Hi all my name is joe and im strongly considering a sport brake for my next family hauler. Currently in my garage is a 2004 330i ZHP and a 2017 Clubman All4 S. My goal is to find something that can combine the drive of the BMW with the haul of the MINI. The clubby is great but it gets a bit cramped with all 4 of us in there (both children are still in car seats, one still rear facing). I have a few questions regarding the x260 gen XF that im hoping some can answer.

1. Reliability- ok im just gonna just right to it- how are these things? I coming from an e46. Ive made peace with the fact that ill never own anything as bulletproof as my M54. Still needs some tinkering here and there but if it sold tomorrow to someone on the west coast, i'd have no issue driving it from my home in NY and delivering it to the new owner.

2. dynamic headlights- do the headlights actually turn with steering inputs or is it just a cornering light that comes on? a friend of the family has a bmw x2 and i saw hers was spec'd with just a tiny LED the points out to the side. took a second to figure out the projectors don't actually move.

3.touch vs touch pro- most of the cars with touch pro tend to command a bit higher of a price. I guess im just wondering if from a daily use POV, is it worth it? Should i wait to find the right car with it?

4. technology pkg- i guess its kinda intertwined with the question above, but are the 12 inch digital gauges and meridian stereo upgrade worth it? again, do i wait?

5. pricing- pricing tends to be all over the map. contrary to how you'd expect them to be priced, im seeing cars with less milage cost less than a similarly spiced car with higher mileage. you'd expect an indirect relationship going on. i know that these are rare (just saw an article that said over 3 year jaguar moved only like 250 SBs). Because they're so rare i feel like no one is looking for them. If i see a $50k has been sitting on the lot for 6 months, how low of a number do you think i could throw out to them? I understand everyone is talking about used car inventory being low, but i always felt that was directed to SUVs/ sedans way before wagons.

Thanks in advance

 

Everybody in the USA has gone for SUVs making things like the Sportbrake a bit of a glut on the market, even if Jaguar only sold 250 !! So dealers with one in stock may be open to offers if it's been sleeping on the lot rather too long.

I have to say all this electronic trickery stuff goes over my head, I just want a comfortable and easy-to-own, but elegant car just like the Jaguars of old. OK you won't get the traditional wood dashes any more. I like to have the satnav, although I don't use it for directions, just to see the lie of the land as I drive, basically. I also like the heated seats and steering wheel as my car stays outside all year. The car is essentially an XF in its basics and these are pretty good cars, up there with the German makes. If you're buying a very recent one you'll get a Jaguar-backed warranty, Gearbox is a German 8-speed ZF auto.
Here's a UK review of the car: -
https://www.topgear.com/car-reviews/...f-sportbrake-0

 

We have very similar interests in cars, I had my SportBrake first but really missed not having a manual transmission so I searched for a few months to find a 2017 MINI Clubman S All4 6-speed.
With these two I really have all I need, both fun to drive and practical.
I bought the SportBrake in June 2019 after it sat on a dealer lot for 1.5 years and they had made it CPO with 375 miles on it and added an extra year to the warranty to max it out to 7 years total.
I've been working from home for a year now and don't drive either much, still have < 5K miles on the XF and haven't had any issues, the EliteCare free maintenance is nice, 2 oil change so far, covered annually.
I did find one that had every option which was hard to find, all 4 option packages, the Touch Pro and 825W sound are nice, but I'm sure I could've lived without them and been fine.

 

I'm on my second X260 Sportbrake, reliability has been fine, just a couple of software glitches which were quickly fixed. My only reservation was that my last one had the 300mm brakes which squealed horrendously when cold. My present model has the 350mm which do not seem to suffer from this.

I don't have the dynamic headlights, but the HID lights on mine give the best and least eye-straining lighting I've known in nearly 50 years' driving.

Touch-pro gives you a bigger screen and is still supported by JLR.

My last car had the analogue gauges, and my present has the digital. They both give the same information, obviously the digital is a bit more configurable, and has the advantage of the speedo being central (except in dynamic mode), the analogue speedo tends to be a bit hidden away although the speed is displayed numerically in the centre. The digital does give you the optional advantage of a full map in front of you so you can navigate with that whilst using the centre display for media/phone.

Can't speak for prices in your region, but in the UK models that have a list price over £40k have low second-hand values, probably in no small part due to attracting a £325 premium on their annual road tax until five years old.

The Sportbrake is a big, roomy, comfortable car which can swallow a lot of luggage, and it handles amazingly. It's easily the best car I've ever owned.
Whatever you buy, you will not regret it!

 

get the sportbrake. trust me (even though you dont know me).

I am only 7 months in I had the hood latch adjusted for a rattle, and the windshield trim was loose (likely from an car wash under previous ownership).

I cannot get over how great the car is to drive. The steering, ride, inputs, and minimalism is a welcome change compared to a lot of newer cars in the segment/ these days. I have the larger screen but the lower audio. Even without the audio the sound is great, so I would say it depends on how sensitive you are to tech, and if you are an audiophile. Otherwise the car will still drive and function very well for you.

I believe the LEDS turn with you, no cornering light

I have been watching pricing since I got mine and have noticed the same weird indirect relationship. You would think the low production/rarity would increase the price, especially in today's market. But I think there just isn't enough data and demand for these to get it 100% predictable. Make an offer and go from there.

 

not too particular to the audio. i prefer the SC whine lol. i have a feeling that all the cars that im seeing pop up now are lease returns. those will all get bought up and used until the CPO warranty is up. at that point you're going to find them appearing on sits like Bringatrailer.com and that is when the limited availability/ rarity factors some into play and cause prices to rise. it'll be the CTS-V wagon all over again.

 

I am happy to wait for that moment in time if it turns out to be true!

I bought the mina heatshields/filters for mine, solely for more whine. I need to get those on soon.

Have you come across anyone who has done a tune and pulley on a sportbrake yet?

 

Honestly SBs are so rare had no idea where all the owners were handing- turns out its one here lol. I don't think ive seen an tuned SBs but ive read that one will up power to as high as 450. im trying to tell myself not to get caught up with mods until i get the actual car lol

 

yeah I think all the 3.0 s/c have the same ceiling, hoping the sportbrake is no exception and that they are supported. Currently looking at VAP and Viezu. I was (am) the same way, I generally have my mod path figured out before I even get the car, lol. But the good news is you can't get into too much trouble on these beyond the basic intake/exhaust/tune/pulley. What I am really after is a drop. I am wondering if I can run sedan front springs (H&R) and get the rears to self adjust and level it off. Cant find much about this on the X260's and if it is possible. but a sublte drop and some spacers would make this car look fantastic. I have H&R's on my other car and a few others and the ride compromise is nearly non-existent. Mostly pros imo.

Sorry - derailing your thread

 

No need to apologize- you're taking the time to educate me.

I read somewhere that there isn't an intake available because the current SC 3.0 already has a CAI fitted. Never owning a SC'd engine, do SCers typically get fitted with one from the factory?
most of the exhaust mods ive seen on youtube typically are in the resonator/muffler delete category, so i'd certainly be interest anything that can make it sound closer to an F-type.
The pully ive heard enhances the SC whine- i envision having a wagon that sounds ike the Holden bathurst that top gear tested back in the day. it was just a shriek going down the runway.
suspension wise this will be a fam car. so i can't make it too stiff for fam duties and fear making it too low won't work too well in the NE. When I won't have an infant in a carrier that i'll have to snap into a base, i could almost justify the drop by saying it'll make it easier for the kids to get in and out on their own lol. For the time being, a good set of spacers would do the trick for me.

My oldest starts pre-K in september. Can't miss any opportune to drop her off in a wicked car and have the other kids on alert to not mess with her lol

 

There seems to be a theme developing... We also picked up a Mini because I missed rowing my own gears. Although we went with a JCW 2 door hardtop.

Owning the Sportbrake has been a pleasure. No mechanical issues in two years of ownership. Bought mine used w/ ~13k miles. The car had been sitting on the lot for 160 days where it started at $62k down from the window sticker of $84k. By the time I showed up, it was down to $52k. Long story short, I had them extend the warranty to 6 year 100k miles (because Jaguar) and bought the car for $48k. Used car prices are pretty absurd right now. I'm seeing comps online going for $50K plus - meaning I could make a profit if I sold mine right now - even with 25k more miles on it since I purchased. Mind you, I don't think this is the rarity factor - yet. I do think these things will end up on BAT at some point, and then we will all be heroes. That said, I'm not going to sell it anytime soon and I'm also going to DRIVE it.

If you do pull the trigger, get a box for the top which will help with overflow storage - not that it lacks space to begin with - but with more than two people and a 85 pound dog in the back, things get tight. It's been the perfect ski bus and pickup truck for trips to Lowes. The stock all season tires were lame, so I put Michelin Pilot Sport 4S on, and this thing handles just as well as my old E39 540i6. Only complaint is that the back seat could be a little more comfortable. But your kids will sit back there, not you. They will just have to deal with it. Also sounds like our friends at VelocityAP are cooking up exhaust improvements. It will probably never sound like a F-type, but there's a beast in there somewhere.

 

oooooo firenze red. Everything that comes up are blacks, whites and grey. Keeping an eye on a Ceasium blue in bethesda. Thats my top choice as far as colors are concerned. Next up would be a first edition in farallon black over pimento. Always wanted a Jerez black e90 m3 over Fox Red.

 

btw that’s an awesome pricing strategy. I know there’s high demand for used cars but something tells me that no matter what the demand a wagon is a wagon and people would rather pay more for an suv. Only thing would be that dealers may not be in as much of a rush to sell because they may not have anything incoming to replace it yet due to chip shortages

 

I got my 2018 sportbrake with 35k miles for $37K this past September and I love it. I was recently at the dealer here in San Francisco and I walked down to the sales floor and asked a salesman if they ever come up. Turns out he has the exact same one! Black on Black with the black package and black wheels. He said that JLR was offering them to employees in '18 and '19 for $500 a month on a 36 month Lease - now that is a screaming deal! So we should expect to see some of those come off lease pretty soon, unless the lessees decide to purchase them. I believe at this point all of the new ones are gone. I was looking for a Revelo Red one about 3 months ago and there were none in that color, but about 5 across the country. Now there are none per the Jaguar USA website. Good luck with your search, I think it is a fantastic, fast, engaging wagon.

 

LOL

This is good to know, I thought quicksilver would be the only one forever. Last time I spoke to VAP they weren't offering anything for the XF sedan/SB. The OEM F-type intermediate pipe looks very similar to the XF, only that is has no resonators where the XF does. My guess is you could start there for the sportbrake (deleting that pair) and then if you desire more, modify, remove/replace the rear boxes.

 

I appreciate everyones comments thus far. One thing that i was kinda bummed about was the lack of apple car play. From what i understand 2021 sedans get CarPlay but there's nothing for the SB since its discontinued here in the states. We have CarPlay on my wife's CRV and we both find it to be a real nice convenience. So i guess my question is 2 fold?

A. Is there a good way to retrofit apple CarPlay here in the states? so far from what I'm seeing a lot of it is just for the UK/EU

B. Assuming that there isn't, how does everyone feel about the InControl Apps? reading some of the reviews in the apple app store are brutal lol

Also, a thrid question but not directly related to the 2 above. I had asked above about the in control vs the pro system. Is there anyway to retrofit the larger screen? saw a few OEM units on ebay? does anyone know if its a plug and play type of thing? would all i need is the larger screen or is there more hardware behind the scenes? Reason i ask is because a good number of the cars i see for less have the regular 8inch screen.

 

I have carplay on my SB when using the usb/llightning cable

 

No way! I was under the impression I was SOLwith car play. Can I ask how you got it to work?

 

I've got Android Auto and Apple Carr Play on my '18. Have you tried plugging in a USB cord?

 

With Android Auto I've found that the system is fussy about the USB cable used to connect the cellphone. When I tried with a cable I've used successfully for charging my cellphone, the car would not recognize my cellphone at all. I dug out another cable and it connected to the cellphone straight away.
However, I wasn't impressed with Android Auto - the car screen resolution was quite fuzzy and only a limited number of my phone's icons came up on the car screen. Audio quality playing the mp3 tracks on my phone was quite poor - and far worse than audio quality using the Bluetooth connection between phone and car.
Since the Bluetooth connection is automatic as soon as I get into the car with my phone, and thus there's no hassle keeping re-connecting a cable, I don't bother with Android Auto and rely instead on Bluetooth.