Jaguar called it the E-Type. And from that launch day in 1961 through the 14 years of production that followed, the E-Type not only defined the Jaguar brand—sexy, aristocratic, sporty, suave—it set a standard for elegance and style that perhaps no other automobile before or since has matched.
Click Here For More Jaguar XF Supercharged Pictures
Of late, Jaguar has struggled back into shape. The XJ sedan has returned to fashionable form, and the two-door XK delivers a thoroughly rewarding sport/GT experience. But it’s Jaguar’s newest model, the XF four-door, that most recalls the flair and sex appeal of Jag’s E-Type era.
We’ve now got a new, top-level XF Supercharged in our long-term test fleet; I’m saddled with the not-so-difficult chore of official chaperone. And now that I’ve rolled a good chunk of miles under its wheels, I’m even more taken by the new Jag than I was after a preview drive at the car’s launch. You want some of that old-time romance and sex appeal in your driving? The XF beckons.
The powertrain lives up to the flourish of the opening act. The base car boasts a none-too-shabby 300 hp from its naturally aspirated, DOHC 4.2L V-8, but in blown and intercooled form the 4.2 gushes with the excess we do so adore. Output climbs to 420 giddy ponies, enough to blast the XF to 60 mph in well under 5 sec. (Not that anyone buying a $63,000 automobile would care, but EPA city/highway is a very decent 15/23 mpg.) The V-8 mates to the brilliant ZF six-speed automatic that also serves in other Jags, Astons, and Land Rovers; rotate the gear selector into Sport mode and you’ve got full manual shifts on tap via tidy paddle tabs behind the steering wheel.
| 
|