Hello everyone,

While this isn't a formal hello (I'll save that for later) as I've yet to purchase a Jag, I thought I'd join the forum, say hello and start asking some questions.

I've been a long time member of M3post and if any of you ever came from M3post or even E90post, you'd most likely remember me and my car under the call sign, MMMorish. After 2500 or so posts most people remember me as the member who always had a random pic of Burt Reynolds as my avatar (was a big Bandit and Cannonball Run fan as a kid) and not by my actual call sign lol. Either way, I thought I'd choose the same avatar here for fun haha.

Anyhow, back to Jaguars. I've alway been a fan of the styling but always stayed away of fears of bad reliability. Well, after my third BMW in a row and after having owned the E92 M3 since new back in 08', the time came for me to look for a new car and I definitely didn't want another sports car again and I'm not a fan of any of their current offerings. So that made me look long and hard at the Jaguar XJL.

My reasons for the switch...

First and foremost, the X351 XJL is by far the sexiest full size luxury car on the market, hands down! The new S-Class is gorgeous too but they're ubiquitous and I just refuse to buy new again.

Second, I love how the Jaguar is composed on the road. I mean, it's luxurious and soft but man does that thing boogie when needed and that snarl and bark that comes from that V8 is intoxicating. And I'm not even buying a SC model as I don't care for the extra performance and fuel costs. The NA engine is engaging and rewarding in its own ways.

Also, I love the fact that its so exclusive and there aren't many on the road. I live in a pretty affluent community where S-Class's, 7 Series and a ton of Audi's cruise the streets to no end... but the Jaguar, especially the XJ, is such a rare sight in my hood.

Lastly, most of you guys are probably thinking why I might go from an E92 M3 to an XJ, the answer is this. I'm tired of sports cars in general and while my M3 only has 45000km on it and is still new in terms of milage, it's also a 6 year old BMW that is out of warranty... Also, I bought the car just when my wife and I started dating and since then, we've married and had a baby. We travel a lot and can use all the space we can get, hence the XJL. Finally, I own a private high end limo service and thought that the XJL can be a great car to add to the fleet while still keeping it as my own personal car. Win win!

Okay, now that that's out of the way, let me tell you a bit about the Jaguar I'm looking at.

It's a 2011 XJL, Indigo Blue over Navy/London Tan (this is a first, as all my cars are typically grey over black), 19" Toba wheels, 60000km or 37000 miles, CPO warranty until 160000km or June 2017, fully loaded but for some reason has the basic Jaguar stereo system, which is fine since my semi-audiophile couldn't tell the two apart.

Finally, some questions.

1. Any of you regret buying an XJ?
2. Any of you come from a focused sports car and into the XJ and found yourself bored with its driving characteristics?
3. Any of you who bought the navy/London tan interior get bored of it or thought there was too much blue?

I think that's it for now. I know I'll have more questions to come.

Thanks again and I look forward to your input.

Cheers!

Nick

 

Hi Nick,
I bought a used 2011 XJL last November, and have no regrets.
I also own a 2009 Chevrolet Corvette, 436 horsepower, six speed manual transmission, with magnetic ride control, selective exhaust, and some ninety aftermarket upgrades.
I don't compare my two seat sports car Vette to my five passenger luxury limo XJL, except to appreciate they are both outstanding performers and values in their own categories.
Interior and exterior colors are a matter of personal choice; their really is no right or wrong, except perhaps for resale value at trade-in time.
You hit the nail squarely on the head when you said the XJL is by far the sexiest full sized luxury car on the market.
The standard Jaguar audio system is outstanding, so unless your impressed with "premium names" rather than premium performance, don't be concerned.
Tint the rear side windows, and your XJL is definitely tax deducible as a true limousine.
Good luck with your decision. Jaguar's quality is definitely on a par with any others.

 

I came from a Mercedes CLS550 and, except for the GPS, have no regrets. I have a XJ-R...

The Jaguar GPS was probably designed before people were worried with the impact of year 2000 on computer software...

But it is a cool looking cool driving car...

 

I traded in a 2009 335i for the XJL. The 335 just wasn't that comfortable on the highway, and we needed more legroom now that my daughter is getting almost as tall as me. The steering on the 335 was almost telepathic, but that also meant it was darty and liked to ride the grooves in the road. In town the Jag is big, harder to maneuver, harder to park than the BMW. It's also more comfortable and gets many more looks. It's good enough in the handling department to make the curves fun while maintaining better ride quality than the BMW. (The Dynamic Mode button, as Top Gear suggests, should probably just be marked "Worse") On the highway, it's absolutely brilliant. The V8 is really nice, and sounds great. That fact that it's not much heavier, but more powerful than the 335 means acceleration is excellent. And the massaging seats....mmmm. My dog wholeheartly approves of the ventilated rear seats, as well. I don't regret it at all.

That being said, like John, I've got a Vette in the stable as well. The two are not comparable at all, totally different functions. The Vette only comes up to the bottom of the Jag's windows. It's loud, rough, and brings a smile to your face every time that 5.7L V8 fires up. If the Vette were a Muppet, it would be Animal.

 

Hi,
I just had to respond to this thread because I did go from an M3 to an XJL.
First, I loved the M3. It was 2008 6 sp manual, black/black sedan with fold down rear seats (oddly enough, a rare option with was standard on the E92 coupe). The M3 was a blast to drive, but it was, in my opinion, a race car. Perhaps if I got the DCT automatic, I'd still have it. The 400hp NA V8 was a beast that was loud - perhaps in a good way, but not when taking guests out to dinner. It revved high and loud and it was difficult to drive the car gently. I really liked the dimensions of the M3. Big enough on the inside, great recaro seats, and even surprisingly comfy in the rear seats. The car was agile.

I had been eyeing the new XJ's since they came out and love the look, and have owned 2 1996 XJ12s in the past, as well as a 2000 XKR conv. I like the big stretch sedans especially with the picnic trays.

One day I decided I was over the M3, took it to the Jag dealer on a Saturday, and fell in love with a 2012 XJL. Test drove a few, and took home an Azurite Blue w/ London Tan (beautiful leather color and piping).

Now for the Jag. It is a big car. Huge! It is fast - I think it is even faster than the M3. It's easy to drive on the highway. My only complaints are the rear visibility is terrible due to the high trunk. Learning to use the mirrors and the reverse camera helped a lot. The second is navigating in parking lots. I was familiar with this because of both of my XJ12's. Parking an XJL is like parking a Battleship. It could use bow and stern thrusters I generally park much further away with the XJL than the M3 (which was much narrower) to avoid door dings. All and all, nothing I can't deal with.

The reward of the XJL is the most beautiful exterior design, interior cabin, woodwork, leather, dash and a truly awe inspiring B&W sound system. I fell in love with the wood that wraps completely around the front dash below the windshield. The BMW M3 can not compete with any of those things.

2 totally different cars, both fun, but the Jag is my current favorite and very easy to live with, and as long as I'm not racing around a track, I think the 470HP 5.0 SC is generally faster than the M3. It's certainly easier to extract that speed and acceleration on the Jag than the 6 speed manual M3. Sport mode + Dynamic mode + pedal to the floor = hold on tight. Very fun. Sport mode also gives you a great engine exhaust pop and crackle on downshifts just like Ferrari and Lamborghini when you are behind or alongside them.

My personal experience anyway.

Regards,
Chip
2012 XJL 5.0 SC Blue/London Tan

 

Sorry for the late reply everyone and thank you for posting in this thread.

Funny that a couple of you own Corvette's because so do I. It's a 95' rag top that's still in mint condition and I've owned since I was a teenager. Sadly, I don't have the time to drive it and it's been sitting in my garage the last few years just waiting to be driven. I've promised my 14 month old daughter that it will be hers when she's 16.

As for the Jag being a big car and harder to drive around town and park, I own a 61' Lincoln Continental and a 64' Rolls Royce Silver Cloud III stretch and both of those measure out to about 20 feet long and I have no problems parking either one of them. I actually like the bigger cars.

Couple of more questions...

1. Any of you guys mod your XJ? No matter how many times I say I'm not going to modify my next car, I usually have parts on order before my next car even reaches my driveway lol. So far I've been eyeing the Mina lip spoiler and I'm thinking of refinishing the 19' Toba wheels in a charcoal grey similar to the ones on the R. This is a bug that there is no cure for!

2. Does that infotainment system ever get less complicated? While it's a tad better than the first generation iDrive that's on my E92 M3, it's not that much better for a car that's 3 years newer. Also, is there a software flash that can update the system?

3. What kind of milage per fill up are you guys getting? Let's face it, no one buys an XJ for the fuel milage but I'd be curious to know how many miles or km you guys are getting.

Hmm, I think that's it for now. I'm sure they'll be more.

Thanks everyone

Cheers!

Nick

 

1. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. I don't do appearance mods on my cars, and no good will come from mucking around with the suspension on the XJ.

2. I've gotten used to the touchscreen, except the delay is still annoying. Most everthing can be accessed from 3 or 4 main screens, so once you get used to those it's ok. I keep an iPod attached for basic listening, and everything else (specific song search or podcast, and most navigation) is done from my android phone.

3. Between 23 and 26 mpg on the highway, depending on which way the wind is blowing. That's at a pretty constant 80mph. Our summer standard 20 kt south wind is great going north, but not so much on the return trip. Most of my 'in-town' driving is on 4-6 lane highway, so I still get about 21 mpg.

 

I upgraded the tires to Continental ExremeContact DWS ultra-performance all season for superior hydroplaning resistance, wet traction, ride and noise comfort, high speed capability, less unsprung weight, and a 50M mile warranty and lifetime road hazard replacement.
I also installed front and rear wheel arch Jaguar splash guards, and intend to install ceramic brake pucks and caliper covers to cut down on wheel/tire dirtying. I updated the Jaguar GPS in December but still use a far superior dash top mounted seven inch Garmin GPS for which I made a sun shade.
Interior-wise I added matching auto-folding umbrellas with chained chrome Leaper ornaments, a visor mounted ivory leather C/D, credit card, and pen holder (which covers the ugly warning sticker on the passenger side visor), a leather two wine bottle holder in the rear armrest recess, added clock and temperature gauges, and penlight with pen inside the rear passenger arm rest, added a burl walnut lockable rear floor center-mounted "refreshment" consul I custom converted from a cigar humidor, and a rear seat pocket leather portfolio with burl walnut ballpoint pen. I also added Jaguar decorative brake, accelerator and foot rest pedals, and lambs wool front and rear seat-belt wraps. Exterior wise I added "J A G U A R" and "5.0L" lettering to the trunk (boot) lid, and a chrome-look license frame holder to display my NC "XJL" tag and chrome Growler valve caps. In the trunk I have a matching leather holder for four stemless wine glasses and leather coasters. The rear side windows have been tinted and one rear door cove contains compact binoculars.
I average about 18 to 19 MPG combined in spite of often employing the superior acceleration and passing capability of the N/A 5.0 L V-8.

 

This list of leather and wood interior mods just made me drool! lol


I'll be PMing you soon to find out where I can get some of the mentioned mods. They'll go so well with my limo service. Thanks for some ideas!

 

Anyone know where I can find the front splitters like on the speed pack equipped cars or even XJR? Aftermarket is fine...

 

Your welcome. By the way, those Continental all-season tires also provide superior snow traction, but I guess if I lived in Toronto like you I would go with full blown snow tires all around in the winter. Even then, just keep in mind how little road clearance this car provides.

 

Haha, but srsly Luxedrive, and you probably already know this, tinting the windows is NOT what makes a car tax deductible in Canada.

And personally, I dislike the London Tan interior. It'd be interesting to see it in a limo I guess, but I'd buy the brown dash/steering wheel trim for me.

 

Yes, you're right about the tinted windows. It does take more than that for a car to qualify as tax deductible in Canada, however, if the car is directly used within a company to generate a taxable income, the expenses associated with the car are indeed tax deductible.


London Tan is a personal preference and limos aren't always black on black. My other limo is blue on moccasin leather and that car gets enough business to justify the colour.

 

Yes of course, and honestly I've only seen most of the interior colours on the configurator. In reality I'd probably buy pretty much any colour for the right price/specs.