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So going from a 2015 Base Coupe to a 2016 F Type Coupe, there have been some differences that are subtle that I have noticed in terms of build quality and use of interior materials.
Leather on the performance seats:
-I'm uncertain if the extended leather pack that comes with the performance seats upgrades the quality of the leather on the seats them but I found the leather to be far softer and more supple on the 2016 than the 2015.
Fit and Finish:
-My 2015 had issues with the stitching not lining up. This to me was unacceptable for a car of this price point. I know some of you may or may not have this concern but this is what I'm referencing to:
The 2016 I got into has no issues with alignment. In fact, when I went to the dealer, I look at nearly every 2016 F-Type that had and none exhibited the mis-alignment. Ironically, when I looked at their pre-owned 2014-2015 inventory, I found more cars with mis-aligned panels than with correctly aligned ones.
-For whatever reason, Jaguar decided to change the buttons that control the trunk, foglights and dimmer switch. The buttons that control them feel a little cheaper especially the dimmer switch. What use to be a smooth scroll wheel for the dimmer switch has become a cheap twist knob. These aren't items I use everyday, but nonetheless something I noticed right away.
-The rear bulkhead seems a bit more solid and insulated. Where my 2015 had a hollow plastic sound that popped and creaked over every road undulation and whenever I got in out of the car, the 2016 has yet to make a sound except over the harshest roads. I'm guessing that perhaps additional sound insulation and heavier duty trim clips are used.
-The updated gauge cluster is a nice touch. Nice being able to monitor all 4 parameters (fuel, MPG, etc) at once rather than toggling through them.
-I had no expectations when I got the upgraded 770watt Meridian. Despite numerous complaints about buzzing, rattling and distortion, I have experienced none despite the type of music I listen to(EDM, trap, etc). My 2015 with the 380watt Meridian was horrible even to a point where my girlfriend mentioned something. The volume knob on the 2016 must have been re-engineered as it requires a bit more effort to turn vs the 2015.
Ride Quality and Feel
-I'll need to check the parts catalogue to compare, but the suspension on the 2016 feels light years ahead better than the 2015. I felt that the 2015 dampers were under-damped for the spring rates as the car never truly felt planted and felt "confused" as to whether or not to compress or decompress on certain road conditions. 2016 feels very planted and the dampers seem better suited to the spring rates. THIS IS THE BIGGEST IMPROVEMENT to me.
-EPS vs Hydraulic Steering
EPS transformed the steering response of the car. Nicely weighted and good feedback. I prefer it over the hydraulic system. The hydraulic system felt overly assisted even with dynamic mode on.
Can you post a picture of what the stitching looks like in your 2016? The stitching in my 2016 is misaligned between the door and the front panels and I just thought that was an unfortunate thing in every F-type. If some of you have them matching up, I need to go the shop!
Oh hell, looks like I need to pay the service department a visit. Hopefully this is a trivial fix.
Thanks for the pic Foosh!
I'd think about it. When I addressed it to a few dealers, they all stated that the door panels have 0 adjustiblity and it would be the dashboard that would be adjusted. In order to do that, the would have to disassemble the dash which could potentially introduce squeaks and rattles. I opted not to do the adjustment.
Last edited by WhiteTardis; 02-09-2016 at 04:08 PM.
Agree with above. I would never let them take apart a door or the dash to fix something like that, unless it happens to coincide with some other work that needs to be done.
Ergh! Thought I was the only unlucky one with 1) mis-aligned interiors 2) huge and I mean huge gaps in body panels 3) squeaks from the interior when the car is cornering with enough force. I was going to ask the dealer to fix this mess for me in my upcoming annual service next month. But may be not - I dont want the dash removed.
In my dreams some night, I was talking to Jaguar reps to take our car back and provide new ones under the condition that we write rave reviews for the car and get more folks to hop on the F-Type bandwagon!
I worked for a tier 1 automotive supplier in operations and quality management for 10 years so I'm very familiar with build quality and fit & finish. I'm impressed with my 2016's build. IMO my parts both exterior and interior line up within an acceptable tolerance equal to the expected level given the price of the car.
Thank god I backed out of a deal on a 2009 Aston Martin V8V and bought my F-type or I might have ended up like this:
You say you worked in operations and quality management, so clearly the concepts of sample size and statistical significance are familiar. Yet you provide a single example to back up your statement of "Thank god I backed out of a deal" on an Aston?
What's more, the author of the article quite reasonably concedes "so maybe my experience so far is just a fluke". This is in contrast to your post, which implies a pervasive problem with Astons. The author goes on to say "over the last six weeks, I’ve received an enormous amount of e-mails from other V8 Vantage owners, and they’ve all said roughly the same thing: their cars are reliable", and "My dealer echoed this sentiment".
Well, I'll go ahead and give my own examples, then, admitting openly that they are statistically insignificant: I've had roughly the same number of reliability issues, and more recalls, with my Jags compared to my Astons. And since the original post was about fit and finish, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that the fit and finish/materials on my Astons has been substantially superior to that of the Jags.
Hey nothing personal. It just irks me when certain stereotypes are repeated. As a Jag owner, I imagine you know better, since like Astons, Jags have an undeserved and persistent reputation for being fragile, unreliable and poorly made cars.
Hey nothing personal. It just irks me when certain stereotypes are repeated. As a Jag owner, I imagine you know better, since like Astons, Jags have an undeserved and persistent reputation for being fragile, unreliable and poorly made cars.
No problem.... I appreciate and respect your perspective. My original posting was to express my opinion and nothing more.
i spent a fair bit of time in my dealers 2014 demo and i too noticed my 2016 having a higher quality finish in terms of leather and smaller details like stitching lining up, especially on the centre console behind the gear shifter
also the 2016 just felt more solid shutting the doors, interior trim resonance over coarse roads, but i just attributed that to new car vs demo
the 2016 centre speedo screen graphics are a huge improvement over the old model, and even the dials themselves have cleaner graphics
biggest change though has been ditching the oem pirelli's for the mpss, everything is just smoother and quieter now
the only issue i have is sanding marks under the clear coat on one of my black side fender vents - i didn't bother going back to dealer, just easier and safer for me to buy another from spare parts and install myself
I worked for a tier 1 automotive supplier in operations and quality management for 10 years so I'm very familiar with build quality and fit & finish. I'm impressed with my 2016's build. IMO my parts both exterior and interior line up within an acceptable tolerance equal to the expected level given the price of the car.
Thank god I backed out of a deal on a 2009 Aston Martin V8V and bought my F-type or I might have ended up like this:
That guy on Jalopnik, is one of the biggest F****** A****** out there. He purposely doing everything and anything to disparage Aston Martin using a high mileage 9 year old car. Just to promote himself as an automotive journalist, which couldn't be further from the truth. What would be hysterical, is if Aston watches his videos and voids his warranty.
This idiot isn't going to detour anyone who wants an Aston from getting one.
Hey nothing personal. It just irks me when certain stereotypes are repeated. As a Jag owner, I imagine you know better, since like Astons, Jags have an undeserved and persistent reputation for being fragile, unreliable and poorly made cars.
I have not had a chance to take any decent photos of my new Vantage GT. I hope to this weekend. But the fit and finish of it in my opinion is flawless. Such a huge difference in the paint from normal assembly line cars. Such a perfect design and how the car has only what it needs nothing it doesn't. The body has no bad shut lines, just simple, the hood, doors and hatch. The interior just clean and simple. Under the hood, everything is functional and well laid out, no huge plastic engine cover to hide everything which seems to be the norm these days on most cars.
Looking forward to seeing those pics! Your description is right on the money. Simple, elegant, timeless design - so hard to get right, but you know it when you see it!
02-09-2016, 11:02 AM
2015 to 2016 Quality Differences
