Jaguar XE R-Sport 25t 2016 Review

Jaguar XE R-Sport 25t
Road Test
Sydney, Australia

All the focus is on its ground-breaking SUV and its sports cars right now, but how is Jaguar faring with its first mid-size sedan since the forgettable X-Type of the noughties? With fleet-footed dynamics and a level of performance that ought to put the German triumvirate on notice, the new XE makes a profound statement on the road.

Jaguar is making big headlines in the automotive landscape. The British firm has just launched its first ever SUV, the F-Pace, in Australian showrooms and its newly established sports car division, SVR, will take full flight with the introduction of the uprated F-Type later this year.

But in devising new offshoots and derivatives, parent company Jaguar Land Rover was acutely aware of the fact it needed to get its bread-and-butter models right. In that sense the recently updated XE mid-size sedan is crucial to the brand’s strategy.
The XE is to Jaguar what Usain Bolt is to Jamaican athletics. The mid-size sedan fulfils the role of volume seller and, for many buyers, supplants the larger XF as the first car they will consider when contemplating a step into the British fold. Not since the forgettable X-Type of the noughties has Jag had a player in this mid-size segment.

Introduced late last year, the eight-model XE range starts out with the petrol-powered 20t, priced from $60,400 (plus on-road costs). It moves as high as $105,350 (plus on-road costs) for the V6-petrol S, while two diesel options are also available. Wedging into the middle of the line-up is the petrol powered 25t R-Sport. At $68,900 (plus on-road costs) in standard guise, it is spruiked as Jaguar’s all-rounder, blending moderate dynamics and power with everyday efficiency and luxury.

The R-Sport offers standard 18-inch alloy wheels, keyless entry and start, Meridian sound system, rain-sensing windscreen wipers, automatic Bi-Xenon headlamps, satellite navigation, Bluetooth and the latest acronyms in safety, including full airbag coverage, a rear view camera, reverse traffic detection, stability control and ABS. Blind spot monitoring and automated emergency braking are also standard, although active cruise control is an added extra.

The Jag’s 1535kg kerb weight reflects an aluminium-intensive build – JLR’s go-to material accounts for about 75 per cent of total mass.  Double wishbone front suspension borrowed from the F-Type resides at the front while the brand’s ‘integral link’ configuration sits in place of a conventional multi-link setup at the rear. There’s also a torque vectoring function which brakes the inside wheel during corners to tighten turning response.

The car’s high-tech underpinnings are mirrored inside the cabin, though on a slightly more mainstream front. Quality materials adorn the dashboard, door sleeves and steering wheel. There is one USB point, one auxiliary point and one HDMI point packaged into its centre console. Curiously, our test example didn’t sport the leather chairs usually applied optionally to press cars; instead, the faux Luxtec sports seats with mesh inserts enabled comfortable and supportive passage, but hardly screamed luxury.

Of course, the Jet/Midnight Blue example had plenty in the way of options, such as the $560 digital radio, $640 heated front seats, $1820 head-up display function, $850 powered boot lid and $940 lane keep assist function. At nearly $70k, you would expect some of these items as standard inclusions, especially since the Jag is around the same money as the equivalent Audi 2.0 quattro Sport, BMW 330i and Mercedes-Benz C250 – vehicles which package some of those features as standard.

The first impression is solid without being breath-taking. The Jag’s starter button illuminates upon start-up, pulsing like a heartbeat. Depress it and the engine wakes to a throaty idle, as the digital instrument cluster goes through its start-up process and the rotary gear dial rises elegantly from the centre console. There are no leading edge displays to speak of for this segment; and certainly no eye-drawing features such as the Audi A4’s excellent (and optional) virtual cockpit display. However, you do get a digital speedo.

Where Jaguar is clearly intent on bettering the Germans is with the driving dynamics, and here the XE certainly delivers.

Be it in daily conveyance or on blasty backroads, the XE is an equally adept machine with its nicely honed body control and a precise rear-drive balance relative to its rivals – a factor re-affirmed by 50:50 front-to-rear weight proportions. Jaguar’s electrically-assisted steering offers plenty of feel and feedback, affording an intimate connection between driver and road. Agile, confident during quick directional changes and unfussed by high lateral demands – this is truly a driver’s car.

The Jag gets the basics right in a dynamic sense. Its 18-inch wheels reflect inconsistencies in the road without being jarring or crashy, while the cabin is nicely insulated from tyre roar and wind noise. Even the steering feels light and supple at carpark speeds, while the extensive suite of electronic driver aids feels well measured and judicious in a mix of conditions.

Central to the Jag’s versatile handling is a configurable dynamics package which adjusts steering and throttle responses across various settings. In all modes it is sure-footed and agile, though occasionally the steering feels as though it’s working in sections in terms of weighting and response, causing you to make minor mid-corner adjustments.

Bolstering the Jag’s sweet chassis and dynamics is a 2.0-litre engine which clearly enjoys climbing to its 6800rpm cut-out and sounds fantastic, with a muted burble at idle which grows to a throaty and evocative crescendo. It feels willing and free-revving in the upper echelons, working in unison with the smooth-shifting and nicely-spaced eight-speed automatic transmission to stay on the boil. Think 0-100km/h in 6.8 seconds…

Offsetting some of that performance is the Jag’s occasional lack of low down torque. Even with peak power of 177kW materialising at 5500rpm and maximum torque offered in a rev bandwidth of 1750rpm to 4000rpm, the XE is heavily reliant on the eight-speed auto to elicit low-down grunt. That means constant back-pedalling between cogs during gentle throttle inputs – a factor which detracts mildly from the ‘luxury’ experience. However, once you’re up and running it’s smooth sailing ahead, with the engine spinning at a miserly 2000rpm at highway speeds. Similarly, the Jag’s fuel-use claim of 7.5L/100km (combined) is hardly stellar for this end of the market; we averaged 8.0L/100km in a mix of conditions.

The XE’s sporty bias is reinforced by small things, like the lovely low-set driver positioning and the comfortable, well-shaped seats. There are some tell-tale omissions though. The XE could be better in a packaging sense: the door pockets are narrow, the rear seat isn’t exactly swimming in space (it is suitable for two six-foot adults at best), the front seat belts miss out on height adjustment and the 450-litre boot proportions are wide but short, impeding practicality. At least the latter houses a space-saver spare tyre underneath.
We can only speak for the optional 10.2-inch Touch Pro infotainment system fitted to our test car in place of the smaller standard unit. The software is intuitive and easy to come to terms with – though it doesn’t feel as user friendly as BMW’s excellent iDrive system, with some of the car’s features hidden within the different menus.

The Jag's five-year/80,000km servicing plan will cost you $1350, generally undercutting most rivals. But its 12-month/16,000km intervals pale against the C250 and 330i's respective 12-month/25,000km.

It all amounts to the conclusion that the XE is unapologetically a driver’s car. It does the on-road stuff really well, and even against German rivals such as the Audi A4, the Brit is a compelling alternative in the competitive luxury car segment.

Price: $68,900 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 177kW/340Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.5L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 179g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: 5-star ANCAP

Also consider:
>> Mercedes-Benz C-Class (from $60,900 plus ORCs)
>> BMW 3-Series (from $54,900 plus ORCs)
>> Audi A4 (from $55,500 plus ORCs)