Faults:

Gas filler door jammed. Otherwise it has been flawless.

General Comments:

I replaced a Mercedes E55 AMG with this car, and have never looked back. Its acceleration is equally breath taking, and the handling is more refined and responsive. I always pick my cars for their performance, quality and comfort, and this one has excelled in all three. The ride is a bit on the firm side, but not uncomfortable in the least. The seats are extremely comfortable, and all controls and functions are readily accessible and logically arranged. The quality of the materials used is first rate.

If I had to pick the one thing that I love above all else on this car, it would be the silky smooth transmission. It was that one factor that put my previous and the then current AMG to shame. Shifts are prompt, crisp and virtually seamless. A quick squeeze of the well located paddle shifters simply puts you in the next gear. I had never owned an automatic before the AMG, and only changed because of the great strides that have made in shiftable automatics. Well the Jaguar takes that art one step farther. I would have preferred 6 gears that became available in the next year, but the 5 on this model serve it well. This transmission, coupled with the XF's well-balanced suspension and pulse quickening engine, make it an absolute dream to drive.

If I were to quibble, I do miss somewhat the more substantial feel of the Mercedes, but that is a small price to pay for the other virtues of this exquisite feline. I simply have yet to find anything better for even 50% more than the price.

Faults:

No faults so far.

General Comments:

Bought to replace a 2006 535d M Sport, which I was really happy with.

The interior is in a different league to the BMW's. No more bland grey plastic, lovely materials, first class comfort, and lots of lovely toys to play with. Novelty items such as the rollback vents, heartbeat start button and pop up gear selector are the initial attractors, but the deeper qualities of the seats, driving position, equipment levels and sheer refinement go deeper. A lovely place to be. The Bowers and Wilkins sound system is breathtaking, too.

If BMW need to understand in a nutshell why they should ditch those ridiculous runflat tyres, they should sample the Jag's much more supple ride, and greater resistance to tramlining, particularly under heavy braking. The XF is no soggy limo, make no mistake. The ride is on the firm side, but it never thumps or crashes like the BMW used to, and there is much less road noise. I daresay on the outer limits of handling on a circuit, the BMW is probably a tad more agile, but on the road, there's nothing in it.

The twin turbo V6 diesel seems to lack the BMW engine's sheer muscle in terms of feel, but on paper is 6/10 of a second quicker to 60. I'm not sure I actually believe that given the power to weight ratio is actually inferior to the BMW's, but I can say it never feels underpowered. Jaguar have built a corker of an engine. It's all but silent when cruising, but has a lovely V6 growl when revved. The autobox is well matched, and changes are smooth and seamless. It gives me around 37 mpg in mixed driving, compared with the slightly more efficient 39 mpg from the BMW.

As you can probably gather, I am smitten with this car. It's been a long time coming, but at last a car which competes on equal terms with the best Germany can produce. The 5 is long in the tooth now, and its replacement is bound to be better, but comparing like for like, today, and purely on merit, I can't see anyone other than a die hard BMW fan walking away from the Jag.