Big Cats’ double cream
We own a 2008 dark blue metallic convertible Jaguar XK 4.2 and it is sublime; the problem has always been how we might ever replace it with anything better for the money.
It cost us £30,000 at two years
old with 20,000 miles on the clock. Perfection, and it is used every day. It is even economical on a long run: Scotland and back, more than 1000 miles, at 33.2mpg.
But finally, we fell in love again – a Jaguar F-type 5.0-litre V8 R Coupe in Italian racing red with panoramic roof, three years old, 16,000 miles at £53,000 and on silver 19in rims.
What a beast. We alternate cars and the two hand out contrasting pleasures, from limo to lairy lout, lazy cruiser to hairy bruiser.
But big surprise: the F-type managed a near-identical 33.4mpg average on our last trip to Scotland and proved to be a quiet, refined companion on the motorway. And guess what: everywhere we park, people want to know what it is – they usually say ‘Aston’ – and comment on what a gorgeous looking thing it is!
So I don’t think that looks are Jaguar’s problem – BMW, Mercedes and Audi are no paragons when it comes to exterior design. It is brand ‘image’ (old man’s car still sticks) and long-term marketing. Jaguar still needs 10 more years of catch-up – let’s hope that Tata can afford it.
Maybe we could do with an Alpine A110 as a companion? We’ll see. David and Kathy Moore
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