Sprint Reviews

ENG

What you need to know: The XE is Jaguar’s latest attempt to stir up that German pot of 3Series, A4 and C-class. With new technology and Jaguar’s stunning design, XE should stand a better chance than its predecessor. If it weren’t for that annoying exchange rate…

Prices are hardly competitive but in this second test of an XE we came away impressed yet again. It’s as stylish and feels as special as a Jaguar should. Space isn’t that great at the rear (ditto for the rivals) but comfort and luxury are top class. Even this R-sport model has a reasonably pliant ride.

Some facts: Choose between three engines, a 2-litre turbopetrol (177kw) or this turbodiesel (132kw) and a 250kw 3- litre supercharged petrol V6. Depending on model, Jaguar offers you a six-speed manual or an eight- speed automatic gearbox and up to five design and trim lines.

This XE 20d R-sport model costs about N$730,000 with a full maintenance plan. The auto’box is included, as are sporty add- ons, split rear seats, climate control, Marie Biscuit spare wheel, rain sensor, (front) power seats, start/ stop system, keyless start and fancy touch-screen infotainment system with Bluetooth.

Where we went: To be honest, not very far. This test car arrived in a flurry of other cars, flights and visitors, so we barely clocked up triple digit mileage in the process. At least we subjected it to city commuting and a bit of highway driving; which it absolved with absolute ease and relative comfort.

The engine is a bit noisy on idle and at full chat, the lower and harder Sport kit begs caution over speed bumps but other than that, this XE glides along serenely.

Performance testing yielded 0-100km/h in 8.6 seconds, incredible brakes and lenient ESP which even allowed the odd tail wag.

Watch out for: Besides the initial purchase price and depreciation, dealer count is rather poor. We only picked fights with the Jaguar voice command and found the rear visibility poor; make sure you specify the optional reversing camera. As per usual, we did not achieve the claimed fuel consumption ( 5.1L/ 100km) but 7-8 should be possible.

Why you’ll want one: The swivelling heads of strangers, those smudge marks on the driver window and occasional chit-chats with fellow Jaguar owners.

That’s because this car is quite rare without looking silly or overly ostentatious – quite the opposite, it radiates beauty and sophistication.