New Jaguar XF is prestige at its best

They say that you should never meet your heroes, but that mattered little when I met one of mine at the launch of the new Jaguar XF in Pamplona, Spain last week.

Ian Callum is the Design Director at Jaguar and his passion for the brand and for cars makes him a true giant in the industry, and in my books too.

His latest Jaguar is another outstanding one and while it is a challenger to the BMW 5-Series, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class and the Audi A6, there is something quite different about it compared to those and others in that bracket. It is those differences that make it a unique model in the prestige segment, ready to fight for its share of a market where luxury and smoothness take centre stage for wealthy and the business customer.

Compared to the outgoing model that first appeared in 2008, this new car is lighter, more powerful and more aerodynamic. It will also be available with the latest technology and things that we have never seen in a car of this type ever before. Add the luxury for which Jaguar are renowned plus new, more efficient engines with lower consumption and lower CO2 emissions and you have a car that will surely rattle a few cages in the big German car makers’ headquarters.

Jaguar took us to the Formula 1 standard Navara Racing Circuit to demonstrate that a car of its size can still be nimble and have the power to set impressive lap times. That confidence was rewarded by the sheer agility of the XF and the pace of the car at full tilt. The electric power steering and the suspension set-up of the car were both highlights around the track. Added to that, the performance of the car on the open roads around the Spanish hills marks it down as another victory for Callum and his team.

“I believe the all-new XF is the best looking car in its class. Elegant, handsome and with proportions that imbue a great sense of integrity – the all-new XF is true to the great tradition of sporting Jaguar saloons while being completely of its time,” said Callum at the launch.

“The all-new XF has a clear sense of calm and strength, both outside and inside – and I’m proud of my team for delivering that,” he added.

The XF sits at the very heart of Jaguar; the original XF was the car that re-ignited the brand back in 2008 when selling cars of this size was both difficult and frowned upon in some quarters. That was at the depth of the recession, but now that things are looking up ,the timing of the launch could not be better. It will arrive in Irish showrooms in mid October and while the price has yet to be announced, we expect that it will have a price tag similar to the outgoing model; somewhere around €44,000 for the basic model with a two-litre engine.

In Ireland there will be S, SE, XF Prestige, XF R-Sport and XF Portfolio specifications with  2.0-litre four-cylinder diesels rated at 163PS/380Nm and 180PS/430Nm respectively, both available with six-speed manual and eight-speed automatic transmissions.

There are a handful of iconic car designers in the world and for years I have been a fan of what Callum has done down through the years with Jaguar. Meeting and chatting with him was a genuine privilege.

This unassuming Scotsman who could be bracketed, by looks alone, with Van Morrison and Christy Moore has his thumbprint is all over this car. His enthusiasm and passion for car is infectious and long may his pencil have enough lead in it to sketch and produce more cars like the XF.