Jaguar XF - the Cat that Roared!

Jaguars have long been head turners and the new XF is no exception.  What this new Jaguar also has though, is a fresh original look, without the baggage of days gone by, unlike its elderly sister, the XJ.  Sure there are small glimpses of older Jags here and there but they don't dominate - there are more obvious visual links to the stunning XK Coupe however.

There are four XFs available - a 2.7 Litre Diesel V6, a 3.0 Litre Petrol V6, a 4.2 Litre Petrol V8 and a 4.2 Litre Supercharged Petrol V8 (the SV8).  The V8s are the same engines powering the XK Coupe.

Jaguar's Smart Key System^TM is a true keyless entry system in the V8s (in the V6s it only offers keyless start).  With the remote control in pocket or purse you can simply open the locked door.  Dock the remote in its own slot in the lower dash or simply leave it in your pocket, either way when you get in, you'll notice the Start Button pulsing in time with your quickening heartbeat.  Pressing the starter elicits not only that beautiful growl only a V8 can produce, but also starts a series of theatrics, with the ventilation vents across the dash springing to life like two pairs of eyes opening from a deep sleep and the flush mounted JaguarDrive Selector^TM (gear selector knob to you and me) rising from the console. This rotary style selector is surprisingly simple.  It rotates freely between P,R,N & D and needs a press and turn to select S. In this position one uses the F1 style paddles to change gears in the 6 speed ZF adaptive auto transmission.  This is the only way you can change gears manually - there is no "+/-" lever to flick, but with paddles why would you need it?  The paddles are correctly fixed to the wheel, and therefore rotate with it, so that drivers who know how to steer correctly can also change gears in mid turn.

We soon realised that the XF was a supremo when it came to highway travel and we experienced plenty of that on the way to our ultimate destination - Quay Grande on Sydney Harbour. 

We left Melbourne on the Hume Freeway heading for Albury, our first stop.  Cruise control is, of course, standard across the range but our test car was fitted with the optional ($5,825) Adaptive Cruise Control ("ACC") with 'Forward Alert'.  Experience told us that us that 116km/h on the clock would be close to the posted 110km/h limit as we headed into the advisory speed check radar near Beveridge.  In fact the speed check surprised us - recording 106km/h - suggesting the Jag was about 10km/h optimistic. Not wishing to push our luck, we stuck on our 116km/h Cruise Control setting for most of the trip.  Now this ACC is pretty clever technology.  It's designed to detect slower vehicles travelling in your lane and 'adapts' your speed to that of the leading car at a pre-determined distance behind it.  This pre-determined distance or Gap can be set from one of the controls on the right hand side of the steering wheel.  There are four Gap settings and, having set the Gap, the Jag will decelerate, and even brake if necessary, as it approaches the slower vehicle.  It will then maintain the preset Gap.  If the car in front slows down, so do we - if it speeds up, so do we - up to our set cruising speed.  If we want to overtake the slower car, and it's safe to do so, we simply move into the next lane and the Jag accelerates past, up to the preset cruising speed.

The XF is beautifully insulated from the outside world, as you would expect, but the driver still keeps in touch with the road through nicely weighted speed sensitive steering and through the 19" wheels.  The road can literally be felt, but this is what makes the XF a driver's car.  The XF's exhaust growls when angry but is beautifully muffled when cruising.

Jaguar has incorporated a wide range of functions into the full colour 7" touch-screen in the centre dash of the XF, leaving only a basic set of traditional switches to control audio volume and cabin temperature.  What's quite amazing about this system is that it's just so beautifully intuitive - no instruction manuals required!  Even the Bluetooth system (also interfaced through the touch screen) just connected first time and every time thereafter.  As well as telephone the touch-screen controls climate, audio, navigation and parking assistance plus monitors the rear camera when reversing.

What all this means is that we arrived at each destination fresh and relaxed - even when that destination is Sydney's CBD on a Friday afternoon!

We aren't aware of any crash testing results to date, but the XF is well placed to miss most crashes.  The car handles and stops exceptionally well.  It has the usual ABS with EBA and EBD, Traction Control and Dynamic Stability Control.  If all that doesn't keep you out of trouble you are then protected by two stage driver and front passenger airbags plus side and curtain airbags.  Pedestrians who stray into your path are potentially 'protected' by the Pedestrian Contact Sensing^TM system which, on sensing the contact, lifts the bonnet away from the immovable hardware below to provide a more pedestrian friendly deformable surface on which to land.

The V6 models are priced at $108,350 while the supercharged SV8 will set you back $173,170.   The naturally aspirated V8 starts at $134,830.  Our test car with its in-dash single CD player with Portable Audio Interface [in lieu of the in-dash 6-disc player] ($1,375) and the Adaptive Cruise Control ($5,825) weighed in at $142,030. Jaguar offers a 3 year /100,000 kilometre warranty.

We tested the XF for nearly 2,100kms and averaged an impressive 9.7litres/100kms.  Jaguar quote 11.1 for the standard combined urban/country cycle and we noted the car had averaged 11.3 over the last 8,000kms.

At last, Jaguar lovers of the world can come out of the woodwork and feel proud of this feline. Jaguar has produced a chic and stunningly user friendly car that works exceptionally well in all sorts of driving conditions.

Tested September 2008
by Yvonne & David Williams

Vehicle provided by Jaguar Australia

As published in the Sunraysia Daily Auto Guide
18th October 2008