Jaguar fans have always been vocal and opinionated about what sort of cars Coventry should be building. Their opinions usually boil down to "make it breathtakingly beautiful, with loads of performance."
With Ian Callum - the design genius behind such great cars as the Aston Martin DB7 and DB9 - now at the Jaguar styling helm, the "breathtaking" part should have been a walk in the park. But there's a contingent within Jaguar that insisted that the XF, which replaces the S-type and needs to sell in big numbers, should also be class-competitive with the likes of the Audi A6 and the BMW 5-series. That means the XF had to have a big trunk and space for five adults, but it also meant a little less freedom to create a truly stunning visual form.
The XF looks a lot like a Lexus GS in profile. That's no bad thing, but the XF hardly provides the drama that you'd expect from the brand that created the original XJ in the 1960s. The overall visual impression you get from the XF is that it's nice but not stunning. It has some really good detailing, such as the chrome strip at the back that sweeps under the taillight cluster and its complex headlamps.... Read full article