The whole concept of a station wagon isn't a very familiar one for Jaguar.
Still they tried with the first generation XF, which was the successor to the S-Type.
It wasn't a great success though. Even though it was just as good as a regular XF,
but the numbers weren't very high. Mostly because of people switching to SUV's when they were looking for room.
Jaguar saw that coming, considering they introduced the F-Pace.
Just consider how much you've already seen it in the Netherlands.
That car sells, because that segment just devours cars.
Then, the second generation of XF arrived. Would there be another station wagon?
There was a lot of confusion around it, which was a mistake according to Jaguar.
The confusion arose because Ian Callum head of design at Jaguar,
there wouldn't be a Sportbrake-version of the XE. People misinterpreted that as in there wouldn't be a new Sportbrake at all.
Because a new XF Sportbrake has always been on the board, and two years after the launch of the new generation,
I'm next to it. The new XF Sportbrake.
Its main rivals are the big German three; Audi A6, BMW 5-series and Mercedes E-Class in station-form.
And that's hard, because those three cars are incredible.
They're actually the best kind of cars on the market today. If you go bigger, you move to limousines.
They're bigger and more luxurious, but not necessarily better.
So how do you tackle this being a small manufacturer? Just look at Cadillac, which is struggling,
Maserati is struggling, Lexus isn't doing too good either with their GS.
You have to find a gap in the market, an unique selling point to attract buyers.
I'm going to find out if this Jaguar XF Sportbrake has done it.
It isn't a small car. It's 4,96 m long,
and as with every new station wagon; let's check out the boot.
I've looked at the blurb, and it says it fits 570 litres.
That's pretty competitive.
You can easily fold down the seats with these buttons, Jaguar isn't lagging there...
That increases the space to 1700 litres, and that's fine to me.
Other details include the sill, which is low.
You can adjust the way your luggage is placed, there are some hooks here.
There's a 12V-port here... All kinds of stuff which increase the usability of a station wagon.
Jaguar plays its cards well by not leaving a stone unturned.
So the question is; why did Jaguar take this long for releasing the Sportbrake,
considering the XF has been around for two years now. Wouldn't that mean a loss in customers?
The reason is called F-Pace, because that had to be the showpiece.
That was the most important car, so Jaguar thought a Sportbrake would deflect attention.
That's why they've waited. The F-Pace now is up and running,
so now there's space for the wagon to arrive.
It looks good, it's long just like I said.
The rear lights are similar to those on a F-Type. They've tried to apply a lifestyle-image to this car,
because it's very practical. The 565 litres, which is BMW-level,
the flat loading floor. It has to be usable as a daily.
When it comes to additional weight, the amount is very slim. Only 100-150 kg.
Not something you immediately in a car like this, but what remained are the dynamic driving qualities of this XF.
That's where Jaguar aims high. A sporty drive, dynamic handling,
a beautiful balance, good steering capabilities,
and that fills a gap. A gap which has occured because the BMW 5-series has moved to the middle.
The 5-series become more comfortable with the times, even though it's still a very dynamic car to drive.
Basically, it's more comfortable than the E60 was.
The XF isn't necessarily extremely bumpy, but it can still be a tad venomous,
the sharpness in the steering, the rear wheels which spin when you hit the throttle to hard,
the butt moving in a corner even though every driving aid is on...
You just feel like the car wants to involve you in the drive, and in this segment, that's becoming rarer with the day.
And it's something the XF needs as well. I think it's a car with personality,
it goes for the exterior and for the inside as well. It's just a car which makes you feel good when you're driving.
But if we look at technical innovation... Just take the interior for example,
it looks neat. Not very inspiring, decent materials, but it doesn't even come close to the new E-Class,
new 5-series or Volvo V90. They're all way ahead of the XF.
The same goes for the multimedia system. It's much better than the one in the previous XF,
and that says more about its predecessor, because that really sucked.
But overall, it's okay. It isn't optimal, because the ergonomics could be better,
but the speed is decent.
But it's also small. Just compare it with the huge screens of other E-segment station wagons.
On all those levels, Jaguar is clearly lagging.
That's why they're flunking. What about the price? Is it that much cheaper?
If you tick all of the options, it isn't that much of a difference either.
It really has to make its spirit work.
And if you really think driving is important, this car is satisfactory enough to be worth consideration.
If we take a look at the engines, I've been treated real well today.
I'm driving a 3.0-litre diesel with two turbo's and 300 horsepower.
It's really good. You can clearly tell the difference with the 2.0-litre from the Netherlands.
It's a little noisier as well. Not as much as in the XE,
the XF is a little quieter. But compared with this,
when it's up to speed, you don't even hear it's a diesel anymore.
That's the difference with the 4-cylinders.
But it's the same story again. If I look at the competition...
This has 300 horsepower, but if you would've told me it had 240 horsepower,
I would've believed it as well, because the power is hidden away in high RPM's.
The second must be a very big turbo, because it kicks in at 3500 RPM.
The maximum amount of torque is 700 Nm at 2000 RPM, and even though it all sounds good,
but look at 6-cylinders of the competition, they all achieve maximum torque at 1300 RPM.
You never have to pass 2500 RPM because the power will already be available, and those are differences which are quite important, especially at a level like this.
So for my conclusion there's one question left. How important is that for you?
In this segment, there are cars which consistently get 9,5 out of 10.
There isn't anything better, because that would be limousine-territory.
They're just longer and more luxurious in the back, but when it comes to the drive,
good E-segment cars are the pinnacle.
This XF is in that E-segment, it wants to compete,
but it just isn't as good. It doesn't get a 9,5.
On the other hand, if it consistently scores 7's and 8's,
it's still a very good car.