Remember how, a few years ago, “Euro style” was all the rage, as American consumers glommed on to all manner of products that evinced a technical-cum-ergonomic look and feel?  Although it could be argued that this was nothing more than a fad or passing fancy, I maintain that what happened is that the better aspects of the approach became integrated into products such that the “style” gave way to substance.  A simple but telling example: the kitchen tools produced by OXO, which combine appearance with functionality.  While an automobile is a long way from a potato peeler, there are aspects of utility to both, and in some regards, we are missing the opportunities that are there to achieve greater, useful, not faux, functionality.   Which brings me back to the Europeans.  There are two types of vehicles that are popular in Europe almost to the degree that they are avoided in the U.S.: hatches and wagons.  Perhaps some day more people in the U.S. will recognize their benefits, particularly as it relates to utility.

One model with considerable charm is the Jaguar X-Type Sportwagon, which is the first production wagon produced by the company.  In the part of the world from which the vehicle hales (it is put together in Halewood, England), wagons are sometimes referred to as “shooting brakes.”  If there is any shooting to be associated with this vehicle, it is of the civilized skeet variety, not a safari.  (The other term used for the architecture Over There is “estate,” which is in keeping with the pedigree.)  While many Americans have opted for SUVs rather than station wagons—pretending, in effect, that they can take their vehicles out into the bush, even though the pavement is all they’ll ever see, with, perhaps, a gravel driveway thrown in every now and then—the X-Type Sport Wagon is a far more civilized approach to reasonable utility for those who are spending something on the order of $37,000.

That is, the wagon offers all-wheel drive.  This is not to make the car, with its 227-hp, 3-liter, double-overhead cam V6 with VIS and VVT, into some sort of road rocket.  Rather, it is a realistic response to the fact that may drivers, especially in the Midwest and Northeast, have several months of the year during which the weather is less than propitious, and the all-wheel-drive capability is something that will allow them to feel better about, say, taking the kids to hockey practice.  Which leads to the storage space in the back.  But it could be correctly pointed out that SUVs often offer four-wheel drive and space, the difference is that although they may be car-based crossovers, their architecture is such that they are bigger and bulkier than the cars upon which they’re based, which means that maneuvering them is a bit more dodgy than dealing with a car-based wagon that is effectively just like a car.  (The use of a twin-tube MacPherson strut design in the front and a multilink rear suspension in the rear, complemented by a speed-sensitive, variable ration rack-and-pinion steering system from ZF certainly help the X-Type’s handling.)  Sure, you give something up in the way of a higher seating position, but otherwise the sight lines offered in the sport wagon are sufficiently wide open.  With regard to carrying capacity, you can fold down the second row of seats and get approximately 50-ft³ of storage for stuff, which is not vast, but certainly reasonable.

For those who are looking for something less common in the lots of primary school parking lots and the like, the X-Type Sport Wagon may be just the ticket.