The loaner car while the XF is in shop is a turbo diesel XE. I had this same loaner the last time the XF was in for service, and all the bad things I said about it: forget them. It seemed slower thsn the XF; I turned off traction control which is the magic sports car switch. It feels comparable to or quicker than the XF. Handling is comparable. Stiffer springs, and rougher ride. Of course being several hundred pounds lighter I would expect that. Still too small a backseat to consider as an alternative to the XF, but still a great car if your kids are still small.
Just a bit more: Unlike the XF it has an instantaneous mileage display, which is mostly of no value, except to remind you to stop having so much fun! This is a turbocharged 2.0 liter four-cylinder, but it rips and snorts far better than you might expect. The user interface is definitely different from the XF. Not sure that I like it. Trying to make a phone call was harder than it should have been.
It also has tire pressure display. The XF tells you when a tire is low but having individual displays (like the Corvette had) is more information. Curiously, it showed 48 psi, which might explain the handling. You may recall a character in Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas who explains he pumps up the rental car's tires to 100 psi, "so it will corner like a Luts Elite."
I've never driven a Jag, but I test drove a Mercedes GLK250 two years ago, and there was nothing to complain about in a 2.0 TDI's power output, even in the almost-a-thousand-pounds-heavier GLK.
ReplyDeleteDiesel has strange powers.