Jaguar XF Premium Luxury Diesel 2015 Review

These are heady days for Jaguar; the XE compact sedan has arrived, its first SUV — the F-PACE — is coming and the XF large sedan has just been overhauled and is due here within months.

So consider this a farewell review of the first-generation XF, a car that has come to represent a new beginning for the company, as a well as a cornerstone of its sales since launch in 2008.

The XF replaced the S-Type, the polarising retro-styled large sedan that was odd looking, cramped inside and yet a surprisingly decent drive. It was out and about around the same time the then Ford-owned car company launched the compact all-wheel drive X-Type, based on the Mondeo.

That bitsa was meant to be the basis of record sales for Jaguar north of 250,000… It didn’t happen and Ford gave up and sold the storied Briton (along with Land Rover) to Indian industrial conglomerate Tata. It has since thrown billions at reinvigorating the brand and its products. The XF was the first all-new result of that investment.

Well not quite all-new because the first XF shares the Ford-developed DEW98 rear-wheel drive independent suspension architecture with the S-Type. And for a set of underpinnings that traces back to the 1990s, it still performs darn well, as a chance to punt our Premium Luxury 2.2-litre turbo-diesel test car down the Great Ocean Road on a quiet day reaffirmed.

Expertly-tuned electric-assist power steering offered light yet positive feedback and the non-active suspension proved you don’t need multiple choice if you get the combination of springs, dampers and anti-roll bars right.

Add in solid brakes and the XF – all 4.961 metres and 1735kg of it — can be hustled along at a pace that lives up to Jaguar’s traditional sporting pedigree. Body control across rutted surfaces was excellent, the nose tucked into the corner neatly and the rear-end gripped up and drove the car off the apex with confidence.

The other highlights of the XF remain its sleek, low looks; it’s a car chief designer Ian Callum intended to set the template for a new generation of Jaguars and looking at the new XE and F-PACE you can see where he and his team were planning to go.

It also helps that our XF was riding on optional 20-inch ‘Hydra’ alloy wheels and low-profile 255/35R20 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx rubber. Eighteens are standard.

The tyres did help make the ride a little terse at times, but it was a small sacrifice to make for a really enjoyable balance. Put it this way, they didn’t spoil the experience in the way run-flats favoured by some of Jaguar’s German rivals do.

The low-profile rubber also didn’t get too noisy on our crappy coarse-chip roads. In fact, the XF’s is a seriously quiet car. Along with exterior style and well sorted dynamics, that is undoubtedly one of its best features.

Unfortunately, the engine is just about its worst. The 147kW/450Nm four-cylinder should not be fitted to a luxury car. The German offerings are a generation ahead of this lump in terms of smoothness, quietness and civility. An eight-speed ZF auto does its best to make progress appropriately serene, but the engine is not up to the task.

It clatters when cold, is always noisy, then groans and moans when pushed toward its redline just north of 4000rpm. Worst of all is a harmonic that appears when the car is running at low speed and low revs – say around 1500rpm and 60-70km/h, especially when under load such as when climbing a hill. It would be a deal-killer for many.

Once up and running in the fat of the mid-range it does deliver strong pulling power, while a 6.7L/100km fuel consumption average on test (versus a claimed 5.1L/100km combined average) is also a reminder of why people like diesels – although the auto idle-stop that helps achieve that figure could be subtler in its operation.

A 2.0-litre turbo-petrol XF R-Sport also recently driven by motoring.com.au averaged 9.8L/100km after a week’s driving. But it was a much smoother, quieter and more flexible engine.

Thankfully the one engine the new XF trades in from launch is the 2.2, with Jaguar’s own new-generation ‘Ingenium’ 2.0-litre turbo-diesel under the bonnet. Initial reviews from the global launch are promising.

At $76,500 this car is cheaper than its direct German opponents. Standard equipment includes bi-xenon headlights, leather seat facings and steering wheel, dual-zone climate-control, Bluetooth telephony and streaming, hard disc navigation, cruise control, an electric park brake and keylss entry and start. The spare tyre is a space-saver.

Standard safety equipment includes front, side and head airbags, an active bonnet for pedestrian protection, front and rear parking sensors and a reversing camera.

But equipment is an area where the XF also needs improvement. The current car lacks high-tech driver aids such as autonomous emergency braking and active cruise control. The latter is an option but not the former. The new-generation XF addresses this issue.

The age of this car in underlined by its four-star Euro NCAP safety rating. The independent crash test authority criticised its marginal chest and leg protection for the driver in the offset test.

The first reviews emerging from the new XF drive program also indicate that car has addressed the space issues that make the current car quite tight in the rear for taller passengers. It’s also gone to a new generation of interior design, which means the touch-screen is no longer under-sized. But the ‘JaguarDriveSelector’ gearshift dial that rises from the centre console when the ignition is keyed is retained.

That, along with the air-con vents that rotate open and the funky glovebox opening, are three surprise and delight features of the interior; it is no doubt a less stern place to be than the unrelentingly efficient Germans.

But more prosaically, from the driver’s perspective, this car just works thanks to a generous and comfortable seat, power-assisted reach and rake adjustment of the steering column, a sizeable footwell with a large left footrest and, very importantly, controls that are clear and easy to read and use – apart from that postage-stamp touch-screen.

Storage isn’t bad up-front, but only mediocre in the rear with no door pockets. The boot is shallow and cramped by intruding wheel-arches. It is long, so a big 500-litre claimed capacity is feasible, but a split/folding function is a $1000 option if you want to fit your mountain bike.

The one thing Jaguar isn’t talking about with the new XF right now is the pricing. However, it’s hinting the BMW 5 Series is the rival it will most closely match up against, which means some moderate price rises — well, if you are in the market to spend $80,000 or more they are most likely moderate — are coming.

It’s easy to see people buying this first-generation XF now and being satisfied. However, the diesel engine alone would put me off and, considering that, I’d suggest waiting for the new generation would be a smarter course of action.