A couple of weeks back, John and I took a trip from Seattle to Portland in CarDomain’s 2009 Jaguar XF Supercharged test car. Our goals were simple: John was there to put Jag’s hot new Kitty through its paces, and I was there to evaluate its Bowers & Wilkins sound system. Johnny is my best buddy, and he wanted my opinion on the the stereo because I’m an audioengineer, and I spend virtually every waking second thinking about sound. So obviously, I was stoked to get to spend some quality time listening to music in a beautiful machine.

We started our adventure from Johnny’s place on a Saturday morning. The XF was curbside, laying in wait much like a dog waits for its owner. It was Vapour Grey—which matched the day’s overcast skies like camouflage—and even though it was parked, the car seemed eager for the road. After we sat down on the plush white leather seats, Johnny fired her up, and we both just sat there listening to the 420 horsepower engine purr. It was going to be a good trip. Continue reading after the jump…

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This week’s Showroom Showdown produced some pretty hilarious responses. Many of our readers seem to think that the Jag will have the advantage when it comes to attracting women. But the AMG’s brutal power carried the day, and it easily beat the Brit. Several people referenced the Top Gear comparison test between the C63 AMG, the M3 and the RS4, which is definitely worth watching if you haven’t seen it. The C63 AMG seems like a real beast. I’d love to drive one.

Want style, luxury and gobs of power? This week’s Showroom Showdown features two heavy hitters from Europe. The C63 AMG weighs 3,649 pounds and has a 6.2 liter V8 which puts out 451 hp. The XF weighs 4,194 pounds and has a supercharged 4.2 liter V8 which produces 420 hp. Sadly, neither is available with a manual transmission. The Jag is priced a tad higher at $63k vs. $56k for the AMG, but hey, you’re not paying, you’re just driving. So, which would you choose?

I’m not an economist—I barely understand how to balance my checkbook—but I’m a little freaked out by the whole Wall Street crisis. Maybe I just like the idea of being a citizen of a first-world country, I don’t know. Anyway, here’s the news:

• The XF sedan has been a success for Jaguar, but since the XJ and the XK aren’t exactly flying out of showrooms, the company has decided to cut production at its Castle Bromwich plant. While it obviously makes sense to adapt production to demand, I don’t get why those uber-hot XKs aren’t selling. Autocar
• If these spy shots are any indication, it looks like Ferrari is going to offer a drop-top version of its 599. It’s not clear if the Prancing Horse will get some engine tweaks to counter the extra weight, but something tells me this baby is going to look sexy as hell topless. Auto Express
• Mercedes has been making armored cars for 80 years, and to mark the occasion, the company has released the S600 Pullman. It’s fast, bullet-proof and also features a self-sealing gas tank, so it’s just perfect for your third world dictator or drug lord friends. Order now to insure delivery by December 25th! Motor Authority
• While racing in second place during the wet and wild Belgian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton slid through a hairpin and wound up in front of leader Kiki Raikkonen. After allowing Raikkonen to retake the lead, Hamilton went on to win. But after some post-race analysis, the FIA determined the slide amounted to an illegal advantage, and docked him 25 seconds, which put Hamilton in third. Of course, the McLaren team was pissed and filed suit, but today a French judge refused to hear the case. Sounds like Hamilton was robbed to me. AutoWeek

Saturday afternoon, my best buddy Jamie and I hopped into CarDomain’s Jaguar XF Supercharged test car and blasted down to Portland, Oregon. Obviously, we had a wicked night out on the town, but I had even more fun yesterday, when we took 101 up the coast. Wow. I’m happy to report there were no documented incidents, and we obeyed all traffic laws while en route. Or most of them. Maybe. Since I picked up the Jag last Monday, I’ve put about 900 miles on it, and I enjoyed every one. Look for my full review later in the week. What did you do this weekend?

At the Chevron press junket in San Fran last week, I bumped into Justin Berkowitz from the the Truth About Cars. Justin was the guy who made some false claims last week about Jen’s expenses on One Lap of America, erroneously claiming that meals and lodging were provided, and that the event was therefore some kind of free ride for CarDomain. When I asked him where he got his info, he replied "some people." Sounds like solid reporting to me, Justin! To be perfectly honest, I was surprised to see a representative from TTAC—where navel-gazing and blathering about "integrity" are the uber-boring norm—on a Big Oil-funded trip to sunny California. Now, I’m happy to report I spent Chevron’s generous per diem on Maker’s Mark, beer, Mexican food and taxis, but I’m sure Justin’s "integrity"—while allowing him to totally fabricate stuff about my colleague—probably prevented him doing so. Too bad, buddy! Anyway, here’s the news:

• Top Gear has gotten a hold of the ZR1. In a piece entitled "Freak Power" the tester said the car’s "dynamics are better than an Aston DBS, but you don’t get the precision of a 599." Of course, both of those machines cost way more than the ‘Vette. What a nice 100th birthday surprise for the General! Top Gear
• Lambo released a teaser shot of a new supercar this morning, and the press release claims that  "It’s not just a new Lamborghini, it’s a new world." Now, while I don’t believe the company is actually terraforming any other planets, I do imagine the new Raging Bull will be pretty burly. Lamborghini via World Car Fans
• After catching a delivery driver doing 80MPH in a 50 zone, police in Sydney allowed the him to get the customer their pie before taking him downtown. The funniest thing about this story? Even though it was in Australia, the story doesn’t mention anything about intoxication or beer being secured with a seat belt. Reuters
• I imagined that the sporty new XF would spell the end of the XJ, but that’s not the case. The next-gen version of Jag’s venerable series has been spotted engine testing in Coventry. Car Magazine via Jalopnik

Yesterday Jen, Ryan and I went and picked up the new Jaguar XF Supercharged. As you can imagine, I’m beyond stoked that I’m going to get to spend some quality seat time in the new 420HP Kitty. Look for a full review and plenty of glamor shots early next week.

Last night, I went to a midnight showing of the Dark Knight, and it was awesome. There was tons of hype about Heath Ledger’s performance as the Joker, and I have to say I found it genuinely scary. It’s a shame he’s not around to reprise the role. Anyway, here’s the news:

• According to a leaked Subaru memo, the new WRX will have 265 horsepower, and will only be available with a manual tranny. That’s cool and all, but let’s hope they tweak the styling a little bit as well. I think the new Subies are kind of ugly. NASIOC
• Ok, most of the time, I write my own summaries, but I know when I’m beat. Check out this headline; "Sex, blood and baby names: U.S. mad for free gas." Does it get more perfect than that? Reuters
• The blokes from Top Gear have gotten their mitts on a new GTR, and have had the Stig take it for a spin around the track. So how did it do? Well, if you believe the time posted on—and then removed from—Wikipedia, very, very well. I’m going to wait until the lap hits YouTube to find out, but if you’re dying to know, it’s only a few clicks away. Autoblog
• According to JD Powers, customers rate the experience at Jaguar dealerships higher than any other manufacturer. Way to go Jag! Keep it up! Why aren’t I seeing the XF all over the place? Motor Authority

Talk about lucking out! This month, my two-year contract with Sprint expires—just in time to pick up a sexy new iPhone! I’m stoked! Anyway, here’s the news:

• The official line from Dearborn is that Ford has no plans to retire Mercury. But sources close to Blue Oval brass say that 2012 will be the last year for the formerly fleet-footed marque. Of course, if you believe the Maya calendar, there isn’t much point in planning beyond that year anyway. Inside Line
• There has been lots of speculation about Aston Martin’s financial future, and now it looks like the company might go public. While there are plenty of investors who’ve been burned by the storied British brand in the past, my gut says its future looks bright. Autoblog
• Once the engine starts in Jaguar’s new XF, the four vents on the dash open, and it looks pretty cool. But just what’s the purpose of the performance? According to Jag, it’s all about style points. Seriously. AutoWeek
• BMW’s new 1-Series has been spotted in the wild, and personally, I don’t think it’s all that hot. It kind of looks like the product of a bigger Bimmer and an Austin cab, and not in a good way. Winding Road
• Would you like to ride behind the Stig while he pilots at two-seater Grand Prix car around Silverstone? Of course you would. So head over to Top Gear and for all the details on the show’s latest contest. Top Gear
  

San Diego is one of my favorite cities. This is coming from someone who calls Southern California home, but is very disenchanted by the traffic and how difficult it now seems to get anywhere. That being said, I have few complaints about Jaguar having selected San Diego and the twisty secondary roads to the east of the city for us to get some seat time behind the wheel of the new XF sports sedan.

With Ford’s recent sale of its Jaguar and Land Rover brands to India’s Tata industrial conglomerate, the importance of this launch for Jaguar’s future can’t be underestimated. If ever there was a make-or-break launch for a vehicle manufacturer, this is it. And thankfully for Jaguar, the new XF is an outstanding vehicle–albeit it one that is somewhat difficult to pigeonhole–that should help restore the leaping cat to a place of prominence in the luxury sport sedan marketplace. More…

Jaguar appears to be taking a page out of the Lexus launch book from 1989 in that they are offering a product that is sized, powered, and priced to place it in a niche without direct competition. Lexus positioned the original LS400 as a car sized and powered to compete against the then current BMW 7-series and Mercedes S-Class, but priced it closer to the 5-series and E-Class. Jaguar, in offering the luxury model V8-powered XF at a price of $49,975, has introduced a car sized and powered closer to the V8-powered 5-series and E-Class, but priced much closer to top-of-the-line 3-series and C-Class cars from their German competitors. It’s a compelling value story to be sure.

But typically buyers in this segment are not as value-conscious as they are status-conscious, so Jaguar has its work cut out for themselves right from the start of the XF’s launch, with first cars reaching dealers about a month ago. The impact was immediate: the XF contributed to a 13.2% rise versus 2007 numbers. The represents the first upwards tick in Jaguar sales in a long time and the XF was barely on-stream so it will take a few months of sales to fully measure the XF’s impact. But it seems ironic that just as Ford sells the brand, Jaguar starts to see light at the end of the tunnel.

As far as the exterior is concerned, it does seem that some of the visual impact of the C-XF was lost in translation from concept to production car reality. This is not unexpected, even though some critics have harped on this fact. Concept cars need to have impact on auto show turntables, production cars must have rear seats that can accommodate real people, so the XF’s proportions had to conform to this reality. We can say that the spirit of the Ian Callum’s C-XF concept lives in the production car and the styling elements mix in a way that portrays an exciting new design language for Jaguar.

The look of the car is unique, bold and contemporary in a way that leaves little chance that it will be mistaken for its predecessor or its German competitors. If there’s a familiar line, it seems that the C-pillar will draw some comparisons to Lexus but in a world where cars in a given category–and as we mentioned earlier, the XF seems to straddle smaller and larger classes–the look is fresh yet dare we say, unmistakably Jaguar, without being slavishly retro.

On the inside, the cabin is world class; simply better that those found in its larger competitors, as well as the entire Audi line, which traditionally sets the benchmarks for interior style, form and function. The materials are top tier and the execution, with more wood than previous Jaguars, but spread throughout the cabin, are warm and inviting with all controls having a high-quality feel. A high end touch is the soft blue ambient lighting throughout the cabin. The one distracting factor? The sound emanating from the dash when the directional signals are activated; it sounded out of character with the rest of the car–decidedly low-rent. As these were early production XFs, and as the sound is digitally generated, a Jaguar spokesperson acknowledged the issue and intimated that changes were already inputted.

One element that makes the cabin so inviting is the 440-watt Bowers and Wilkins audio system. While in this day and age, 440-watts might not seem like a lot of wattage, it the XF it is a perfect match as this is one finely voiced system, especially with regard for overall clarity. Bowers and Wilkins engineers were consulted early in the design process (they provided a prototype system for the C-XF) so speaker locations are close to optimum, thus 440-watts is faultless for this application.   

For those of you that sound plays an important part of the driving experience, this is simply among the finest sounding factory-installed premium audio systems available, regardless of price. Where most premium-branded audio systems use relatively inexpensive drivers (woofers, midranges, and tweeters) mated to highly equalized amplifiers, Bowers and Wilkins uses much higher quality components, thus the individual elements are not nearly as stressed in mating the sonic and acoustic characteristics of the audio system to the car itself. The result is exceptional clarity and very precise imaging and staging, especially in the Dolby Pro Logic II surround mode. Best of all, no concessions were made to provide boomy yet false bass; the system’s accuracy is above reproach and the package is perfectly tailored to the car. And yes, it has the prerequisite iPod connectivity, with direct interface through the in-dash display.

We had the pleasure of driving the top two models in the range. We started with the premium luxury model ($55,975), equipped with a 300-horsepower normally-aspirated 4.2-liter V8, and waited until after lunch to get behind the wheel of the top model supercharged version. Mid-morning traffic exiting San Diego and heading east was fairly light and this gave us the opportunity to evaluate its freeway cruising characteristics.

The first thing we noticed was how stiff the overall structure felt; this is very elusive to measure so we are forced to take Jaguar’s word for it that the XF is the stiffest car in its class. They mentioned that to optimize the structure, 25 different grades of steel along with aluminum and magnesium were employed with the result being a suspension that is supple with steering inputs that are very tactile, transmitting the proper amount of feedback, even over expansion joints and lane bots.

The two-lane tarmac selected by the Jaguar team was obviously chosen to highlight the exceptional balance of the chassis. On the normally-aspirated car, just set the rotary gear selector to sport, turn off the TracDSC traction control and let the fun begin. Using the paddle shifters connected to the six-speed ZF automatic transmission, the drive is utterly engaging, releasing your inner Formula One driver, with reaction times 15% quicker that the XK sports car, which donated many of the all-important suspension bits and calibration benchmarks. With our shift points alternating between third and fourth gear and pegged at around 6,000 RPM, the XF simply devoured the road, in this case CA-96 which hugs the California-Mexico border.

After lunch we got behind the wheel of the supercharged version ($62,975) and as great as the premium luxury model was in the morning session, the supercharged version is an entirely different kind of cat. The primary reason, Jaguar’s Computer Active Technology Suspension (CATS) which is standard on the supercharged model. With CATS, all dampening is electronically controlled within milliseconds, balanced between road conditions and driving inputs. The result is a feel that is more sports sedan than luxury car, just the way we like it. Driving even more aggressively, using the ultra quick paddle shifters nearer to 6,500 RPM, the afternoon drive was even more spirited than the morning session. With 420-horsepower on tap, and all the electronic babysitters set to minimum intervention, it’s easy to steer the XF with one’s right foot.

While the consensus among virtually all of the assembled scribes was that the mid-model premium luxury model was an exceptional buy, but if it was any of us going to talk to BofA or WaMu for a car loan, we’d opt for the larger (and probably longer term) monthly payment, bite the bullet and go for the top-spec supercharged model. In examining the competitive landscape, there seemed to be no competitor in its price class.

What does this all mean? To this observer, there’s a new sheriff in town and that the safe choice is no longer the default choice. Historically, Jaguar has always meant something special, extraordinary. This essence seems to have been lost over the last ten years as under Ford’s stewardship as most Jaguars seemed to live primarily on past glories, especially visually, much to the continued detriment to the brand.

We believe that this is about to change. Because of the way the luxury market has evolved, Jaguar will never sell as many units as its German, Japanese, and US (Cadillac CTS) competitors. This is not a bad thing; Jaguars need to be iconoclastic and appeal to a buyer that wants something different and not run with the pack. On that basis the XF meets this objective squarely and promises a fresh start for a company that under new owners has a long way to go to return to past glories. That they do this with a virtually clean sheet of paper design is bold and fraught with risk, but in the final analysis, was their only option. The XF is a fine luxury sports sedan, one with the emphasis on sport, which is as we believe it should be.