Jaguar XF Sportbrake, the Premier League
The British have a habit of doing things their own way! The Jaguar XF Sportbrake is no exception. The big German three have a fixed (boring?) habit of making a car great. Jaguar ain’t like that and thanks to that some interesting designs emerge. So, is interesting any good?
R-Dynamic
Since 2008, Jaguar left their old-fashioned way -in style- with the then-new XF. With every update, they got closer and closer to their rivals and thanks to the latest version -facelift- they will be more present than ever before. Or so we hope! Our street could use some more British cars in the overload of leasing BMW’s, Audi’s and Mercedes-Benz’s. Arriving at work in the new Jaguar XF Sportbrake will turn some heads and definitely with the “R-Dynamic”-styling! “Did he get a raise?” or “the boss’s darling!” are questions and expressions that you will hear a lot.
But can you blame them? Look at the front of the car. One huge grill -that can easily consume a cute little Smart- finished with all-black details and big air intake’s for the powerplant underneath the vast hood. Further, you will find some newly designed Pixel LED headlights with classy daytime-running lights and muscular wheel arches, which brings us to the side of the car. And immediately the black details, awesome 18-inch rims, and red brake calipers enhance the perhaps ‘somewhat dull’ grey color called ‘Hakuba Silver.’ You could take a Firenze Red, Bluefire Blue, and even a British Racing Green one for the same price as this silver.
The back is probably our least favorite part of the car. Don’t get us wrong, you can really get a lot of stuff in that booty but it ain’t the prettiest out there. Something like the booty of Nicki Minaj: you have to like it. Black details (again): we like them, the diffuser: it’s okay, the rear lights: they look better on the back of the F-Type (review here).
Revolution
In previous XF models, the interior just wasn’t at the highest level and here we mainly refer to the infotainment system. It didn’t work well enough, it just wasn’t fast enough and sometimes it just stopped working. Well, we are very happy to report Jaguar made the most extreme evolution -revolution- on the subject of the infotainment systems. A big, 11.4-inch, touchscreen that is very clear, easy to use, and reacts instantly to your commands now resides in the XF! Furthermore, the center console is beautifully finished -in high gloss black- with a few “touchscreen buttons” and two sturdy rotary knobs for the temperature and heating/cooling seats. A 10 out of 10, Jaguar!
But then we see the dials in front of us, partially analog and partially digital. This finish shouldn’t be allowed on this type of vehicle, it’s simply off. Fortunately, you can get a full digital dashboard and let that be an option you absolutely have to take! You need to! We oblige it! In front of those dials, you have one of the best -may be the best- steering wheel in its class. Not only on looks, but it feels and works like a charm.
All in all, the new Jaguar XF Sportbrake is a beautiful and relaxed place to eat miles and miles of road. Enough space for you and your passengers on comfortable seats for your trip to a tourist location in Britain. Can someone help me with a touristic location? It doesn’t matter where, the XF Sportbrake has enough space thanks to its 736 liters.
Silky smooth
Our Jaguar XF Sportbrake mixes a 2.0-liter four-cylinder diesel with a mild-hybrid system linked to a smooth 8-speed automatic gearbox. The kind you can’t drive full electric but you also don’t need to charge. You don’t need to expect a big power boost, you can expect better fuel economy and that’s exactly what is does. Feeding the 204 horses -and 430 Nm of torque (between 1.750 and 2.500 rpm)- was possible with 5,1 l/100km and that’s just a little tap higher than the promised 4,7 liters at 100 kilometers Jaguar claimed.
The XF Sportbrake has the driving dynamics of a … wagon. What would you expect? It is a very comfy en relaxed way to travel and when you put down the pedal the car rides on the waves of torque. It ain’t blistering fast, but with the most people around us driving 150 hp, the 204 hp feels like the bomb. For sure, when you have the sweet spot on the torque curve. It’s a diesel, so keep the rev’s right and go on the torque flow. Doing it right will result in a 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in 7,8 seconds and a top speed of 235 km/h. Nothing mindblowing, but nice figures never the less. And for whats it’s worth: the car feels faster than that.
Corners aren’t a problem, but trying to hit the apex as hard as possible feels like you are offending the XF. Yes, the car got some tech like torque vectoring and a dynamic handle package so it could coop with the corners, but you still get the feeling it‘s somewhat unnatural. Its natural habitat is the highway eating the miles.
Conclusion
Starting at 56.250 euros (BE), the Jaguar XF Sportbrake competes with its German rivals. The R-Dynamic, 360°-camera, black exterior package, panoramic roof, and so on and so on brings the total picture with ease to 66.250 euros. And yes, those Germans … it’s the same there. So if you are looking for an awesome car and want to stand out from the crowd. Go look at the Jaguar XF Sportbrake.
