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February 20th , 1998 
XJ 3.2 Sport : two elements in one |
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| Which seems ironic as the chromed leaping cat does not
embellish the hoods of current models like the Jaguar XJ 3.2 Sport. Presumably due to
hysterical fears that its bared fangs might tear into hapless pedestrians - a pity,
because it would look right at home on this car. The style and stance are unmistakably Jaguar, a big saloon that sits low and squat on the road for its size, with shapely flanks that have inspired a few imitators, and `retro' design cues everywhere to ensure that its heritage is clear. Fluting in the hood to accentuate the quad lights is clearly reminiscent of the XJ40, the grille could be from any Jaguar, and a chromed accent on the bootlid looks as though it was recycled from the original XJ6. (Well, it certainly looks familiar.)
The analogue clock is a nice traditional touch, as are the rest of the instruments and the timber panels. Along with modern niceties like illuminated twin vanity mirrors and a drop-down sunglasses holder. Very elegant - but beware of wooden wheels in hot sun ! The XJ Sport's driving seat is one very comfortable place to be, and has 12 power adjustments or so I'm told - without an instruction manual, I'm not sure I found them all. But it has no memory setting (that comes with the more expensive Sovereign or supercharged XJR models), and the steering wheel is tilt adjustable only, not for reach.
And there's actually not much room around the pedals. They're very comfortable at most times but when the cruise control is on it can be fun deciding where to put your right foot . The inviting interior also has the aroma of leather, but we don't have smell-o-vision... XJ's body is not exactly short at just over 5 metres, but there are clear indications of where the front corners are, to avoid expensive nudges in car parks. The rear is not quite so easily judged however, thanks to the high waisted design of the rear window. The steering has a good level of assistance in town, enough to almost make you forget this car's size - it delivers a reminder in tight suburban corners - but it loads up beautifully on the open road to offer constant feedback to the driver. Remote locking is performed with two discrete little squeaks, literally mouse-quiet, with not even flashing lights to wake the neighbours at 3am. I think our test car was fitted with the `standard' stereo rather than the optional Harman Kardon system. The option must be exceptional, because the basic unit features a CD stacker with steering wheel-mounted controls, and is very good in its own right.
Spine-tingling, and at such times it can be hard to remember that this is only a 3.2
litre - but an all-alloy quad-cam good for 179 kW and 316Nm of torque. The V8 runs on 95 octane PULP, and if pedalled too vigorously you can almost judge your speed by the fuel gauge (or the trip computer's instant fuel consumption read-out). Listening too often to the above-mentioned symphony resulted in a wallet-emptying consumption of 19.95 L/100kms (14.5mpg), but more sensible and dignified behaviour returned 13.1L/100 (22mpg). Not so bad for a fairly small capacity engine hauling a rather large body. The 5-speed auto is extremely smooth in Drive, and its J-gate transmission selector can provide a highly enjoyable drive. An auto actually designed to be driven manually, with real input from the driver, it is more involving than a `flick forward, flick back' tiptronic style shifter.
In fact, it almost became boring on twisty bits of road, the thing was just so damn predictable. But when I switched off its Automatic Stability Control, the XJ suddenly became a `real' sport saloon. Still poised and predictable, but with more edginess to its response in corners, especially at the rear end with subtle oversteer so easily dialled up. Braking seemed odd at first, the pedal having a slightly `spongy' feel, but after that first application it was obvious that the big discs (all four of them ventilated) have no trouble pulling the Jag up. The pedal Well, if we must ride in the back.... just has a really good progressive feel, and is extremely effective.The XJ's headlights are as good as they look, with a decent low beam and a high beam that is definitely meant for high speed night driving, with those secondary driving lights. The flasher lever may be on the left, but is dual-action; push on to high, pull back to flash. What really sets the Jaguar XJ 3.2 Sport apart is its feel - its soul, if you like - because this is a big luxury saloon that is also a driver's car. Just as I fell for the snarling dark side of its personality, milady declared herself in love with its purring pussycat side. That may sound simple, but combining the two elements in one package does not always work - not always as well as this.
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A rich aroma of leather wafts out
through its wide-opening doors, and you peer in at a steering wheel that is a thing of
beauty, half wood and half leather - though the leather undoubtedly feels better, the wood
looks superb (but gets incredibly hot if parked in the sun for too long).
That's fine, but getting in and
out can be a challenge for taller drivers, as the low floor means putting the wheel up to
its highest point before exiting, in order to avoid getting your knees jammed against it
and your feet hopelessly tangled in the pedals. 
You can enjoy the music because
the Jag is so quiet and refined most of the time, it doesn't even have that noticeable a
V8 burble - but press the accelerator far enough and for long enough, and a glorious
induction wail emanates from under the hood. 
Handling of the XJ initially
seems difficult to define, as it is a big car that feels like something considerably
smaller. The suspension is well-balanced between luxury saloon and sports tourer, the
Pirelli P6000 235/50 ZR17s passing on very little thump or road noise for such rubber even
on our coarse chip bitumen. (I had them set at 34psi, or 235Kpa, quite a bit more than
they came with.)
Nuts-N-Bolts
: Jaguar XJ 3.2 Sport