Welcome to the forum Kerniki,

This is one of the best guides to all Jaguar models:

JAGUAR - All the Cars - Nigel Thorley
ISBN: 978-1-845848-10-1

Currently in the fourth edition published March 2016.

Graham

 

Kerniki, as a general rule, the changes happened in 2 year periods. You have the upgrade in 2013 that changed the drive train for the most part and saw the interior of the car see some changes. This was also a period where the back seat options became pretty difficult to find as I recall (ie, airline trays went away, reclining seats gone, etc when you got the XJL, but was still an option, but was not routinely gotten). Then you have a second wave of upgrades that happened in 2016. This mainly upgraded the exterior of the car (ie, led headlights, vent upgrades, etc). Not aware of too much in the way of interior changes that occurred during that time.

It seems like every year they had a slight twist on trim packages. In the early years, you pretty much had the base, supercharged, portfolio, and supersport. Then in 2014(?) they got rid of the supersport and went to the XJR again. I think it was about this same time that they also added the ultimate trim package with a lot of standardized interior equipment. Now you have the R- Sport (aka, the base), the portfolio, and the supercharged. With this being said, there are trim packages (for example the XJ575) that have some uniques to it that can only be gotten with certain other options (ie, the XJ575 has a 575 HP supercharged V8 with some trim options/colors that are only available with this). So, I would say that you need to look at a few years and do some specific research into that time frame. Jaguar is keeping the line perpetually changing and to summarize the changes would probably take a small book to do.

 

 

Kerniki, finding a light outside is going to pretty much leave you with either a white or silver car. No other colors are coming to mind that are light. So, keep that in mind.

I guess I can help with this a little by simply asking a few questions. Answering these will help you narrow things down rather quickly. The big one (for me atleast) is how much power do you want? The newer supercharged V6 makes a respectable 340 hp and is more than adequate to get the car down the road. Whereas, you also have the option of a supercharged V8. This is where things get really tricky in that the supercharged version makes 470 hp and when you get up into the supersport/XJR versions, the power can go as high as 550 hp. You get the XJ575 and now you are talking 575 hp. If you want a diesel variant, then that should be open to you based on where you live and that makes a respectable 275 hp. I have the naturally aspirated V8 (only available until 2012) which makes 385 hp. For me, that is enough power and the beauty of that motor is it makes lots of low end power. So, when you go to pass someone, the car just accelerates. No need for the car to downshift and get the motor racing up to some high RPM. Do not get me wrong, hearing the kitty roar is a thrill, but also leads to problems too with the local law. Just to add more twists to this, you also have the option of all wheel drive (AWD). You may find this a little limiting if this is a must have. This eliminates every V8 option. So, this forces you to either the diesel engine or the supercharged V6. This also forces you into a 2013 or newer vehicle.

The second question is how fancy you want the interior? The base/R-Sport are going to have more "generic" seats in that the seats are going to be all 1 color, the pin striping is going to be the same color, etc. Most interiors have a dual tone theme to them (ie, lighters seats with a darker carpet). You start stepping up in the trim class (ie, into the supercharged, Portfolio, Ultimate, etc), the seat options start grown exponentially. If buying new, you get one of the high level trims, you have a very wide selection to choose from.

The next question is whether you want the long version or the short version of the car (ie, XJ or XJL)? This may or may not be a concern to you. I see it this way: if it is going to be mainly you or you and your significant other, the XJ is going to be definitely an option as it will be easier to drive in town due to the shorter wheelbase (more on this in a moment). This also opens up your field some as you are not eliminating things per se. Where, if you are say a salesman and you know you are going to have people in the back seat a lot, going with the XJL is almost a no brainer. The difference between the XJ and XJL is that the XJL has 6 more inches (15 cm) of space in the rear seat footwell. While this doesn't sound like a lot, it makes a world of a difference. Does this mean that the XJ is not capable of handling 5 adults, by no means. You want to do it in style, the XJL will do it. The other benefit is that with the XJL, you get the option of airline trays and some other options specific to the rear seats that will not be available with the XJ. On a side note, the original XJ for this body style was the XJL. The XJ (ie, short version) is actually the modified version and has 6 inches (15 cm) cut out of it. This may or may not affect your decision but thought it might give you something to think about.

The final question is what options are "must haves"? You have things like the illumination package (ie, door sills are lit when you open a door). This is more common in the earlier cars and no so much in the later cars. You have the automatic cruise control (ACC). This will be tagged with the collision avoidance system in the later cars. Nice feature, but it can get packaged with other stuff and can drive the cost up (if this is a concern). Is having LED headlights a must? This would force you (for the most part, there are ways around it) into a 2016 vehicle or newer. Is having an outstanding sounding stereo a must? There are many discussions as to what was the better sounding system as the car has gone through a few versions over the years (if so, lots of information and opinions out there on this). This is where I would say going to the Jaguar website will give you an idea of what is currently available. This will also give you a general idea of what the car may cost you for the "perfect car". if you are looking used, check out a website called Edmunds (http://www.edmunds.com). There you can get into the older models and this will tend to have a lot of general information about the car. Where that site falls short is it won't tell you things like "you can't get the airline trays with the XJ model, only the XJL" or something like that. So, it may be a bit misleading in what you can and cannot get. Just keep in mind that what a lot of other cars consider their high end options is standard on this car. This is why I say to look and see what sort of things you must have and what would be "nice to haves". This will also help to narrow down the field as to what you are willing to look at and what just won't do what you want.

 

I have the non supercharged V8 and nothing's stood a chance at a green light. In dynamic mode it's supposed to be 0-100 in 5.7 seconds, while the supercharged literally sounds incredible, and I'm sure is an absolute beast of epic proportions, the difference is a mere .5-.7 seconds, so not even a full second difference. There's also aftermarket exhaust options if it's strictly the sound you're after.