YOU have to feel for Jaguar. It has just launched what is arguably the most important car in its history – and as you are about to find out, it is seriously good – yet the XF threatens to be overshadowed by reports and rumours on the marque’s future. But we’re not going to follow suit here (for our opinion concerning the sale of the company, see the sidebar Tata Jaguar). The fact of the matter is this. Jaguar’s future starts now, and the future very much depends on the success of the XF. This is a car that doesn’t only need to be good. It needs to be brilliant. It needs to change perceptions. And it needs to appeal to people who previously would not even have considered a Jaguar.
Stunning design is a good place to start. In recent years, Jaguar tried hard to recall its glory days by designing modern cars that harked back to the greatest Jaguars of the past. It didn’t quite work – the result was cars that only really appealed to people who were around at the time of the original, or fans of retro. As sales numbers proved, there weren’t enough of either. Lesson learned.
Now we have the XF, and there’s not a hint of retro about it. Starting with a clean sheet of paper, design director Ian Callum and his team – including Wayne J Burgess, the man who did the Aston Martin DB9 – have created a car that is unlike anything Jaguar has done before. Perhaps conservative Jaguar folk will find it a shock to the system, but judging by the overwhelmingly positive response from onlookers during our two-week test period, XF has widespread appeal. It is, like many modern designs, a car that has to be seen in the metal to be appreciated. Go have a look at one, and judge for yourself…
The interior is even more of a departure. Gone is the high, traditional wood-faced facia, and in comes a low-slung design with a far more modern – and varied – application of materials. The wood is still there, but now plays a supporting role, whereas previously it dominated.
Overall, two features contribute most to create the impression of an uncluttered, clean design. The first is the lack of a traditional gearshift lever. Replacing the stuffy old J-gate is an all-new design called the JaguarDrive selector. When the car is switched off, this gear selection device sits flush with the surface of the centre console. Press the pulsating start button, however, and it elegantly rises An exceptional effort from Jag, but somehow loses the heritage feel – SM up into the palm of your had. From there, you just rotate it into any of the indicated positions (Park, Reverse, Neutral, Drive and Sport). It is a really cool design feature and conversation piece, but also works well and intuitively, once you’ve done it a few times.
The second feature is the standard fitment (on all XFs) of a touch-screen display on the hangdown section that functions as the control centre for the car’s audio, navigation, climate and vehicle settings. It is such a brilliantly simple way to access information and change settings that we have to wonder why everyone else has not gone the touchscreen route.
The attention to detail and abundance of new ideas in the XF’s cabin mark it out as something really special, but perhaps some of the features could be seen as “overkill” by more traditional buyers. One of these is the ventilation outlets – the vents rotate into an open position once the car is started, and close again automatically when the ignition is switched off – it’s a nice idea that gets people talking, but you have to ask, what’s the point? A more successful detail is the Phosphor Blue cabin lighting at night. This gives the interior a cool, modern ambience. But pipe and slippers traditionalists beware, the XF cabin is a world apart from what went before…
This SV8 version is the current flagship of the XF range, and comes with everything but the proverbial kitchen sink (see the accompanying features checklist). Owners who want to individualise their cars also have plenty of scope to do so. But even without spending any extra cash, there should be few worries about driver comfort. There’s good space up front, with seats that offer plenty of electric adjustment (driver’s seat is 16-way adjustable, and front passenger seat 12-way). The steering column is also electrically adjustable for height and reach. The front seats, by the way, offer heating and cooling, and the steering wheel can also be warmed up for those early morning starts.
Things are not so good in the back, though. The XF rides on a long 2 909 mm wheelbase, but the slope of the rear window (raked at the same angle as on the XK coupé) has forced Jaguar to push the rear seats forward. As a result, rear headroom is fine for people up to about 1,85 metres tall, but legroom is tight. The boot, too, is smaller than those offered by the competition, measuring 304 dm3. It does, however, offer a standard rear seat fold-down function, resulting in a useful utility space of 1 000 dm3. A space-saver spare wheel is located in the boot.
Underneath all the cutting-edge design hides an extensively upgraded S-Type platform. This is not necessarily a bad thing, seeing as the S-Type was always highly regarded for its comfortable ride and good dynamics. The XF, however, is stiffer (said to be the most torsionally rigid car in its class), and this SV8 version comes standard with Jaguar’s CATS (Computer Active Technology Suspension) adaptive damping system. Also standard, in addition to the usual ABS, EBA and EBD, are Cornering Brake Control (CBC) and engine drag control. In addition to the two-stage dynamic stability control, the SV8 also comes with TracDSC which is essentially a track mode that switches out all electronic interference. So, this particular XF increasingly sounds like a pretty serious driver’s car. And it has to be, because it occupies a position on the XF price ladder that was previously taken by the very performance-oriented S-Type R. An even more hardcore XF Type R comes later.
Under the sculpted bonnet is the well-known supercharged 4,2-litre V8 engine that also does duty in the XKR. It delivers identical power and torque outputs to that vehicle: 306 kW at 6 250 r/min and 560 N.m at 3 500, to be exact. Power goes to the rear wheels via a ZF six-speed automatic that can be controlled via shift paddles behind the steering wheel. The XF SV8 is a heavy car though, tipping the scales at 1 939 kg (with a commendable 53:47 front/rear weight distribution), so it needs every one of those kilowatts. Out on our test strip, we recorded a best 0-100 km/h time of 6,38 seconds, achieved in Sport mode and with the gearbox left to do its own shifting. Experimenting with manual shifting, or revving against the foot brake, resulted in similar, but not faster times. Also, even with TracDSC activated, we could not get the XF to spin its wheels from a standing start on our test surface. Overtaking acceleration, however, is very brisk, with only 2,44 seconds necessary to get from 120 to 140 km/h. Our test car’s electronic top speed limiter kicked in at a true 251 km/h.
Away from the test strip, the XF is arguably more impressive. This is a big car that somehow manages to not feel heavy. The transmission is really good, with quick and smooth shifts. But the greatest contributor to the feeling of agility is throttle sensitivity. Unlike most automatic cars of this size and weight, you don’t need to stomp on the XF’s throttle to get a reaction. The steering is similarly direct, as well as being accurate and nicely weighted. The XF SV8 comes standard with 20-inch wheels riding on very low-profile rubber, and it has to be said that the ride is on the firm side of the spectrum. Certainly not uncomfortable, but just as certainly also not quite as supple as Jaguars have traditionally been in the past. That said, the firmer suspension does contribute to a very “planted” feel on the road.
TEST SUMMARY
If Jaguar had to produce one car to convince the world that it deserves to survive, it has done so with the XF. It catapults Jaguar into a new era where the marque can once again be admired not only for what it did in the past, but for what it is now. Certainly, if you are shopping in the executive car segment and ignore the XF because of what you think the marque is about, you’d possibly be making a mistake.
Essentially, there are only two real arguments against the XF – ignoring for a moment the sale of Jaguar itself. Number one, there is the tight rear space. And number two, this SV8 version is very expensive, which puts it amongst an awkward bunch of rivals. We believe that the pick of the XF range will be one of the cheaper models. Even so, a quick glance at the price lists will confirm that Jaguar was not shy when it came to pricing this very vital newcomer. In many instances, the XF is more expensive than its direct, highly acclaimed rivals.
During CAR’s “Our Choice” voting, the XF emerged as a surprising winner after two furious rounds of voting. With the BMW and Audi eliminated during the first round, the Jag and Merc drew equal support once again during the second. However, after some debate, the XF was – just – given the nod by virtue of the CLS being untried by us with the 5,5-litre V8 engine, and, more importantly, because of an imminent facelift. For now then, the XF scores the narrowest of victories here, and the remaining questions will be answered once we have tested the revised Mercedes, and more versions of the Jaguar.
