In its day, the legendary XJ12 was considered by many to be the best saloon car in the world — can the new Jaguar XF live up to the benchmark set by it’s illustrious predecessor?
Almost from its initial launch in 1968, the XJ — originally only available in six-cylinder guise — began to draw critical acclaim. Jaguar experienced a slight stutter with the 2.8-litre XK-engined version of the XJ6, but the accolades soon followed when, in 1972, the V12-powered XJ12 burst onto the scene. The V12 E-Type may have been the first production car to benefit from the V12, but the XJ12 received most of the plaudits. Named as the Car of the Year in 1973, the XJ12 — with its smooth, supple ride and powerful engine — quickly earned a reputation as the world’s best saloon car. Today, the XJ12 is considered my many to represent the ultimate in DIY nightmares — my father once owned an example of the splendid Daimler Double-Six variant. It was gorgeous to drive, but an absolute money-pit when it came to ongoing maintenance. Alas, these factors — and woeful unreliability during Jaguar’s dark, British Leyland days — have severely lowered the value of these cars. And with this fall in values, non-enthusiast owners have ruined many a good XJ12 with ham-fisted DIY repairs. As a result, finding a good, well maintained example isn’t that easy any more — but we were lucky enough to find such a Jaguar. All S1 XJ12s are rare — Jaguar only made 3228 examples between 1972 and 1973 — but, for the purposes of our comparison test, we discovered an even rarer variant — a long wheelbase S1 XJ12L. Jaguar only produced a mere 754 examples of this model.
Unavailable XF
With our XJ12L sitting on the sidelines, we tried to get our hands on an XF press car. No chance, said Jaguar NZ. We were seemingly out of luck, but the newly formed Beacham & Phillips — a happy marriage of Lotus Cars NZ Ltd and Beacham Jaguar Ltd — came to the rescue by offering us a brand, spanking new XF 2.7D. Interestingly, the XJ12L featured here is the personal car of Roger Phillips — the ‘Phillips’ of Beacham & Phillips. In fact, Roger has owned this particular Jaguar for many years — it even pre-dates his involvement with Lotus Cars NZ — and, more recently, the car has been attended to by Dr Beacham, who has worked his magic on the XJ. Although, apart from a more sporting exhaust arrangement, the XJ12L remains in pretty much its original form. The Jaguar XF has also received more than its fair share of awards — Car of the Year, Best Diesel and even Best Interior Design. There is little doubt that Jaguar’s head stylist, Ian McCallum — notable for his work with Aston Martin — has come up with yet another winner; the XF looks good from all angles. As you’d expect from a thoroughly modern car, the XF also comes with a veritable deluge of electronic gadgets — ranging from driving and safety aids right out to a optional, upmarket sounds system from British loudspeaker boffins, Bowers & Wilkins. It’s all very fancy but, at the bottom line, it’s the driving and owning experience that makes the difference. Unlike James Bond, gadgets aren’t the be all and end all as far as the average driver is concerned.
The Same but Different
After a few false starts, finally we got the two big cats together — and when we placed these two Jaguars together the first thing we noticed was that the XF looked huge compared to the XJ12. Physically, there’s not much difference in their dimensions — it’s the height of the XF’s passenger compartment that makes the car look so much larger. Either people are getting taller, or have returned to wearing top hats whilst driving! That said, there are a lot of styling similarities between the two cars — the most evident touch being the sculpted bonnet of both Jaguars. There’s even a touch of XJ in the XF’s chrome-rimmed radiator surround, which looks very much like a modern rendition of a traditional Jaguar front end — although, thankfully, with no trace of the dubious retro-styling of the current S-Type. However, the biggest differences between these two big cats are hidden — in the engine bay and in the cabin. Yes, the XF is powered by a V6 diesel engine, a striking counterpoint to the XJ’s petrol-hungry V12. And enter into the XF’s opulent interior and you’re entering a new, ergonomic age — an age undreamed of when the Jaguar XJ was originally launched in 1968.
The Modern Age
You know that you’re entering that modern age when you step into the XF — you don’t need anything as archaic as a metal ignition key; just make sure you’ve got the Jaguar’s electronic SmartKey with you and open up. Once inside, you’re enveloped within a cabin dripping with leather and aluminium — front up for a top-of-the-line model and you’ll even get a few fillets of shiny wood. It’s comfortable, cosseting and, despite its obvious modernity, the XF’s cockpit exudes an air of Jaguar-ness. The old traditions may be buried under layers of brushed alloy and piano-finish veneers, but it is still unmistakeably a Jaguar. It even smells like one. However, push the ‘on’ button and, right away, you know that the XF is about as traditional as Han Solo’s Millennium Falcon — with the ignition activated, the previously flush-mounted ventilation grilles in the dashboard slide open and a round, alloy gear-selector rises up mysteriously from the central console.
Start the beast up and you’re met with the merest hint of diesel clatter as the V6 sparks into life before settling down to a steady, laconic pussy-cat purr. It’s all very civilised.
Once the fancy memory seats have been tailored to suit, along with the adjustable steering column, it’s time to select ‘D’ and sally forth in Jaguar’s latest contender for the best saloon in the world.
On the Road #1
I shouldn’t have really been surprised, but the XF’s levels of refinement still managed to catch me unawares. Most modern diesels are wonderfully engineered and the V6 in the Jaguar is no exception — it pulls through the gears smoothly and, with a mountain of torque on tap, glides effortlessly over the black-top. That means you really need to keep a close eye on the speedometer — it’s very easy to venture deep into license-losing territory in the XF, high speeds only hinted at by a deeper rumble from the engine and a whisper of wind-noise. In fact, the 2.7D accelerates with more brio than the petrol V6, which shouldn’t be anything new for fans of oil-burners. It’s possible to just cruise around and let the Jaguar’s six-speed ’box pick all the right ratios — which it manages to do most of the time — but enthusiastic drivers will want to select ‘Sport’ mode and self-shift the drive-by-wire transmission via the paddles fitted to the rear of the steering wheel. The gearbox responds quickly to manual commands, even blipping the throttle to smooth downshifts.
As an added bonus, the XF is also surprisingly nimble for such a large car — and, like all good big cars, it seems to shrink around you the further you drive. Handling is safe and sure, helped by steering that benefits from variable power assistance, and powerful ventilated brakes — not to mention a whole host of ‘nanny’ features. In short, this is a four-door executive saloon that easily matches and beats the main rivals from BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz. And, unlike it’s Teutonic competitors, the Jaguar does everything with a certain sense of style — and that’s about the only traditionally Jaguar trait you could ascribe to the XF 2.7D.
The Classic Age
In comparison to the clean, modern cockpit of the XF the classic XJ12, despite loads of leather, chrome and timber, looks extremely plain and basic. And you need an ignition key as well! Clambering into the XJ12 also points up a few differences between it and the XF — you simply step into the high-built modern car, but have to step down into the substantially lower XJ12. However, once inside, the old cat is just as comfortable — although seats that provide lumbar support were still a few decades away when Sir William Lyons conceived the XJ.
No matter, twist the impossibly tiny key in the ignition and the mighty V12 bursts into life like a caged animal. In its day, this 12-cylinder monster was considered to be the epitome of motoring refinement — compare it to the XF’s V6 and, right away, you can tell how, well, pussy-like, modern drivers have become. Unlike the XF’s well mannered diesel, the sound of the V12 offers a serious performance promise. In this area, our test car probably isn’t typical — the owner has retro-fitted his Jaguar with a rorty, E-Type exhaust system, so this XJ12 has a much sportier (noisier) exhaust note than standard. It may be old, but Jaguar’s venerable V12 is still capable of holding its own against its more modern counterpart — top speeds are almost identical and, over the traditional sprint from rest to 100kph, he XJ12 will actually shade the XF by a whisker.
On the Road #2
Put these two Jaguars onto a twisty road and the XF will absolutely devour the XJ12. It’s not a question of power, or weight, but handling and the ability provided by the XF’s driver aids — which allow you to brake deeper with a large margin of safety — and the simple fact that the diesel V6 draws on so much torque that it simply claws it way out of corners.
Of course, the V12 is not lacking in torque, but its ancient three-speed auto just doesn’t have the ratios to match the six-speed XF — and have you ever tried manual shifting a classic XJ? Not recommended.
On the handling front, the XJ12’s supple ride quality is a blessing and a curse. It handles rural railway crossings with more aplomb than the newer car, but around the corners it wallows like a love-sick whale. None of this is helped by the car’s over-assisted steering, which feels as if it’s been injected with an overly powerful anaesthetic. Our test car benefited from a smaller diameter, wood-spoked steering wheel, which somewhat masked the Jaguar’s sloppy steering — although not enough to provide a positive advantage under hard cornering. And although the four-wheel disc brakes on the Jaguar work well enough, they display none of the assurance of the XF’s powerful ventilated discs.
However, in one area the XJ12 shone — straight-line power. Indeed, this was emphasised in our test car, which had a seemingly hair-trigger throttle. Stamp on it too hard from a standing start and the rear wheels spun wildly as they scrabbled for grip. When they eventually bit, the reward was 20-metre-long lines of scorched rubber — very anti-social, but a lot of fun!
Classic or Modern?
Like all modern cars, the XF is quiet, easy to drive and, overall, extremely competent. The XJ12 does many things adequately but cannot even begin to match the subdued composure of the XF. Both cars have a distinct presence on the road, although the McCallum-designed XF does look a little tall and blandly modern in comparison to the low, sleek XJ — and those chrome wire wheels certainly show off the older car’s sculpted lines.
If you’re of a mind to do your part in saving the planet, then the decision is easy — pick the clean-burning, super efficient diesel-powered XF. However, if you don’t give a monkey’s about the environment — and don’t mind funding OPEC — choose the XJ12; it gurgles down petrol as if there were no tomorrow.
I suspect that the choice is probably not as clear cut as that. Today, very few XJ12s will be pressed into service as an everyday car but, on the other hand, the XF 2.7D is easily capable of such use. That singles out the XJ12 as an occasional use classic car, while the XF is a car that well-heeled business-folk will love — especially as it evinces a real sense of style; something lacking in modern German executive saloons. Since its release, the XF has not only garnered a huge number of awards, it has also had the pleasure of topping many executive car reliability surveys.
That’s not a traditionally strong Jaguar trait, but then the XF is not a traditional Jaguar in the strictest sense of the term. Having said that, I believe that Sir William would have approved.
1973 Jaguar XJ12L
Engine All alloy, V12
Capacity 5344cc
Max power 1889kW (253bhp) at 6000rpm
Max torque 408Nm (301lb/ft) at 3500rpm
Fuel system Four Stromberg carburettors
Transmission Three-speed automatic
Suspension F/R Independent, wishbones, coil springs and telescopic shock absorbers
Steering Rack and pinion, PAS
Brakes Disc/disc
Dimensions:
Overall length 4947mm
Width 1772mm
Height 1372mm
Wheelbase 2865mm
Kerb weight 1870kg
Performance:
Max speed 225kph
0-100kph 7.5 seconds
2008 Jaguar XF 2.7D
Engine V6, turbocharged diesel
Capacity 2720cc
Max power 152kW at 4000rpm
Max torque 435Nm at 1900rpm
Fuel system Fuel-injection
Transmission Six-speed automatic
Suspension F/R Unequal length wishbones/multi-link
Steering Rack and pinion, PAS
Brakes Ventilated discs, ABS, EBD, EBA, DSC
Dimensions:
Overall length 4961mm
Width 2053mm
Height 1460mm
Wheelbase 2909mm
Kerb weight 1771kg
Performance:
Max speed 229kph
0-100kph 8.2 seconds
Words: Allan Walton Photos: Dan Wakelin
