Because this is the estate, boot space will likely be your priority, so let’s start there. It has a very useful 563 litres with the rear seats in their normal position, although you lose the car’s underfloor storage if you go for a mild-hybrid diesel (because its 48V battery is stored there), whereas you will keep it if you have a P250 or P300 petrol.
By comparison, the current BMW 5 Series Touring has 570 litres, while the Mercedes E-Class Estate and Audi A6 Avant make do with 615 litres and 565 litres respectively. Compare it to a similarly priced rival like the BMW 3 Series Touring, however, and the Jaguar wins by 63 litres.
The space itself is reasonably useful, with a smattering of nets to keep smaller items from rolling around, various shopping hooks and back seats that fold in a 40/20/40 split. It’s missing certain features such as a divider, and the diesels don’t get any underfloor storage, which is a shame.
Moving to the second row and you will find enough head room for adults around 6ft, even when the car is fitted with a space-robbing panoramic glass roof. Leg room is just about enough, but you will find more space to stretch out in the back of the 5 Series Touring or E-Class Estate. Notably, there are few creature comforts back here, save for a couple of air conditioning vents.
Up front, it’s a different story, because Jaguar made a significant step up in material quality over the preceding XF Sportbrake. Here, this car feels as luxurious and well-appointed as its exterior looks would have you believe. It comfortably matches its German competition for perceived material quality (and in some cases beats them) and has enough technology without feeling deprived of traditional, useful features.
As standard, you get an 11.4in infotainment touchscreen that is slick and pretty easy to use, with clear and attractive software that is both reliable and robust. In some places it’s not very logically laid out and will take a bit of getting used to, but it is at least fitted with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto as standard.
At the foot of the screen sits a row of dials and haptic feedback buttons for the air conditioning. Generally, they’re quite easy to use and much more intuitive than they would be if they were integrated into the screen. But the gloss black finish to some of the controls quickly stains with fingerprints, and those with haptic feedback feel cheap. What’s more, you’re required to pull the rotary dial to adjust the fan speed and temperature, and because it doesn’t have an especially grippy surface, your fingers can slip off it as you use it.
The driving position is quite good, with as much adjustment as you would need to the steering column and seats. However, the pedals are so offset to the right that your foot can sometimes slip from the accelerator.
