think those lorries have been using this trunk road for decades, in all weathers.

We eventually peel off and take the A683 in a diagonal route south to meet up with the M6. This is a stunning road, with some fun corners to test out our S-type’s handling – it doesn’t disappoint and appears taut and agile. Using the manual ’box, it’s also easy to keep the V6 spinning at the right level of revs to make the most of the 194bhp. We arrive in Liverpool over four hours since we left the North East.

The MINI show is a success; a hall filled with the latest generation of MINIs – which are often as statuesque as a VW Polo or equivalent these days and therefore hardly mini sized… However, one is thankful of their popularity for it means another historic British car factory has been kept rolling as a result: formerly known as Cowley and home to the Morris Minor and latterly the S-type rival, the Rover 75. It’s now dubbed BMW Plant Oxford and has produced over two million MINIs in ten years.

HOME

As we motor out of Liverpool, over the Runcorn Bridge to join the M55 and back out on to the M6, we join the now heavy traffic of people heading home from a weekend away. We stay with the old M6 and salute Jaguar’s Castle Bromwich factory, just visible from the motorway at junction five. You can also see the former Dunlop tyre factory, Fort Dunlop, now a hotel and retail complex.

We eventually join the A14 and then finally the A605 and proceed back on into Peterborough, the city we started from about 30 hours previously. It does of course have its own links to the motor industry, having been the home to Perkins, the world famous engine builder, for 100 years.

It’s been a long drive – over 700 miles with little chance to stop and take stock of where we were at any given point.

The journey was necessary for a bunch of mostly selfish reasons, but it also taught us just how competent the S-type is. In truth it always has been, but because its retro styling has left some people looking elsewhere, its deeply rooted competence has been ignored. S-types in good condition are available in plentiful supply for £1500 and upwards. Our example is probably worth not much more than £2500 and yet I’d struggle to think of anything, Jaguar or otherwise, that provides such splendid luxury, style, performance and everyday practicality for the same money.