Test drove a 2012 Jaguar XF with the 5.0L V8 - twice. Looking to buy one when my fiancee and I move to our new house in Florida next year. Trading in the BMW for it - since the Bimmer is an AWD coupe, we won't need it down there and resale value is higher in NYC than Florida. I love this Jag, I truly do. It is solid, and it handles extremely well. The steering response is surprisingly tight and very responsive. I was absolutely stunned, actually, at how responsive the steering was - easily more responsive than that of my Audi.
Body roll is very, very composed - hardly a tilt while taking a tight-ish twist at 50MPH. The interior is extremely inviting, the steering wheel has the right feel, the right size, and the right thickness. The transmission in Sport mode, when operated with the paddles, feels like a bolt-action rifle with every shift - instantaneous for a torque-converter gearbox, stupendously fast and punchy, much like a dual clutch. Pulling back the paddles for every shift gets very addictive very fast. This car is the definition of a wolf in sheep's clothing. Or should it be a jaguar in sheep's clothing? You get the point.
That growling V8 roars in the front, and the exhaust does its best to subdue and muffle that noise, as does the insulated cabin...but it can't hide a lot of that roar, and thank God for that. The noise this 5-liter V8 makes is seductive and absolutely giggle worthy. V8s like this always manage to get huge laughs out of me because of the sounds they make, and I love them for it - it's naturally aspirated, no frills, no bullshit, just smooth and linear power. Last time I giggled driving a V8 was a 2010 Aston Martin V8 Vantage a few years ago. The Jaguar does practically everything right, from the inviting interior, to the dynamics of the lightweight aluminum chassis, to the steering feel, the motor, the noises, the transmission, those gorgeous, tried-and-true Ian Callum dimensions front-to-back make this a Jag that our parents always lusted over in the 60s, 70s and even 80s. This is the Jaguar that was balsy enough to go and develop a 200MPH supercar to compete with Ferrari...and I can't wait to say I own one in the coming months.
If I had any negatives to state, I'd say that perhaps the touchscreen (which is quite colorful and responsive) is a bit too small. Moreover, when the backup camera engages and the sun is blasting directly on the screen, it washes the entire picture out. Fortunately, the car comes equipped with parking sensors all around as standard, so in the event that your screen is washed out from direct sunlight, parking the car is still a breeze as the view all around from every angle is very clear and the sensors work superbly well to aid you. Also, the cupholder doors are rather plasticky and feel a bit on the cheap side. And because this is a RWD car, the tunnel for the driveshaft to run through gives the backseats a hump right in the center, which seems to minimize space just a tad. Still, interior room seemed more grand than a Merc E-Class, and about on par with the Audi A6 and 5-series.
At $52K loaded with everything you need out of the box, if Jaguar offered the XF with AWD earlier, I wouldn't be leasing a 2012 Supercharged A6 right now, I'd have gotten this instead. Yes, I prefer the Jaguar over the Audi - even if it's just by a hair. But with my move to Florida underway, I'll get my chance to own the Jag in the near future and I'm ecstatic.
