Jaguar XF SV8 4.2 Supercharged - opinions?
Right so my quest for a car continues, after considering MR2 as a stopgap and then deciding against it I now want to look at buying something in January. I was fixed on B8 S4 V6 with S-tronic but that is at least £23k or more and choice is very very limited. M3 4 door E92 with DCT is and option but again we're talking £25k+.... I like new Merc C class but there are no really exceptional engines in the range and C63 is a bit mental... So I started looking at Jags and in particular XF 4.2 SV8 auto. It van be had for £17k for 4 year old car with 50k on the clock. Any one on here has or had one?
On a side note I swore to never buy a diesel since switching to 2 litre turbocharged petrol but that XF 3.0 V6 diesel doesn't look too slow with only 0.8s difference in 0-60 times between it and 4.2 petrol.... Always wanted a V8 and I am not particularly fussed with fuel economy but maybe this diesel is a better choice?
Or should I forget it and go with Audi/Beemer/Merc?
Forget it. The later XFR with 5 lite supercharged is a far nicer engine and they also sorted out a number of quality and material issues that the SV8 had. You can get an SV8 for a fair bit less than that if you haggle and I was disappointed with how cramped the interior was for a car that is 5 metres long. The later Jag diesels are very good thoughOriginally Posted by mac83
You get a lovely CLS55 for around that money.
The 55k is a terrific engine.
Colin.
XFR would be nice but that starts from £30k up....
Several 2009 at Jaguar franchises listed on PistonHeads from £23k
As much as I love diesels for offroad, commuting and economical long distance haulage of people/goods, I really do not understand AT ALL why one would EVER consider one for a sporty car, less still for a sporty lúxury car.
A diesel is more effecient at lower loads but ceterus paribus is not a match in ány performance aspect but that, with the petrol one being quieter and lighter to boot, needing less crap to make it appear to be quiet and smooth.
Also any fuel saving is a jóke when compaired to the rest of the cost of ownership of a luxury grand tourer.
Just listen to a Honda V6 petrol engine running. Case closed.
Go drive one of the new generation Audi A6 diesels that do 0-60mph in 5.1 secs or the new BMW triple turbo diesels and they are very quick, refined and relatively frugal. Now I am as big a petrolhead as anyone and have to admit they are decent.
For a sporty luxury car you need at least 400bhp....................a V6 just won't get the job done right
You are missing the point by a mile.
A am not saying that moder diesel are crap or that a V8 is not smoother than a V6.
Yes, the modern diesel are nothing short of unbelievable in comparison with just a few years ago.
I ám writing that ´ceterus paribus´!!! a diesel burner simply is not as smooth, flexible, powerefull, light as a petrol burner. The different type of combustion inherently has different properties.
For a grand turismo the petrol engine is more befitting and those cars have a cost of ownwership in which the fuel cost difference is peanuts.
So back to the Jaguar XF, has anyone got first hand experience in comparison to BMW 3 series, Merc C class or Audi A4 platform?
I have the XF 3.0D, but chipped. I used to lust after the supercharged 5.0 litre, but really, this is ggod enough.
Not driven an xf but I owned an s type r a few years back and loved the thing. Get your head past the economy and enjoy the pace - ite like a cartoon car! Is fantastic and a real event.
For the money of an xfr have a look also at the Lexus ISF as they are low 20s too. Plus the V8 M3 will no doubt be nice, I had an e36 and e46 m3 and they were great. Also the e60 m5 would be thunderous...
Great headache to have!
Accomplished as performance diesels are these days, there's still no substitute for the sound of a V8.
And even moreso a V8 baseline accompanied by the whirr of the supercharger. They sound like jets when you are giving it the beans.
My S4 B8 may be up for sale after Xmas - 12 months old and less than 4k. Will be more than £23k though.. :)
I wanted the XFR but ended up buying the S4.
A multitude of reasons. S4 was more comfortable up front, had more room in the back, is a quattro and the other half found it easier to drive. The XFR was a bit more full on than the audi (it does have about 200 bhp more i think). Nevertheless the Audi is very quick.
Iirc servicing was significantly cheaper. They have just brought out a new version XFR I understand so there should be deals to be done.
The Audi is a great car. If i had any sense at all I would not be lusting after the XFR still..
right I thought I'll follow up on this for the benefit of others in the same position.
I test drove 2011 Jaguar XF 3.0d S V6 in portfolio spec. 275bhp version. First impressions? Car felt on the small side inside? Comfortable driving position was difficult for me to find and when I set seat eventually no one could have sat behind me. I am a tall guy, 6'3 but still, its not a problem in my Seat Leon now.
Toys wise car is a peach, all the toys you can think of it had which was nice but my biggest gripe was the way it drove. It simply didn't feel 275bhp quick. Either my 200bhp car is quicker than it should be or this was slower. It could have been the slush box auto gearbox that I wasn't used to as my car has DSG.
So unless I'd go for XFR I think Jag in diesel is a no go.
Yesterday on the other hand I test drove 2012 Audi S4 S-tronic with V6 supercharged petrol engine... and WOW! what a car! I was going to drive C class Merc and BMW's as well but I won't even bother, BMW it would have to be 4 door 335i with DCT or 4 door M3 with DCT and these are hard to find... Merc doesn't really have a contender apart from C63 and thats a bit too insane as a daily driver....
I cannot lie to myself about this, I'm a sucker for a turbo petrol engines and that V6 in S4 is just fantastic!!! So right now I need to find the right one in budget (as the one I drove was almost new and was about £10k more than I'd like to spend on it.
I have had many Jags over the years, including the supercharged ones. They are fabulous cars.
The main (and only) issue as far as I am concerned is the thirst. If you are doing low mileage, or fuel costs simply don't bother you, then go for it.
My last supercharged Jag was an S-Type R some years back - phenomenal straight line acceleration from any speed to any speed. But it did about 16.5mpg no matter how I drove. This meant that at current petrol prices a round trip to my sister, who lives 32 miles from me, would cost about £24 in petrol.
That, and the fact my daily round trip commute is 44 miles is the only reason I don't have an XKR right now.
So clever my foot fell off.
As you are not really fussed about fuel economy, don't look at a diesel.
As has been stated already petrol, V8, the sound of and all that..... but then, I'm a bit biased.
Yep, the Jag is surprisingly cramped for such a big car. The S4 is great to drive, just buy carefully as I'm not sure it will hold it's value that well and you can spend a LOT of money on options with these. I noticed some reviews have seen it down to 4.5 0-60 after it has run in
Well its sorted! Tomorrow I am picking up black Audi S4 with quite long list of extras. Its 2010 with 22k on the clock.
- black optics pack
- black leather super sport seats
- high tech pack
- stronic
- audi drive with damping control and steering control
- audi sports diff
- glass sunroof
- 19's all round
- audi approved with 1 year warranty, 2 year free servicing and 6 months road tax
It looks mint and I can't wait to drive it home from London to Edinburgh!!!
Nice work and welcome to the club! I'd seriously recommend a Milltek exhaust to give it the sound it should have had out of the factory - the black ceramic exhaust tips would look great with your black optics pack. Enjoy!
That sounds VERY nice - let us know how it goes
Was also going to second a cls55 amg, but the s4 is a fine choice!
Well I picked up the car on Saturday and drove it over 350 miles up to Edinburgh. Its AMAZING!
looks new inside and out and specs list is even more impressive than I thought!
Things I didn't know it had for example
- heated front and rear seats
- hold assist (very nice with automatic gearbox)
- keyless entry and go
- carbon fibre inlays
On the way up didn't gun it as it was dark and I was still a bit intimidated by it so managed a respectable 27.4 MPG, 2 days driving around town and I see it will be less but who cares if it looks, sounds and drives that good!!!
I am so happy I didn't go for an easy option of buying locally and made an effort to find the right one with good options even if it was at the other end of the country.
Many congrats - that looks lovely.
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