Car reviews

Introduction

The XF was a drastic, but essential move away from Jaguars traditional style. With its sleek modern look and mixture of aluminium and wooden interior it now attracts a younger generation of executives. The performance of the XF is phenomenal with perfectly balanced and weighted steering, massive amounts of grip and hardly any body roll to speak of. The Jaguar XF was built to compete with the best cars available and has easily achieved this.

Exterior & Interior

The Jaguar XF has hints of older models about its design, but make no mistake, this is a completely modern and exclusive saloon. The interior is magnificently furnished with a combination of aluminium and wood giving it the feel of a jaguar, but with a contemporary feel to it. It is advertised as a five seater but you would be pushed to seat three people comfortably in the back with the there being limited legroom thanks to the transmission box and with the sloping coupe esk roof making headroom limited too. The boot is the largest Jaguar has made with 500 litres of space or 540 if you opt for a puncture repair kit instead of the spare wheel. The rear seats do also fold flat to increase the load space but 500-litres should be adequate for most peoples luggage. There isn't much storage space in the cabin with only small door pockets, but the central cubby hole can hold larger objects. When it comes to the trim levels Jaguar have exceeded themselves with the lower spec Luxury trim coming with Alloys, CD multichanger, climate, cruise and traction control, parking sensors, sat-nav, electric windows, seats and mirrors, service indicator, airbags all round and a telephone kit. The Premium Luxury trim doesn't come with too much more than this with larger alloys, higher quality interior and keyless entry.

Drive

Despite the XF's big size it is nimble and beautifully refined. Thanks to the low and wide stance of the XF the ride quality hasn't been compromised as there is almost no body roll going into the corners even with soft suspension. The steering is light and precise making the XF feel nice and sporty. There is absolutely no noise from the outside world to speak of apart from the when you start the car and you get to hear the wonderful sound of the engine. It's not overbearing though and if anything improves the experience.

Faults & Repairs

Jaguar's reliability of late has improvement considerably and the XF is no exception with very few faults being reported. The few faults to look out for are with the electrics with warning lights staying on and the sat-nav not always working. There have also been reports of the air-con not working properly and the fuel filler cap getting stuck.