Jaguar XF Diesel Review
Car tested: 2012 Jaguar XF Diesel Sports
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 64,22,651/-
The luxury car segment is seeing increase in sales in-spite of the decline in overall car sales in India. Clearly more people are buying bigger cars and hence luxury car makers are offering their very best in the country. Today the luxury car scene is dominated by the German trio but all this is set to change as non-German luxury car makers enter this arena. One such company is Jaguar, which is armed with stunning looking vehicles offering stupendous performance. But does the Jaguar XF hold a candle to the Germans? This is something we find out by driving the Jaguar XF Diesel Sports.
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The Jaguar XF is one of the hottest looking cars in its segment, having ample style.
Exteriors – The Jaguar XF is a looker from every angle you look at it. The car has received many awards for its styling alone and there is no doubt that she looks stunning. The 2012 Jaguar XF adopts the new Jaguar design language which we first saw on the XJ. The XF looks muscular and attracts a lot of attention. The day time running LED lights are arranged in signature J-Blade pattern. The headlamps feature bi-Xenon HID function and Jaguar has very cleverly used chrome on the body.
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When viewed from the side, the Jaguar XF reveals its new triangular side vents which are placed right below the chrome Jaguar badge. The chrome treatment continues around the windows as well and the XF features one of the most stunning alloy wheel designs we have seen in a luxury saloon. The rear of the Jaguar XF features new tail lights which extend till the central portion of the boot lid. The tail lights incorporate full-LEDs and the generous use of chrome can’t be missed. The lower part of the rear bumper is finished in gloss black and features twin exhausts. The boot-lid happily sports the S moniker.
The styling is spot-on and Jaguar has created a car which will appeal to everyone. The design is attractive and dramatic, something very few can miss on the roads. The XF looks so good that many would end up buying it just for the way it looks.
Head over to the next page to read about the Jaguar XF’s interiors.
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Interiors – Step inside and you will be pleasantly greeted by the fantastic quality of the interiors. The dashboard looks appealing and the interior is made of high-end materials. The seats are comfortable thanks to the hoop on them. The company has used new colours on the facelifted Jaguar XF, which has been very well executed. The use of brown, silver, beige and wood has been done fabulously. But it is not the colours which impress you as much as the controls do. Turn on the engine start button and you are in for a massive surprise.
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Once the XF’s engine purrs to life, the Jaguar Drive Selector rises from the center console and the AC vents rotate to their open position. This gives you a sense of occasion every time you turn on the Jag. The attention to detail is truly noteworthy. The glovebox opens with a feather touch while the cabin lights can be switched on/off by a simple touch. Everything seems to be very well put together with massive amount of thought being put into every function and feature present in the Jaguar XF.
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The Jaguar XF features a 7-inch touch-screen which uses a new polarising filter for better contrast viewing. This touch-screen unit is equivalent to BMW’s iDrive and Audi’s MMI but a whole lot simpler to use. If you feel uncomfortable using the touch screen, there are buttons right below the touch-screen for controlling the functions. The audio system gives good sound quality and the all controls are present on the 7-inch touch-screen itself. This screen also doubles up as a reverse camera, guiding the driver at the time of parking.
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The instrument cluster now features a full-colour TFT unit, which has a higher resolution and better clarity. The steering wheel features various controls, wherein most buttons use scrolling for increasing/decreasing parameters. There are paddle shifters present too and the stalks feel very good to use. Other than the USB and AUX, there is an iPod connector available too, which enables you to browse through your music library on your device through the vehicle itself.
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The rear seats of the Jaguar XF feels as comfortable as the front seats but the legroom is not as much as its rivals. The transmission hump at the rear prevents a third occupant from squeezing in and the rear bench is best for two at most. The Jaguar XF is not at all cramped but it does not offer as good legroom or headroom you would expect from a car of this class. Thigh support could have been a whole lot better and the XF doesn’t offer the rear bench experience of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class or the BMW 5-Series.
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The boot is big and can swallow enough luggage for a weekend gateway. The boot capacity is 500-liters.
Head over to the next page to read about the dynamics and performance of the Jaguar XF.
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Ride, Handling and Braking – Jaguar has tweaked the suspension for India, raising it slightly to cope up with the uneven roads. The XF has also been softened to offer a better ride and that is something which differentiates it from the German rivals. The XF absorbs everything you throw at it, without transferring any to the passengers. Ride quality is supreme and highly comfortable with no sort of stiffness. Even the NVH levels are extremely good and you never feel the speeds in the XF. High speed stability is very good but a little bit of uneasiness creeps in at high speeds. The XF doesn’t feel as composed the BMW 5-Series, which is firmly planted to the road at any given speed.
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The Jaguar XF doesn’t feel sharp and the steering wheel is to blame. It lacks feel and there is a fair bit of body roll. You can’t push the Jaguar the way you push the 5-Series and the XF doesn’t inspire the confidence which the Bimmer does. The XF does have a few systems to ensure the car is always pointing in the right direction. There is the Dynamics Stability Control (DSC), which cuts down power much before the XF would let go. The DSC also has a Trac mode which is a little late in cutting the power but again it does it much before then the driver would want it to. The braking performance is extremely good and the XF stops dead in its tracks every time you step on the brake pedal.
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Performance – Powering the Jaguar XF diesel is a a 3.0-litre V6, twin-turbo engine which produces a peak power output of 275 PS at 4000 RPM and a massive head spinning torque output of 600 Nm at 2000 RPM (that is almost as much as what the top of the line XFR produces, which uses a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 engine). As expected performance is absolutely insane and the XF diesel is brutally quick. Jaguar claims a 0 – 100 km/h time of only 6.4 seconds while the top speed is limited to 250 km/h. There is a slight bit of turbo lag below 2000 RPM but once the turbo starts singing, the way the XF accelerates is truly phenomenal. Performance is very strong and the engine is very refined all the way to its 5000 RPM redline.
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This 3000cc engine is mated to a 6-speed ZF automatic gearbox, which gives the XF very quick shifts. There is no lag between gears and even in D mode, the XF’s transmission is super quick in finding the right gear. The car has been programmed in such a way that it never hesitates in going to high revvs when you manually downshift the vehicle. The best part about the XF’s gearbox is it doesn’t upshift in S mode with the driver actually controlling the shifts. Getting into dynamic mode (a button marked with a chequered flag) with the XF in S mode, the Jag will roar all the way to the redline and stay there till you want it to. Do the same thing with its German rivals and they upshift without a second thought, which makes paddle shifts pointless in those cars.
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Head over to the next page to read our conclusion on the Jaguar XF.
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Conclusion – The Jaguar XF is a fantastic car, it looks stunning, drives well and has stonking performance. Still we don’t see many on the roads. The reason is simple, the Jaguar XF is priced above comparable BMW, Mercedes and Audi cars. Majority of the sales in this segment come from 4-cylinder diesel variants and currently the XF diesel is only available with a 6-cylinder heart, which escalates its price. Tata Motors should consider bringing in the 2.2-litre diesel engined Jaguar XF to India, which is no slow couch either and is more fuel efficient as well. With CKD operations all set to commence next year and JLR expanding dealerships, that day is not far when we will see more of the very capable Jaguar XF on Indian roads.
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Whats Cool
* Stunning looks
* Interiors
* Ride quality
* Stupendous engine performance
* Massive attention to detail
Whats Not So Cool
* Handling not as sharp
* Only one diesel engine option (no 4-cylinder diesel)
* Premium pricing due to CBU
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2012 Jaguar XF Specifications : –
* Engine: 2993 cc, V6, 24V, Gen-III
* Power: 275 PS @ 4000 RPM
* Torque: 600 Nm @ 2000 RPM
* Transmission: 6-speed automatic
* Top Speed: 250 km/h
* 0-100kmph: 6.4 seconds
* Fuel Consumption: 7-8 kmpl (City), 9-10 kmpl (highway)
* Fuel Type: Diesel
* Suspension: Independent Double Wishbone Front Suspension With Coil Springs and Shock Absorbers
* Tires: 245/45/18 Tubeless Radials
* Brakes: All Wheel Discs, ABS, EBD, Corner Brake Control
* Safety: ABS, EBD, TCS, Front and Side Airbags, Dynamic Stability Control, Engine Immobilizer, Valet Lockout
2012 Jaguar XF Dimensions : –
* Overall length x width x height: 4961 mm X 2053 mm X 1460 mm
* Wheelbase: 2909 mm
* Turning Radius – 5.74 m
* Boot Volume: 500 liters
* Fuel Tank Capacity: 64 liters
* Kerb Weight: 1820 kgs