Vehicle: 2009 Jaguar XF Supercharged with adaptive cruise control
Price as tested: CDN$81000

Performance: The new XF is available with two V8 engines, both are the familiar AJ-V8s that we have seen in previous Jags. In the XF Luxury and Premium Luxury, its a 4.2 liter normally aspirated engine with 300hp and 310 lb/ft of torque. However, in our flagship tester, XF Supercharged, uses the same motor as its silibing S-Type R’s 4.2 liter V8 supercharger. This V8 blower has been underneath the hood of both XK, XJ and S-Type; we were quite like its level of refinement and flexabililty. In the XF, its the same story. 420 horses and 413 lb/ft of torque certainly shows it got lots of go. The upcoming XF-R will definitely shown up with more ponies and torques than this supercharged version, with upgraded internal components. There are plenty of torque in the low rpm, even if 413 lb/ft of torque shows up at four grand. The throttle response is quick if a bit too light for my liking. Its level of lightness would feel really at home with those American muscle cars. On the top end, however, its equally fast with that 420 horses never seem to be breathless. This time around, Jaguar knows it is against those moving targets called Germans. With those A6, E-Class and 5-Series consistently got engine and technology upgrades, Jag has to keep a fast motor in order to match their uplevel offerings competitive. That’s because only offered a V8 and a R version aren’t enough in S-Type. The 6-speed sequential gearbox is smooth and seamless. Although the paddle shifters feel somewhat bouncy whenever it needs to up and downshifts, it has done a decently enough job for XF’s personality. The gear ratios are tuned for more cruising than all-out sporty driving, as its most suitable for Jaguar’s character.

Handling: As one expects from a Jaguar, soft and comfortable ride quality have to be a “must”. The same is true for XF. On the highway speed, XF no longer feels as floaty and numb as its predecessor. Jaguar seems to tune well with their latest CATS, or Computer Active Technology Suspension, which is a computer technology that dials out the perfect ride and handling balance depending on the driving conditions. While this system has left us cold in all the previous Jags, regardless of XJ, XK or S-Type; XF’s software has gone for the better. Gone is the floatiness and numbness we associate with Jaguar’s chassis. That’s despite it still lacks the firmness and suppleness we expect from German benchmarks. The level of control remains inferior to its peers when pushed. We are glad to see Jaguar finally offers something similar to Subaru’s nifty Si-Drive in XF. The system is called Jaguar Drive Control or JDC. The Dynamic mode, which is only standard on our Supercharged version, has created far stiffer setting than we have experienced in Jag sedans of past. That’s about as solid as XKR. Although the XKR remains softly sprung compares to its sports car rivals. The steering provides better feedback and response with Dynamic mode, even though its fairly precise even on standard mode. There remains plenty of body rolls and understeer. We are always disappointed with how Jag handles understeer and body rolls. the same remains true with XF. Whenever you press a Jag into a corner enthuisastically, it tends to have huge understeer which could easily turn into nasty. When its already in the nasty situation, it would turn into oversteer which is far more difficult to save than safe understeer. That’s really ashamed consider XF’s near ideal 50/50 balance as a rear-driver.

Brakes: With 4-wheel discs and standard ABS, XF has performed decently in our braking tests. The lack of brake fade after a couple of hard stops, on the other hand, ABS never kicks in unnecessarily. Both the pedal feel and modulation are much better than expected.

Interior: Instead of focusing on using only wood trim, Jag has broken the norm by combining both wood and aluminum trim together in XF interior. That is a refreshing change for a car company that has stuck with its past more than looking into the future. While the interior styling looks plain and blend, the use of materials are surprisingly good consider Jag’s recent efforts. Its definitely classier than the cheapness we have experienced with Nissan/Infiniti and Chrysler; however, still not up to the industry standards. Even though Jag has used nicely stitched leather on the dashboard, one can still find some cheap pieces along the center console and door panels. The leather seats are comfortable and well-foamed. Instrumentation gauges are clear and analog, same goes for the ease of navigation and climate control systems. Both the push button “keyless go” and rotary gear knob are placed ergonomically on the center console. While many found latter as a nifty design, I found it as nothing more than a gimmick.

While the rear has decent legroom, the headroom has been limited due to its C-pillars.

Loading cargos into XF’s trunk is a challenge. Thanks to its high liftover, narrow trunk sill and a trunk deck that could easily hit your head.

Conclusion: At the time of our writing, Tata has announced the purchase of Jaguar from Ford’s Premier Auto Group. XF symbolizes what Ford can do best to turnaround this struggling British carmaker. We have seen the better use of materials and handling/ride improvement over the unremarkable S-Type predecssor with the XF. Unfortunately, the XF remains barely competitive with the top dogs from Germany despite of all those improvements.

OVERALL VERDICT FOR 2009 Jaguar XF
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Performance: 4.5/5
Handling and ride/fun-to-drive: 3/5
Interior/ergonomics/user-friendliness: 3/5
Fit-and-finish/build quality: 3/5
Cargo/accessibility/layout: 2/5
Value-for-money: 2/5

Overall rating: 2.5/5