Jaguar XF 3.0S Portfolio

[tvron]

Just picked up XF with Red Zone interior(bought unseen)-First impressions very good-great interior and good drive-replaces company five series and Jag so much smoother and nicer to drive and although different to XKR promises to be a good commuting car

[Triple7]

What colour is the exterior?

She is a lovely car, so congrats.

[tvron]

Ultimate black with aero kit and volans smoked wheels-really looks good

[JNW1]

Appreciate it's still early days but what do you think of the XF? A change of job means I'm now doing a lot more miles and the performance/economy of a diesel (40mpg?) together with the chassis of the Jag appeals. Wasn't looking for a car that big initially (currently in an E46 M3 and was thinking of a 335d coupe to replace it) but it looks like a used XF with the more powerful diesel engine could be available at a similar price to the BMW in which case it might just be worth a look...

[tvron]

So far very impressed with XF.Very comfortable and handles well and does not feel big-on my daily commute I am getting 35mpg (Essex to East London daily) I feel 40 would be possible on a run keeping speed sensible but could dip lower if all of considerable performance used.Engine for a diesel is very smooth.After 5 Series BMW car is a pleasure to drive

[mph]

JNW1 said:

Appreciate it's still early days but what do you think of the XF? A change of job means I'm now doing a lot more miles and the performance/economy of a diesel (40mpg?) together with the chassis of the Jag appeals. Wasn't looking for a car that big initially (currently in an E46 M3 and was thinking of a 335d coupe to replace it) but it looks like a used XF with the more powerful diesel engine could be available at a similar price to the BMW in which case it might just be worth a look...

I drove both and bought the XF. Fantastic car and way better than the BM in my opinion. I never managed more than 35mpg overall though.

[steve-p]

JNW1 said:

Appreciate it's still early days but what do you think of the XF? A change of job means I'm now doing a lot more miles and the performance/economy of a diesel (40mpg?) together with the chassis of the Jag appeals. Wasn't looking for a car that big initially (currently in an E46 M3 and was thinking of a 335d coupe to replace it) but it looks like a used XF with the more powerful diesel engine could be available at a similar price to the BMW in which case it might just be worth a look...

I would advise getting a long test drive before seriously considering a 335d, because the effects of wooden run-flat tyres and eco measures like electric power steering may not meet your expectations of the BMW brand, they certainly didn't meet mine. I had a 330d M Sport coupe for a while and it was the most disappointing car I've owned for very a long time. Terrible ride quality, unpredictable handling on bumpy roads and lifeless steering put me totally off BMW now, despite having had some really good ones in the past. Given the choice, I would take the XF every time, or maybe look at the C class for a smaller alternative.

[JNW1]

Thanks to all who responded to my question!

I actually had a drive in an XF diesel S last weekend and was very impressed; unfortunately the test drive route didn't really allow me to gauge the performance but the car was smooth and refined and would certainly help take the stress out of long journeys. The only downside is that to get the spec I want I think I'd have to go with the Portfolio trim (I'd really like xenons) and come relatively new (the demo car had excellent sports seats but I understand they only became standard quite recently and not many cars had them fitted when they were an option). I think that means I'd have to spend around £35k to get the spec I want and, while I could stretch to that, I'm not sure I want to. I was hoping to stick with something starting with a 2 and I know I can get the sort of age and mileage 335d I'd be after for mid-20's; in contrast, I think a Jag would be at least 20% more so the question is whether that's worth it to me!

I do take on board the comments on the ride of the 335d on run flats and if I went that route they would get ditched very quickly; I think a lot of BMW owners have changed to normal tyres and experienced a huge improvement in ride quality as a result (don't think it will ever be XF quality though!).

The comment about a 330d being a disappointment also strikes a chord; I had a 330cd prior to getting my M3 CS and suffice to say I never got on with it (and if I'm honest that's something that makes me slighty nervous about having a diesel as my only car again). Perhaps I should just keep the M3 and get an Insignia or Mondeo for trundling around motorways during the week? Decisions, decisions.....!

[tvron]

You are not really at like for like-XF is much roomier than 3 series and better than Five series I had before for room (better boot etc)
The XF really is a good car and is the fourth Jag I have purchased *(I also have 5.0Ltr XKR Convertible) and I just find driving Jaguars a good experience something you cannot quantify whether you are just driving normally or briskly the car seems to respond to your mood

[tvron]

You are not really at like for like-XF is much roomier than 3 series and better than Five series I had before for room (better boot etc)
The XF really is a good car and is the fourth Jag I have purchased *(I also have 5.0Ltr XKR Convertible) and I just find driving Jaguars a good experience something you cannot quantify whether you are just driving normally or briskly the car seems to respond to your mood

[steve-p]

JNW1 said:

Perhaps I should just keep the M3 and get an Insignia or Mondeo for trundling around motorways during the week? Decisions, decisions.....!

Well that might be a good choice in your position because although it's nice to drive something good everyday, if it's mainly just racking up the miles, then a cheaper commuting car with a proper car for weekends makes a lot of sense.

[JNW1]

steve-p said:

Well that might be a good choice in your position because although it's nice to drive something good everyday, if it's mainly just racking up the miles, then a cheaper commuting car with a proper car for weekends makes a lot of sense.

I keep having mood swings on the two car scenario! I think I'll now be doing about 25k miles a year and I reckon that will just trash the value of a £30k+ car regardless of what make it is. Therefore, from a financial point of view a repmobile for less than half the price makes sense; not as good but adequate at a much lower cost. That's the accountant talking but the counter to that is if you're doing loads of miles that's actually when you want to be in a nice car; I also have a fear that the M3 could end-up hardly ever getting used as if I'm doing loads of miles in the week possibly the last thing I'll want to do is go out driving at a weekend!

Back to the Jag and I discovered today that one of my new work colleagues has an XF with the diesel S engine. He rates the car very highly but interestingly his one disappointment is the fuel consumption; he says he's only getting about 33mpg overall and that includes a reasonable amount of long runs. That figure's not dissimilar to the 35mpg mentioned earlier on this thread so my tentative conclusion is that perhaps the diesel XF's don't make the combined mpg figure unless driven very gently? I know some would say that applies to all cars but I've beaten the combined figure for the M3 by a good 10% ever since I've had it and I certainly don't drive like a granny all the time to achieve it! In truth, if I was going for an oil burner I'd want better than low to mid 30's (I reckon a 335i petrol would do that!) so reluctantly I'm thinking I need to rule the Jag out; shame given it's such a nice car in so many ways but the combination of high purchase price and indifferent economy doesn't appeal even though the excellent chassis certainly does! Think (hope) I'll have a Jag one day but suspect it may be an XKR rather than an XF diesel!

[steve-p]

I've had a couple of loan XF 3.0S for a few days and I got 38 both times, and when I had the (manual) 330d it was only doing 40 with the same usage, so not much in it for me. I have only averaged 18.8 in the XKR though so don't get one of those for doing high mileage

[JNW1]

steve-p said:

I've had a couple of loan XF 3.0S for a few days and I got 38 both times, and when I had the (manual) 330d it was only doing 40 with the same usage, so not much in it for me. I have only averaged 18.8 in the XKR though so don't get one of those for doing high mileage

I was going to say thanks for that but actually you may have just complicated the decision by bringing something back into the equation that I'd just about ruled out! Have to say there was a real feel good factor about the Jag and there was a certain "rightness" to how it drove; that probably sounds a bit stupid but the car just flowed along and almost seemed oblivious to the road surface - very sorted and very relaxing!

Don't worry, though, I won't be going for an XKR just yet given the mileage I'm doing; however, if they have the same quality of chassis together with a good petrol engine they must be very nice to drive!

[mph]

As posted earlier - I owned an XF 3.0S Portfolio and did around 12k miles in it. It was a fantastic car and being a diesel was definately no drawback in the performance stakes. Over the 12k miles I acheived around 35mpg on a mixture of driving which is well below the official figures of 40mpg (as I recall)

Prior to that I owned an Audi A5 3.0 diesel. Over the same mileage (12k) and the same driving routes it acheived 40mpg which was spot on the official consumption.

The fuel consumption was the only slight negative on the Jag. I drove a BMW 3 series diesel coupe and a Merc E class diesel coupe when I was looking for a replacement for the Jag They weren't in the same league in my opinion.

The XF is a fantastic car and I would have had another - but I fancied a change to something smaller.
I agree with an earlier poster - I was seriously underwhelmed by the BMW.

[JNW1]

mph said:

As posted earlier - I owned an XF 3.0S Portfolio and did around 12k miles in it. It was a fantastic car and being a diesel was definately no drawback in the performance stakes. Over the 12k miles I acheived around 35mpg on a mixture of driving which is well below the official figures of 40mpg (as I recall)

Prior to that I owned an Audi A5 3.0 diesel. Over the same mileage (12k) and the same driving routes it acheived 40mpg which was spot on the official consumption.

The fuel consumption was the only slight negative on the Jag. I drove a BMW 3 series diesel coupe and a Merc E class diesel coupe when I was looking for a replacement for the Jag They weren't in the same league in my opinion.

The XF is a fantastic car and I would have had another - but I fancied a change to something smaller.
I agree with an earlier poster - I was seriously underwhelmed by the BMW.

Thanks for that mph. Much as I love my M3 CS, I have to admit that the 330Cd it replaced was a major disappointment; I never really felt at one with it and the ride was poor on anything other than a very smooth road (even expansion joints on motorways could upset it). Therefore, think I'd need to have a decent run in a 335d before buying; out of interest, what did you downsize to when you sold the XF?

[mph]

JNW1 said:

Thanks for that mph. Much as I love my M3 CS, I have to admit that the 330Cd it replaced was a major disappointment; I never really felt at one with it and the ride was poor on anything other than a very smooth road (even expansion joints on motorways could upset it). Therefore, think I'd need to have a decent run in a 335d before buying; out of interest, what did you downsize to when you sold the XF?

I'm forever changing cars and I usually prefer to go for something completely different to avoid direct comparison.... I bought a VW Scirocco type R. I liked this car, it had decent performance and felt well screwed together. I've since traded for a Boxster S with the intention of buying a cheaper saloon runaround as well for the winter.

I have a nice old Jaguar XJ6 which I'm using through the summer when I need a four seater.

I haven't given up on BMW's but I've generally been disappointed with recent ones. I owned a 650i for a very short while and didn't like it much at all. Also had a previous generation 330 coupe a few years back - decent car but never made much of an impression on me.

I think you would enjoy an XF,and as you do a lot of miles why not enjoy the car you're doing them in ?