Looking at the 2009 Jaguar XF you almost have to wonder if Ford Motor Co. Didn’t make a mistake in selling its Jaguar brand to Tata Motors, an India-based automaker.
The rear-wheel drive XF, which replaces the S-Type, is one hot sedan. And if this is the direction Jaguar is heading, I only see good things in the automaker’s future.
Every single passenger who graced the plush leather seats of the XF loved it. My dad thought this was the best-looking Jaguar he’d ever seen, and it was all I could do to pry him out of the heated front seats. Another passenger said it was his favorite among the hundred or so vehicles he’s seen me drive. That’s saying something.
While I didn’t have quite the barrage of questions thrown at me from passers-by that I experienced with the new Dodge Challenger, the XF did attract its fair share of attention. Especially amongst current Jaguar owners. They recognized it but hadn’t seen it out and about yet.
The profile of the XF is reminiscent of the sexy Jaguar XK sports coupe, but that’s where the similarity to anything else Jaguar ends. Purists might be insulted by this departure, but I’m delighted. The S-Type looked like a dolled-up Ford Taurus, and the X-Type and XJ are a bit too old-school to appeal to a population that’s increasingly modern and technologically savvy.
And the new XF is certainly modern. The keyless push-button start comes standard on all XF models, and the test vehicle as a Premium Luxury model added keyless entry. This is my new favorite feature on a car as it allows me to put the key in my purse and leave it there. The coolest futuristic features, however, commence after the ignition has been engaged. As soon as you push the start button, two things happen simultaneously: The air vents on the dash flip open, and the gearshift dial swirls above the flat surface of the center console.
While various manufacturers are playing with variations of the gearshift lever, this dial from Jaguar is one of the most novel and interesting things I’ve seen. It allows for easy shifting and is sleekly attractive. The only problem: There’s no place to put your right hand except for on the steering wheel. Darn.
The overall interior sings with clear and classic gauges that glow light blue at night. The aluminum on the dash is both sporty and elegant, and I’m a huge fan of all the brushed silver accents throughout the vehicle from the center stack to the door inserts.
One thing that bothered me, however, concerned the navigation system. Though the Jaguar system is easy to use, I’m perpetually annoyed by systems that can’t be set while the car is in motion – even when there is a passenger who could set the destination. Most manufacturers have moved toward voice-activated commands when driving. The XF did have voice-activated commands, but not to set a destination – at least not that I could find. I first tried the help option with the voice commands, and when that didn’t yield results, I resorted to (gasp) reading the owner’s manual. I still came up empty.
The base model for the XF is the Luxury model, which has a base price of $49,975. And this is exactly the kind of base model I want to see from a luxury brand. It has pretty much everything you want standard. The iPod integration, Bluetooth phone connectivity, heated front seats, leather seating surfaces and keyless start are all standard. As it should be.
The test vehicle was a Premium Luxury model and had a base price of $55,975. It added 19-inch wheels, keyless entry and navigation to its list of standards. In fact, it was so well-equipped, the media vehicle didn’t even add any options. It didn’t need to.
If you really want to go for broke, you can also opt for the top-of-the-line Supercharged model, which adds $7K to the price tag and 120 horsepower. Other fancy items added to the standard list at this price point include 20-inch wheels, up-level audio system, Sirius Satellite Radio, rear parking camera, blind spot monitoring system and heated-and-cooled front seats.
The base engine in the XF is a 300-horsepower, 4.2-liter V-8. It’s hard for me to believe that there’s an up-level supercharged V-8 that delivers 420 horsepower because the base engine was beautiful. Mated to the six-speed automatic transmission, it offered smooth and seamless acceleration that was downright fast.
Ride and handling on the XF is a nice amalgam of sport and luxury. As a passenger, it serves up a cushy ride that allows you to sit back and relax. As a driver it’s all sport. I had the opportunity to take the XF out on the track at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisc., and the nimble performance is surprising for a 4,017-pound vehicle. The 0-to-60-mph time for the base engine is 6.2 seconds. The Supercharged model makes the same sprint in 5.1 seconds.
With the sporty, performance-oriented drivetrain in the XF, as you can image, fuel economy isn’t going to win any awards. The base engine averages 16 mpg in the city and 25 mpg on the highway. The supercharged engine drops to city/highway mileages of 15/23. During my time in the test vehicle with the base engine, I drove several hundred miles, most of which were highway miles. During the time I was mostly on the highway, I averaged about 25 mpg. When I added in more evenly mixed city/highway driving, the mileage dropped to an average of 23 mpg.
The XF is a five-passenger vehicle that fits four out of five passengers comfortably. As the youngest child in a family of five, I’m the one who used to (and occasionally still) get stuck sitting in the back center seat. Granted, I’m only 4-foot, 11-inches. But still. I sat in that middle position, and I was squashed. I could do it, but I wouldn’t be comfortable for long drives. If that floor hump could go away (a la Honda), that would make things a lot more comfy.
Other than a couple of things like the hump, there’s not much that I would change in the XF. For a first model year, Jaguar did a bang-up job with this new sedan. It’ll be interesting to see if Tata keeps traveling in direction that Ford started with the XF or if it will chart a new route. Personally, I hope it stays the course.
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