Hello! I'm new here and I'm looking for some help. I am contemplating getting a '15/'16 XJ with the V6 and wanted to know how the acceleration is. I test drove a '18 XJ R-Sport and noticed that when I pushed hard on the accelerator there was a bit of hesitation before getting the strong acceleration going. When I mentioned this to the salesrep he said that the JX has a supercharger in it and unlike a turbo charger where it has to spool up, the XJ will learn from how I use the vehicle and that the time from the pedal down to the acceleration will diminish and ultimately get to where I want - I push down the car responds and go quick!
This is a pretty big issue for me as my driving style is to take off fast and then get to cruising speed. I've currently got an '08 Infiniti G35x that has great acceleration and I wouldn't want to go without that.

Is what the salesman told me correct? Will the XJ get faster with pedal down to acceleration?

Thanks!

 

Hmm.... Most modern cars have adaptive learning. But usually they are faster until they learn your styles. In fact, if you clear the "learning" memory on most cars it will restore it to factory settings which generally are "faster" since they want you to experience ultimate performance before the learning garbage resets everything to fuel efficient BS. I have never heard of any car getting better with use. That said, if you drive in "S" and "red" mode I think you will be very happy.

 

Thanks for the reply! When my sales rep gets back from vacation I think I'll talk with him and see about doing a test drive with him and see what we can do to get the performance I'm looking for. This was just a test drive with my wife and no specific knowledge of the XJ, drive modes for it, etc. I originally went there to look at an XF but fell a bit in love with the interior (and exterior) of the XJ when I failed to talk my wife into even considering the F-Type...!

 

This is one of the few cars I have driven where you aren't guessing if putting it in "S" made any difference. It literally is another car in "S" (and Dynamic) mode.

 

i LOVE how our cars behave in S mode. It holds the gear soooo long, its fantastic. Its so much better than my W219 CLS63. Even in Sport, it still felt like its main priority was saving me gas. The Jag does not seem to care about that at all.

That being said, i do hate all learning transmissions and wish we could go back to the old way, where I learned the transmission, not the other way around.

 

Sounds like I should go check out the XJ again and try it is "S"/Dynamic mode. Might just have to do that after work today (heck with waiting!)

 

They are actually 2 different modes. Just want to make sure you go into both.

S mode is for the shifter. Turn the stupid knob all the way to S. That holds the gear longer and quickens and sharpens up/down shifts. It also lets you hold the gear when using the paddles instead of it automatically going back.
Dynamic mode is a button with a checkered flag on the center console by the parking brake. It firms up the suspension, quickens throttle response, and i think the steering might get heavier too but im not positive of that. You gotta hold it for a second or 2 for it to change modes, and the dash display lights up red instead of blue.

Like JagGate said, it really does transform the car. Smoking the tires is pretty easy.

 

That's exciting - thanks for the detailed explanation!

 

Okay - I test drove the '18 XJ R-Sport last night and I put it in "s" mode and turned on dynamic mode. The ride was excellent! Acceleration was spot on and the handling was far more sporty which is exactly what I want (combined with the luxury fit and finish of the interior).

Now to understand the specific differences between a '15/16 R-Sport and XJL (as the R-Sport didn't have a lot of legroom...)

 

 

Well, this is generally true past break-in. However, as you drive a new car from 0 km it will get slightly better. It is important to not hammer it in the first couple K, it is also important to vary RPMs. About two worst things you could do to a new car are take it drag racing or only cruise control it on highways. Variable RPM, variable throttle input, stay out of red line and change your engine oil for the first time very early.

 

Supercharged engines also require certain minimum RPM to deliver boost (and power), but it isn't nearly as bad as turbo that use exhaust. My car has the same AJ V6 engine and there is absolutely no lag in power delivery but there is very noticeable lack of oomph at below 2K rpm. Fortunately, there is an easy solution - just keep RPMs up.

My guess is that what you experienced is an artifact of automatic transmission trying to optimize fuel economy. Try putting it into sports/performance mode or use paddle shifters.

 

putting the transmission is S just keeps it in a lower gear (to help with acceleration)
putting the car in dynamic mode makes the gas pedal more sensitive (making it feel like you're going faster, but doesnt really make u faster)

in all fairness the 3.0 V6 is not all that fast, especially considering its on a bigger car. I too once had an 08 G35x....great car, probably equal performance considering engine/weight. the Jag might have more torque since its SC'ed

 

Ooh - this sounds nice. What does something like this entail doing? I've never done anything with my cars other than what they come with so this is new territory for me. The car I'm looking at is certified so how would something like this affect the warranty? Faster 0-60 (which is where I really enjoy a car) and more HP would definitely make a difference for me. I really wish I could look at an XJ with a bigger engine, but AWD is a requirement for me so the V6 is my only choice.

Thanks!

 

Your experience with the same car I have really helps reinforce what I was guessing at performance-wise based on my test drives of 2 XJ's (one R-Sport and the other XJL).

 

Go with VAP tuning, they deliver dyno-proven tunes and have large install base with F-types. While you can go nuts with mods, most of the easy gains will be SC pulley and tune. Headers, exhaust, intake... they help you make gains, but are not cost-effective. F-type members with VAP tune and pulley reliably hit 420hp or more out of SC AJ 6-cylinder engine.

Generally, there are two downsides to tuning - bad tune can damage your engine, any tune will void engine warranty. Upside is that it is easy to unlock power as Jaguar detunes their engines.

Side benefit, you can also ask for F-type style pops and growls to be added to your car.

Here is link to a VAP thread:
https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/f...8s-v8r-158091/

 

 

ugh, that badge

 

There's a lot of torque management that goes on with modern cars. Are you sure it wasn't that you could feel?