JAGUAR | New technology combined with the usual luxury
While the XJ 3.0L AWD offers a lot of new technology, one thing that hasn’t changed is the luxuriousness for which Jaguar is known.
The exterior styling is quite easy on the eyes and defined by the XJ’s “face,” as they call it, which is complemented by the nice mesh grille and headlight design.
The l ower half of the car exudes a sporty design, while the upper half is much sleeker and elegant in terms of its lines.
It is easy to understand the attraction many have to this model. That feeling is further enhanced on the inside, with top-notch materials throughout, plenty of wood and a mix of modern touches (the fully digital “virtual” gauge cluster) and more traditional elements (analog clock in the centre stack).
The panoramic sunroof allows the cabin to be flooded with interior light, and there is plenty of legroom in the back seat of the XJ — and even more in the Portfolio version, which was my ride back toward Montreal with a few passengers in tow. Not one complained about being cramped back there.
The controls in the XJ are well thought out and are simple to operate, much of which can be done via the eight-inch LCD screen atop the centre stack — think climate control, audio, communications and navigation system.
Jaguar engineers have managed to create a very quiet passenger cabin, which could explain why the three passengers I was driving with all fell asleep while I was behind the wheel. It’s either that, or I am a boring driver.
I am going to stand by my opinion that the quiet cabin, as well as a myriad of technologies that keep the ride as smooth as possible, are to blame for their sweet dreams.
And the Jaguar XJ is something many drivers will be dreaming about. For a few hours recently, I was able to live that dream. It’s too bad someone had to pinch me and wake me up.