The most attainable Jag yet, the 2016 XE Sports saloon has been officially revealed at an exclusive event in London, ahead of its public debut at the Paris Motor next month. The new XE aims to challenge the legends like the BMW 3-Series, Mercedes C-Class, Audi A4 and the likes in the segment and will go on sale across Europe in the first half of 2015. A vital model for Jaguar’s future, the XE puts forward the British marquee’s best foot forward in the field of design, engineering and awesomeness.
Starting with the aesthetics, the Jaguar XE does not look radically different from other Jag models and the design language is rather evolutionary. The front fascia is strikingly familiar to the XF but gets a more upright grille and tapered headlights with LED DRLs. The front is complimented with a long hood that gives a glimpse of the sporty nature of the saloon, while the coupe-like roofline also takes inspiration from the XF. A special mention about the side profile that looks particularly confident with accentuated wheel arches and a receding shoulder line that merges well into the notchback styled rear. The tail lights take inspiration from the F-Type and the E-Type with the horizontal line intersecting a roundel.
In terms of dimensions, the 2016 Jaguar XE manages to give a good fight to the BMW 3-Series and the Audi A4 in the segment. The XE gets a longer wheelbase compared to the Germans at 2835 mm, while the overall length is longer than a 3-Series but shorter than the A4 at 4672 mm. The width is on par with the rivals at 1850 mm, while the coupe-like roofline makes for a shortened height at 1416 mm. The XE also sits 15 mm lower than other models on the standard suspension.
The mainstay of the Jaguar XE is the extensive use of aluminium that has gone into the making of the chassis and body of the sports saloon. The body has been riveted and bonded comprising of 75 percent light-weight aluminium and has helped the company save extensive amounts of weight on the XE. While the official figure is not out yet, the 2016 XE is expected to weigh just 1200 to 1250 kgs, courtesy of the one of its kind construction.
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Being a Jag, special emphasis was laid out to the ride and handling from the start and the new XE gets a sophisticated suspension setup to provide the best feedback to the driver behind the wheel. The saloon sports a double wishbone setup at the front, while the rear gets an independent integral link system that is certainly a segment first and is more often seen on exotics because of the high costs. The company has made sure that comfort is the best in class, with all major suspension components made out of aluminium. Furthermore, there is also the advanced EPAS system that ensures precise feedback coming from the steering wheel at all times.
Moving inside the cabin, the 2016 Jaguar XE has been designed to project quality and the sportiness of the saloon. The centre console houses most of the controls and compliments the driver focused theme inside. There are host of textures; wood veneers as well as aluminium and piano black dashboard finishes on offer that will spruce up the cabin to match your taste. Apart from the looks, the cabin is also feature rich and sports the 8-inch In-Control infotainment central touchscreen system. The XE also offers Bluetooth and USB connectivity, audio streaming and updatable navigation along with Wi-Fi hotspot. There is also a panoramic glass roof option available on the XE, while the boot space is pretty big providing a capacity of 485-litres.
Jaguar has stated that the 2016 XE will be available with at least five engine options and has revealed the specifications of two of its most prominent engines. Starting with the smallest, the base variants of the XE will get the newly developed 2.0-litre diesel motor that is part of the new Ingenium family and produces 161 HP of power and 380 Nm of torque. The engine also turns out to be the most frugal claiming a fuel efficiency of 26.5 km/l with CO2 emissions reduced to 99 g/km.
The top of the line XE gets the 3.0-litre supercharged V6 petrol motor from the F-Type that pushes out 335 BHP and 450 Nm of torque. With an overwhelming power to weight ratio, the saloon can do 0-100 km/hr in just 4.9 seconds, with an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/hr. Apart from these, there is also a more powerful version of the 2.0-litre Ingenium diesel engine and two 2.0-litre petrol engines with different power outputs on offer. The engines will be mated to either a 6-speed manual or 8-speed automatic transmission options from ZF. Jaguar has not ruled out the possibility of offering the 9-speed unit from the Evoque in the future.
Despite being an entry-level Jaguar, the XE offers a plethora of comfort and safety features including stereo forward-facing camera for traffic sign recognition, lane departure warning; blind spot monitoring, self-parking and adaptive cruise control. The stereo system comes from Harman Kardon emitting 250 watts from 6-speakers, while there is also the optional 380 watt 10-speaker system from Meridian on offer. There is also a four-wheel drive equipped variant planned for 2016 with the All Surface Programme Control for effective traction.
Even though the British brand is not looking at 3-Series kind of volumes for the 2016 Jaguar XE, the company is optimistic to sell around 1,00,000 units annually once the sales are in full steam globally. The entry-level XE will be priced around 27,000 Pounds (Rs. 26.26 lakhs), a tad bit more than competition, but with some serious levels of awesomeness to boast off. The 2016 XE will make its Indian launch exactly a year later during the festive season and is sure to capture the fancy of many as a perfect and stylish alternative to the usual Germans in the segment.
