So I'm getting closer to ordering my XE. Can some people share their experience of actually ordering their car? How long did it take? What was the overall process?

I've never bought a new car before let alone ordered one specially made just for me. What am I about to get myself into, haha.

 

I did not order mine but the advice I would give from my own experience would be:

Go with the V6 35T
Stay with 18'' or 19'' rims.
Skip Adaptive Dynamics. I like regular suspension better.
Choose RWD unless you definitely need AWD
From the trims - R sport sounds like the best bang for your buck.
I would get the Black pack (if you like the looks)
I would skip Comfort Pack or Technology pack unless you have to have that big screen (that often has issues). The regular screen works just fine.

 

Yeah you've rattled off pretty much everything I'd do with it. But, no Adaptive Dynamic suspension? Does it just offer so little that's not worth the price?

 

The adaptive steering is not that exciting. I have every option and like them all, but being able to turn on/off one part of dynamic mode is not that big a deal.

Heads up display is cool, as is ventilated seats.

 

I ordered my XE 12/13/16 and it arrived at the dealer 3/31/17. I took delivery 4/1.


I agree the R Sport is the best bang for your buck.


I have adaptive dynamics and enjoy the steering/handling.


I've never driven an XE without adaptive dynamics so I don't have anything to judge it against.


Edited to add: Because I have an aversion to shiny stuff, I opted for the black pack. The only chrome on the car is in the back: emblems and tail pipes.

 

I agree with Demetre. We took the 25T because it is my wife's car and the S (your 35T) would have been another $50K with the same kit. The 25T is a great drive, the S is certainly quicker.

As Mosesbotbol says, the HUD is cool. My wife wouldnt be without one now though our cops are ferocious with speeding tickets. The R sport looks are more to my taste and I think the suspension is tuned more for the driver. I would have had black pack but my missus preferred it without.

 

Wife told me she "doesn't want a new car"
So I'm going to interpret that as "Get whatever car you want"
lol

 

Hi Raaz

I was looking for a new sporty car and looked high and low and fell in love with the Jag XE after attending numerous shows. I drove all of the competitors and I really love the handling and feel of the XE.

With that I was getting ready to pull the trigger on a 35T AWD (I live in the Midwest so I have to deal with winters). Then after my daily trolling on the internet I saw that the 2018 models were released with the XE S finally coming to the states with the 380HP engine. I was sold.

In order to get the best price possible I reviewed all of the comments, forums, and sites and knew what to expect and prepared myself for the pricing battle so common with car dealers. I picked out 4 dealers, I knew the invoice price (or judged the best I could). I went in an low balled them all thinking this was going to be quite the process. In the end my favored dealer came in just over $600 over my asking price. With a little haggling back and forth I got my vehicle for just over invoice. Really was a painless process and the other dealers I was working stated they couldn't touch the price given to me, so I signed the order at the end of April.

I finalized the sale with the dealer and they ordered the car to the factory with my specs (XE S, AWD, Tech Package, Black Package, and illuminated sill plates). I am taking delivery in two week and couldn't be happier thus far with the communication with my dealer and the progress of the production of the vehicle. I will post photos and more information when I take possession. The tech package is a preference thing, I really enjoy music so, with that I went with it, the fact that it comes with a complete TFT gauge cluster is a nice bonus.

Strangely enough my wife stated nearly the same thing, buy whatever you want, you only live once, and let's have some fun with this toy.

TBC

 

The order to arrival time will usually be around three months, that was my experience too.



My advice on buying the car is for you to print out your specific desired configuration from the Jaguar website. Start all your pricing conversations with 'I want to get a discount that at least matches the market average according to truecar.com".

Send it to three other close dealers besides your local, stating they will 'Have to really make it worth your while' to justify your choosing a dealer out of locale. Let them know you want to be at or below the average truecar.com discount in your area. Look it up by zip code, the dealer CANNOT argue the facts.

Get your best quote, and show it to your local dealer to match. usually the local dealers will go out of their way to match...especially if you say you're going to review them on Yelp either way. This makes dealers really nervous and sharpen thier pencils big-time!

I got $2500.00 under MSRP on a special order using this method.

Finally, start your first quote from your dealer by stating "Truecar says the price to ask for is $xxx.xx", and I am getting competitive bids from three other dealers besides you...." For instance, in my locale, truecar.com says the average discount from MSRP for the New XE was around $3500.00. Tell them you want to be under that.

Drives 'em nutz.

Be sure to check if the $1000.00 cash back offer is still going on.

Expect the dealer to say"we don't discount special orders", which is TOTAL BS. A special order car costs the dealr LESS vs stocked cars, as they don't have to hold inventory for any period of time on a special order.

 

Hi, would you mind telling me which dealer you were happy with in Chicago? Thanks!

 

Does Jaguar do European delivery or factory tour to see your car come off the line?

How much nicer are brakes on the S, beyond the paint? Brakes for me are the low point on the XE. Car is too sporty for just regular brakes (at least in v6).

 

Which dealer did you buy from?

I got mine from Elmhurst Jaguar. Did everything over email and text, it was super easy and they gave me a great price right off the bat.. exactly what I was asking for.

 

Unfortunately not. I talked to someone who worked for Jaguar USA for decades and they do not do that because they "drive on the other side of the road" and that would make too much of a hassle for foreign drivers.

You could always personally take a trip there and have a tour at your own expense...

I've been to BMW Welt in Munich and Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart; never to pick up a car however. Although if I was still in the market I would have been tempted to buy direct

 

Hello KC-

I purchased my from Hoffman Estates Jag. All custom and ordered from the factory.

I did reach out to Elmhurst Jag. They were very friendly, however being in sales I had my complete tactic up front for the sale, and there was just going to be too much back and forth with them. He was fair and up front, most communication was via e-mail, however a lot of discussions over the phone as well.

In the end I paid roughly 6% under MSRP or about $66 over invoice, so a killer deal.

The whole process was pretty painless and took less that 24hrs to complete deal. Do your homework and stand firm with your pricing is my suggestion. Any other questions please PM me.

 

Very cool. I know the people who work at Hoffman Estates, they are also nice, but they seem to be the more traditional type of sales people (I tried to get my friend into a Jaguar).

That's very good for an ordered car. I got around 9.5% discount on a car on the lot, it pretty much was perfect configuration (only 14 miles on it). I dealt with their internet sales people and had virtually no back and forth, I am guessing they just wanted to get rid of the car even though it is a sick spec.

Good to hear about other people getting good deals from local dealers

 

I would definitely consider getting the upgraded sound system and the moon roof everything else standard on the car is great , keyless entry is a good one to get as well , honestly , everything else they would offer you probably wont need .

 

On a note for the 2018 XE models the upgraded audio system seems only to be an option on the XE S model. I chose to add it as it adds a complete 12.1 TFT digital gauge cluster as in the XF models.

 

The adaptive cruise, heads up display, along with lane departure-collision prevention technologies are great on the Jag. Worth the expense.