in Bangalore. So when I was offered a drive in another Jaguar in the 50th anniversary year of the E-Type, I accepted like a shot. This drive took me to Bombay however and I'm glad I made the trip. This time however, it was one of Jaguar's regular saloons that costs a tad over Rs 80lakh – the XF.
The XF is a four-door sports saloon and one look at the car will prove that. My first impression of the XF has me thinking of how to describe the looks - cat, feline, and sleek are words that spring to mind immediately whether you look at it from the front, the rear, three-quarter angle or in profile. Yes, we know that is what cats are like but then this IS a Jag so it's rather apt. Anything with that kind of a coupe-like look has to be good in terms of the aerodynamic drag co-efficient and my thinking is borne by the figures – the XF has a drag coefficient of just 0.29 which is good with respect to wind noise, fuel consumption and high speed s stability. If there is one thing one has to marvel at it is British craftsmanship - the attention to detail & finish is superb, nay magnificent! The XF impresses, whether you look at the aggressive stance, the sweeping roof line or even the jewel-like detailing on the grille. Even if one takes the paint job, the attention to detail comes through – not many cars undergo a 24 hour, 15 stage process. Jaguars ARE about sheer luxury as well as sporty performance and the XF is a very good example of that.
Jaguar has three models in the XF range. The topper is the 510 PS XFR and there is also a 275 PS 3.0L diesel version, introduced in 2010. The car I opted for had the normally aspirated 5.0 Litre V8 Petrol AJ V8 GEN III petrol unit, developing 385bhp of power and 515Nm of torque, which allows it to do a zero to 100 kph time of just 5.7seconds, extremely impressive for a car that weighs 1780kgs. Talking about the dimensions, the XF is 4961mm long, 2053mm wide and 1460mm tall with a wheelbase of 2,909mm. 245/45 R18 Dunlop radials transfer the torque to the tarmac and play a large part in helping the XF be safe and agile on the road.