Jaguar has taken the wraps off the XF Sportbrake and this car will take on the likes of the newly introduced 5 Series Touring, E-Class Estate, Volvo V90 and A6 Avant. The newly launched British estate will make its way to American soil for the first time.
The XF Sportbrake wears a fascia similar to the XF saloon. However, beyond the B-Pillar, it is all new. The full-LED headlights are doubled-up with F-Type-esque tail lamps in the estate bodystyle. The extension over the saloon is beautifully morphed in to the XF Sportbrake and this has to be the best looking estate car on sale today. The Sportbrake boasts of 565-litre of boot space. Put the 40:20:40 seats down and the capacity is boosted to a whopping 1700-litres. The electric tailgate is foot operated as well.
The boot space is on par with the 5 Series Touring, but is almost 100-litres less than the E-Class Estate. Jaguar claims the new Sportbrake comes with more potent air suspension to carry the additional loads, while the vehicle is now capable of towing upto two tonnes. The estate is 6mm shorter than the outgoing car and has a 51mmlonger wheelbase. This has helped in improving the cabin space and also betters the car’s ride, asserts the British carmaker. The new Sportbrake tips the scales at 1,660 kg. Owing to the part-aluminium construction, the estate claims a 50:50 weight distribution.
The cabin is scrounged from the XF saloon.There’s the same 10-inch infotainment system dominating the dashboard and a panoramic sunroof for that added sense of space.However, Jaguar claims the cabin is a lot roomier and has plenty of space all around.
Engine wise, the XF Sportbrake is powered by choice of three engine options with either six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. The Ingenium oil burners from the XF saloon will be available in different state of tunes, whereas the gasoline engine is the 2.0-litre unit, but the US-spec gets a 3.0-litre V6 petrol as well. There has been no word on the more potent version of the estate as yet, but we expect the XF with RS badging to follow soon.
The Sportbrake gets Jaguar’s intelligent all-wheel-drive system as well. The system is capable of channeling the torque to the wheel with low traction, instantaneously thus making the estate more practical. Other driving aids include adaptive cruise control, blindspot monitoring system, lane assist and driver fatigue warning system.
In UK, prices for the XF Sportbrake start at £34,910 which is just £2,420 more than the XF sedan.It is available for sale in UK right now and will make its way to the American and Chinese market in coming days. Indian launch of the XF Sportbrake is unlikely.
