It's not a facelift. When you stand in front of the “new” Jaguar XF, you may initially believe in a facelift. But far from it. If you look at the data sheet, the wheelbase grew by 5.1 centimeters, while the XF itself became 7 millimeters shorter. It becomes clear that the “new XF” is really new!
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First test of the new Jaguar XF
And how new he is. He shares many components with the smaller brother XE, but that does not hurt the premium claim of the XF. Lots of aluminum, an elaborate suspension, powerful diesel and a gently evolutionary design. That's how it can work with the attack on the three premium colleagues from Germany. Especially the Munich are in the sights of the new XF. A strong piece of car from England!
Stretched and blessed with the touch of a four-door coupé, the Englishman stands in front of you. It looks classy, it looks sporty. The overhangs are now shorter, which also helps with a neat appearance. You can't tell that it's mostly made of aluminum underneath its skin, but even a look at the data sheet doesn't reveal the noble choice of material. The fact that even the “small” diesel ends up weighing just under 1.6 tons may seem disappointing at first. However, a look at Munich reveals that a fiver is 100 kilograms heavier. So the Englishman’s “slimming treatment” paid off after all.
Once taken a seat, it exudes the feel-good aroma of premium colleagues. It is fine. You feel well cared for and wind noise and engine noise usually remain outside while driving. This reminds of the character of the Stuttgart. As soon as you let go of the reins, steer the XF out of the city and surrender to the highway, but he shows another page.
The Jaguar XF is so active and handy on its first exit, he would speak, he would have a clearly Bavarian accent!
The English are supplied by ZF with the eight-speed automatic, so the surprises are limited. This eight-speed automatic is simply brilliant - still. This machine can currently be experienced at Jaguar with five engines. The Jaguar knob, which only appears as soon as the ignition is switched on and otherwise disappears flat in the center console, is always part of the automatic variant.
We were able to test drive the “small” and “big” diesel at a press event in the Odenwald:
Small diesel
The “small” diesel is a two-liter four-cylinder from Jaguar-LandRover’s most modern engine family. Christened Ingenium, this long-stroke diesel is available in two performance levels in the XF. The "very small” delivers 163 hp and brings 380 Nm, the “only little” has 180 hp and an impressive 430 Nm.
That sounds like a lot of strength. And so the four-cylinder drives too. It's just different times now. The four-cylinder Ingenium Diesel has become an extremely good engine. Together with the eight-speed automatic, it can be cruised in a relaxed manner - the consumption indicator easily falls below the 6 liter mark. This is not a value that should be overstated. The track was active and you could save a few moments of the test drive in everyday life. Jaguar specifies a NEDC value of 4.3 liters in connection with the ZF machine. That sounds like extremely little. But somehow not so unrealistic.
When it comes to driving noise, the all-aluminum diesel engine developed by Jaguar deliberately fades into the background. Thanks to urea injection, the engine is economical and still meets the EU6 pollutant hurdles. The new Ingenium diesels are the first “Jaguar in-house developments” in a long time and thus replace the engines developed together with PSA or Ford.
That 180 PS should drive the XF to Tempo 230, one believes it immediately after the first powerful start from the speed cellar.
Big diesel
And then there is the big diesel. An 300 PS strong auto-ignition with two turbochargers and proud 700 Nm torque. And if the Ingenium engines are new, Kraft always beats all the other arguments. The sovereignty with which the big diesel pushes the XF through the country is factually and emotionally just a real argument.
While the small diesel engine is clearly exposed as a “pot of nails” when idling, the V6 flatters with the sonorous sound that only six-cylinder engines can produce from a diesel engine. When driving between Odenwald and Frankfurt, the same route, the “big diesel” was only a liter thirstier - and therefore already close to its magical 5.5 liters per 100 km according to the NEDC standard.
The fact that the big diesel depends on the little ones in all ratings regarding the driving dynamics will not be surprising. There 8.1 on 100, here 6.2 and the classes usual 250 km / h top speed.
Whether more or less performance: both XF variants have spotted by handiness and sovereign roadholding. Special praise may be given to the steering. The tuning of the electric power steering has done very well, the feedback from the road above the class standard.
The fact that the suspension is more in the direction of “dynamics” than comfort can also be attributed to the choice of wheels. The test vehicles were in R-Sport equipment with optional 20-inch tires. Here the tire naturally doesn't deflect anything - the basic sporty tuning of the XF came into its own.
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In addition to the five engines Jaguar also offers five trim levels. The price spectrum ranges from 41.350 € for the small (very small) diesel and 6-speed manual gearbox to the 380 PS strong all-wheel drive XF with supercharged petrol engine for 70.390 €
The fact that Jaguar brings a good infotainment system with a large display, fits the other orientation as a modern business sedan, but that one waives Apple CarPlay or Android Auto makes speechless.
But also speechless is the fact that this Englishman appears to be on a par with the German premium range from BMW and Mercedes ...!