THE Jaguar X-Type has collected its first award of 2004, winning the gold prize at the Fleet Excellence Awards.

The X-Type took top honours in the New Diesel Car of the Year category, voted for by the readers of Fleet Week and Fleet Management magazines. The all-new Jaguar XJ also received a runners-up award in the luxury category.

Editor of Fleet Week magazine, Tristan Young, said: "The new X-Type 2.0D is capable of more than 50mpg, CO2 output at less than 150g/km, a 0-60mph time of less than 10s and a top speed of 125mph - and all this for a starting price of less than £20,000. The largest amount of work went on the levels of engine refinement, an area where Jaguar scored an outright victory. When we first drove the car we described it as barely audible."

Jaguar's corporate operations manager, James Drake-Lee, welcomed the honour. He said: "By the middle of this year we will have an even more competitive proposition in the market with the introduction of not only the versatile X-Type Estate in March, but also the 2.7 litre V6 bi-turbo diesel that joins the 2004 S-Type model range in June."

UK managing director of Jaguar Cars, Phil Popham, said: "The new X-Type 2.0D has enabled Jaguar to capitalise on the rapidly increasing pan-European demand for premium diesels."