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It's here! OK, I have only driven it (and been driven around by my wife in it) for about 70km but here are my impressions:
External Appearance
It looks different to the previous, a lot more chunky in my opinion. I know that the reviewers say that it looks wider and flatter than the previous, but I dont necessarily think that is right. It does look good. The rear end has had the biggest improvement IMO, it looks a lot more thought out. I'm going to put some wrap on the sills to give it a waist. I ended up with gloss black venoms by (my) mistake. Personally dont like gloss black wheels so I might end up changing them though they look nice enough.
Interior appearance
Really, it looks a million dollars in there. It takes a bit of getting used to as the changes to the doors give more space and the screens give an illusion it is a much bigger car, also the centre console seems a lot wider. At first I thought it lost a bit because I liked the snugness of the original, but then I cranked the seat down an inch and I got back the cosseted feeling I like in the F Type and the first XE - essentially down to where I can easily rest my forearm on the centre console - and it felt much better.
The dash is lovely, infotainment is at first blush a bit confusing but we are getting there, audio sounds are nice and soothing, it has really been taken up a couple of notches. I optioned the surround sound, nice system though I thought the upspec meridian system was pretty good.
How it drives
At first it had the feeling of being a bigger car but that might have been the seating position and the illusion of space inside. It is really nice to drive, powering through corners and rapid direction changes (coming out of roundabouts) it feels very good. I havent really given it stick so I dont know whether it is as good as the first XE which I thought was so well balanced you couldnt push it off the road if you tried. The transmission is really suited to the P300 engine, even in normal mode it is very lively and feels every bit as quick as the base v6 (340hp). In fact, putting my foot down on the M1, it felt quicker at the higher speed where the base v6 would start to fall away. There is absolutely no lag at all, not turbo lag and not transmission lag. That was probably the biggest improvement I thought, when it came to driving. It sounds pretty good too.
Sooooo?
It sure is a lot of car for the money, and it is a huge leap in performance from the 25T to this car, even though the 25T felt lighter at the front end. The interior is just beautiful, and it is a very nice cabin to be in even as a passenger. I think I expected the 25T with some extra stuff and more grunt, but it actually feels quite a bit different, and it really grew on me over the afternoon.
Beautiful. Love the colour.
A well designed sedan still has a place in the modern SUV society we live in, the new XE improves on the already stunning old one.
Enjoy!
Cheers, the Firenze red is very nice. I think it is very close to IRR but not as sparkly, maybe a bit darker. My F Type is IRR, my wife and I keep looking at the cars to see if there is a difference but it is hard to pick.
Well done. Do you prefer the original silver round gear selector or this more traditional one?
I had the puck in my XFs and XKR and really liked it. The original puck was quite big, so each notch was easy to feel, you didnt have to look and the turn was quite gentle. I didnt really like it as much in the current crop of cars because it is smaller and a bit fiddly.
I have the stick in my F Type so I'm used to it, though it is easy to put it into reverse instead of park when you first have it. I think for a sports car the stick shifter is better, but it is only a psychological thing, like holding your old feller which is probably why my wife prefers the puck. Or maybe like a joystick. I thought the (original) puck looked better in the bigger luxury cars because it gave more appearance of space.
I think the vents make the front end look more square and less streamlined, more E-Pacey. I agree with you on that one. One of the vents (left as you face it) is real, it looks as though there is an intercooler behind there.
Beautiful car and nice colour choice! Could you make some pictures of the ambient lighting at night please? Really interested to see the differences to the old one.
Yes, will take some pics at night and pop them up. Seriously, this is a beautiful car inside, not so much WOW like I thought the first XF was, but everything is really first rate. I get into my F Type which has a lovely interior, and I think the quality standard is about the same.
Robert, I am not really a fan of gloss black wheels and I think they make the wheels look undersized, but my wife has had a taste of black and now doesnt want to go back. Personally I'd rather diamond cut or graphite, but it looks as though I'm not going to get my way.
Engshman, no the puck is dead, long live the puck. I actually didnt like it so much in the newer jags as it was small and fiddly. It was better in the first XF and XK, IMO.
Here are the night time pics. On the dash you can set a background theme between a few options, there is the car (standard), media information, car information (from memory), or navigation. I have the media information so it changes depending on the song, the image is very nice and clear but muted so that it isnt distracting. If you are wondering, that is fingers on frets.
Last edited by BruceTheQuail; Aug 6, 2019 at 03:32 AM.
I bought a door puddle light 3 years before my current Jag owning a different car, since the lights are wireless and need the battery I never installed it in fear the batteries might malfunction in the heat.
The interior look so gorgeous now comparing to an old version which is so poorly minimalist that I needed to put some well made mini Jaguar stickers to remind myself what I'm driving.
given i own a couple cars in this segment, m3 competition, giulia qv, i've always been big fan of the xe given it's alu chassis and double wishbones, and always hoped they'd release a v8 model given the fundamentals are there - sadly that ship has well and truly sailed now
the interior is perfect for the money and the segment, they did such a great job to really bring the perceived value in line with the 3 germans, everything waist height and up feels premium, lower trim is still mid spec japan/korea but it's acceptable for the price point
it's also great to see jag have ditched that horrible plastic feeling and looking taurus leather and putting windsor leather in it now
biggest take away is there no longer any compromise with the xe, you aren't having to make that mental leap between emotion of the jag badge and actual quality of interior/tech
ride quality on the demo 20s was very good, much softer in initial dampening than my m3 is on 20s, you can still fly over train tracks without much intrusion into the cabin - these are the benefits of a double wishbone front end, take note bmw
but as much as i liked it, i couldn't get the mrs over the line, she thought the engine and sound was boring, and she's not wrong, once the new car glitzy screen novelty wears off, you're kinda stuck with a 4 cylinder sedan in a segment where the germans are offering some great and even sporty 6 cylinder engines
i think the new inline 6 will finally make the xe a more complete car and should easily topple the M and AMG lites
Last edited by domino_z; Aug 11, 2019 at 11:02 PM.
I never felt my 20d AWD (180hp 318 lb-ft comparing to 25T 247 hp 269 lb-ft) is boring, may be it is the diesel thing. However, reading the posts where some people complain about the lack of dynamics (they read too many car articles I suppose) is very discouraging to potential buyers and current owners who feel opposite. I find the suspension is fairly comfy for the sport sedan, but you do hear this from the person who didn't swap the 17" stock run-flat for much better tires on the market, that said the ride quality could be improved by far.
Now the consequences of the weak XE market are misunderstood diesel and overpriced V6. I'm glad that the Jaguar still keeping the XE line up and running. Disappointing part is I've tried to build the car spec on their US website there are a few available engines left for 2020 model 247hp RWD/AWD and 296hp AWD. Well, this is not a good sign so the rumors may be are true that the XE and XF will be discontinued by 2021, I'm not sure if I'm ready for new era of the Priuses under a different skin.
I might keep the 20d until all the mechanics who can work with this engine will die out and the price of diesel will be equal to the price of gold.
Last edited by EngshMan; Aug 12, 2019 at 10:11 AM.
Hmmm, I have the v6S in the F Type and drove the 250Kw v6 quite a few times in the XE, I dont necessarily agree with Mr & Mrs Domino on this one though bear in mind we were coming out of the 25T which was 177KW and I am reading "segment" in the context of "price point".
Ultimately I think this engine (as I drive it more) feels as good to me as the 250Kw v6 in the 0 - 100kph run, and better from 80 to 120kph. I also dont mind the throbby engine note once it gets over 3500RPM. At the price point there isnt a euro 6 to compete with it as far as I know, you might be looking at a Lexus (yuck) or a genesis (dont mind them but I wouldnt buy one even at a discount). But if the point is that forgetting money you can but a more fun 6 cylinder in a car in the segment, I'd agree though I wouldnt necessarily look to Benz for a fun car, alfa for a reliable car, or audi for any car at all, which leaves you as one of the millions in a 3 series.
