Jaguar has released details about its S-type replacement, the XF. In July, Jag only shifted a little over a thousand cars in the US market. BMW sold 28,000 in the same month.
When I saw the exterior, I was a little disappointed. The front reminds me of a Buick concept car from the '90’s. In its defence, the rear does look like an Aston Martin, which is not a bad thing. Then, I saw the interior. Wow. An interior this clean really raises the stakes on everyone. Note the concealed air vents and the knob controlled automatic tranny. Very nicely done.
I hope that Jag comes to my local autoshow this year, and I’m hoping that they leave the doors open. Anyone shopping for a E-class or 5 series might be tempted to drive a Jag after seeing the inside of this car.
Yes that’s quite a departure from where they were, but I was also a little disappointed with the grill. It seems that they wanted a total change, but was too afraid to take that full step.
The grill is also that one thing which I thought looks weird. It’s not cohesive with the rest of the car.
On the other hand, I think Jaguar has indeed succeeded in offering a fresh option(design wise) in the market of lux sedans.
interior is nice, outside…blah dont say jag to me at all, take the badge off and its a lexus, buick, well almost anything. BMW did a great job in retaing some iconic design features so when you saw it you knew it was a bimmer.
defintel no jag DNA here. looks very GM/monte carlo/anonymous US crap.
aston rear looks OK,but thats about it. im a sucker for the classics, and comparing this to any of the previous 60s/70s/80s jags just doesnt have the same feel of jag in luxury/exclusivity/marque.
Agree about the exterior, but I’m not feeling any love for the interior either. Reminds me of a 70s American car- all it needs is a linear speedometer. And that rotary shifter is a gimmick. There’s nothing about the act of selecting a gear that lends itself to a rotary knob.
wells its been a slow death. all downhill since owned by Ford in 89 if not sooner. The brand name “jaguar” I think now has less cache to than Honda. Trying to picture a typical jag owner now has pretty much zero meaning, which to me is a good indicator of brand washout. These new cars certainly dont add anything…
I do like a lot of the older jags and its a pity to see good potential wasted. Oh well, there’s always Rover. Oh wait, they’re crap too.
I really like the lines. They resolve well. I thought that the surfaces have a lot of tension. I like the way that the side chamfer resolves into the front openings on the fascia. I really like it.
Oddly enough I wasnt as excited about the interior. The front grill looks cool. I t would have been pretty shocking if the concept had not been presaged by the C-XF. I think that it is a good change of direction personally.
I am with you on both opinions. It stikes me as odd that with the almost unlimited forms that head lights can take now they are all pretty much the same…sad.
It’s too bad that Ford is selling Jag, I can really see the brand making a come back. Just…not with this car.
Scott Bennett: I agree, a tranny does not need a rotary dial. However, we are in the days of iDrive now. A lot of luxury brand buyers expect useless technology, this is a good example. I have to say though, the dial fights with Jag DNA. Remember the old J-gate shifter?
