Jaguar XF Sportbrake (2012 - 2015) 2.2d Premium Luxury 5d Auto Owner Review

Everything about owning this car is a joy. It's a real taste of luxury, whilst being surprisingly economical to run. It has very elegant lines inside and out and it's British to boot. I think it does everything the BMW 5-Series or Mercedes E-Class estates can, but they just don't compete on looks and style and it's just that little bit more individual as well. A great driving experience. Everyone loves just to look at it and even better to go for a drive in it. I particularly wanted this model for towing my new twin axle caravan (whilst not being a 4WD/SUV fan) and wow it delivers so well on that front also. Very stable, plenty of diesel grunt, rear wheel drive so weight is on the driven wheels, self levelling suspension etc. I had a Jaguar approved Witter detachable tow bar fitted with it's own electronic control unit which talks to the engine management computer and adjust settings, power delivery, gear change timing - just amazing and well worth the extra cost. An unexpected bonus is I can clearly see the tow ball from the XF's reversing camera, so it's really easy to line up the hitch on my own without getting out of the car (other than to do the final hitch up). I got a great price for this via the internet from a non-Jaguar (VW) dealer who took it in part exchange. It was around £1.5k less than the Parkers guide price. At under £17.5k for a 3.5 year old luxury car, it's a lot of car for the money! I also managed to find a local non-Jaguar franchise, but Jaguar specialist garage in Peterborough (Nene Valley Jaguar) who had great reviews and I had no problems on my first major service whilst saving £100-150 over the main dealer prices. If I really scraped the barrel for niggles, it would be the sat-nav is not as slick as my Garmin and I've heard map updates are from Jaguar only and are expensive. Also the heated seats my wife and I love, but why does it go to maximum heat when you first turn it on. I'd have thought starting at the lowest setting would be more logical and an on/off button on the touchscreen would be useful for these.