The only Jag worth a shit compared to the competition right now is the F type.

The F-Pace is a rebadged Range Rover Velar without the prestige. They are pretty unreliable and really not worth the money against the German rivals.

I would call them a middle-of-the-road luxury brand. Are they they nicest? Probably not. The worst? Probably not.

Honestly Jaguar suffered horribly under a lack of direction and investment when Ford owned it in the '00s. The brand really took a nosedive. Since then Ford sold them, they've done an admirable job improving their quality and engineering, but they still suffer somewhat from a lack of identity. Are they supposed to be a sporty luxury brand (a la, Porsche)? A mainstream luxury brand (a la, Mercedes)? Difficult to pin them down. But because of their poor positioning, they are often an overlooked luxury brand. But that's not to say they make bad cars - they're a helluva lot better than they were 15 years ago. If you like how they look, take one for a test drive and see what you think.

Just better SUV's out there for the money.

Excessive maintenance costs and depreciation make these a poor value.

I mean a classic e-type is arguably the best looking jag ever and one of the best looking cars ever

As a former F-Type owner who is also biased, I’m gonna have to disagree with you this one

https://preview.redd.it/nidp1ju2909f1.jpeg?width=1280&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=27ecb0e3a7901e61f1a180583d3e8b4db3f55477

I own a F Type R, but the E-Type is my future old man drive around town on the weekend retirement car. It's beautiful.

https://preview.redd.it/x5c1o78p209f1.jpeg?width=5908&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=714587670a05e5de92ab72fa44e79fc890d21a06

I might be biased too, I think the XKR is the best looking modern-day Jaguar.

Always look back at my F-Type after I park it. That’s the measure of a car’s beauty

Sexy ad. I’m sad about the brand’s direction. Jaguar was never supposed to be a mass consumption vehicle. I think that’s the mistake they’ve made. Trying to compete with Mercedes and BMW which, to me, are common. They should’ve studied Aston and similar to see how to make low sales volume work even at lower prices. I like that I rarely see another Jag on the street. I sincerely don’t know what I’ll do once my current girl (an XJL Portfolio) has run her course. I love the brand, but my love is hella conditional.

The F-pace is the only jag that made a profit for decades, and in SVR form its absolutely best in class.

Absolutely missed the point with this. No one was buying the cars. So for all the “great” adverts, it wasn’t working.

Wasn't working? JLR's best ever sales years were 2014/15 (469,209 vehicles sold, of which 76,930 were Jaguar cars, the rest Land Rovers) and 2015/16 (487,065/83,986), So it was most certainly working when this advert was current!

They also tried to get into the British SUV space, of course - this was another disaster because as it turns out Land Rover has dominated that segment for about 100 years and continues to do so.

Jaguar and Land Rover are the same company. The F-Pace was Jaguar's best-selling vehicle, reaching 56,563 units in 2018, a year in which Jaguar sold 180,833 cars. The F-Pace is the only Jaguar vehicle remaining in production.

JLR had their best year in a decade in 2024/5 in terms of profits (£2.5bn) despite the halt in the production of Jaguar cars (apart from the F-Pace). 2025/6 will be a lot more challenging thanks to tariffs (US exports were temporarily halted) and the latest hacking event, which has caused the shutdown of all of their factories.

Whatever the wisdom of Jaguar's realignment to an electric future, the overall company is doing very well.

I want them to reinvent themselves, and I want them to be both clever and brave. I have no problem with a sedan that runs on electrified propulsion - that’s all quite promising. But: I don’t think they should abandon the best aspects of their traditional design language, and I don’t think they should go all in on electric propulsion. I think a plug-in hybrid approach would let them move into a space where there is the maximum amount of room for innovation and a maximized opportunity to create distinctive, unique, and appealing cars. As a lot of people have said around here, Jaguar has nothing to lose - so the best approach is to go after a goal that is truly challenging and will produce vehicles with really robust, unique and appealing qualities.

I think one area where Jaguar goofed was reducing or eliminating the wood from the interior. It's much classier than plastic.

EV’s will be forced on a lot of people, sooner or later. It could be government regulation or it could be the rising costs of fossil fuel. Jaguar actually went all electric because their hand was forced by UK policies (which were inconveniently backtracked later on). Also, FYI, if you’re American like me then our perspective of EV’s is skewed. The rest of the world is adopting them at a much quicker rate.

So there’s definitely a market there, and it’s not already dominated by the Germans. The I-pace is actually credited as one of the first premium brand EV’s to get the formula right. So Jaguar actually knows a thing or two about this and has a good start.

This is how I see it: Currently, I have zero interest in any EV on the market. But in the back of my mind I know I might need to make the switch… someday. If/when the time comes, being able to get a Jag will make the “transition” easier.

The one and only

https://preview.redd.it/4h60smavm5ye1.jpeg?width=1200&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8e49be30607fae743095072065d4854e7493ccc4

Make Break Great Again

I'm not the only one erect, right...

It's not a Cherokee, is Cherokee Swedish cousin

Volvo cherokee fucking beautiful.... doesn't even look like a wagon anymore.... that's a true suv now.

Jaguar has made some... odd choices recently. The XE entry level sedan was widely praised for having the best handling dynamics in the segment, but never got a proper performance trim and the interior is super cheap and underwhelming compared to the 3 series and C class.

The XF was basically left to die.

The XJ was quite nice and was very well received, and I still see a bunch on the road, but it lost the big engine and the interior never measured up to its obvious competitor - the S-Class.

The SUVs sell well and are generally well-liked, and the iPace is slowly gaining market share.

And the F-Type is still very well-regarded as a great looking, great sounding boulevard cruiser, though unfortunately it makes a pretty sub-par sports car due to weight and being horrendously under-tired and on a very old platform. It's a fantastic car and an amazing alternative to the 911 for people that don't go to the track a lot, but the lack of performance chops means people tend to overlook it. Plus they've been sticking people around for like 4 years with vague rumors about the "next" F-Type, and I think we've all caught Jaguar fatigue.

Oh, and the XE Project 8 is insane, but ludicrously priced, and super limited production.

Basically, they're kind of floundering and don't have any idea about what kind of brand they want to be.

You probably mean what was Jaguar good at. They had a very unique styling and a great luxury feel, and after a bit of a rough patch reliability-wise during the 80's, they managed to create a beautiful marriage of old world class, impossibly gorgeous design, silky smooth ride, and great performance. But one day, they decided to ditch all that decades-old heritage and build the most derivative and uninteresting fleet cars for low level execs until they lost every iota of character that made the brand survive for almost a century.

I can tell you what Jaguar is NOT good at: Competing against the Germans.

For the segment? No. Not even close. First, 380 HP is way down on power. The RS4, M3, and C63 each have at least 40hp on it. Hell, even the M2, which is a whole class smaller has more power. This is a luxury sports sedan, not an economy hot hatch. Second, the XE S just came out - 3 years ago in Europe and 2 in the US. Well after the reputation was set with the R-spec which was... underwhelming. And finally, the S is the same chassis. Which is a damn good chassis, but it should be going after the M3 and C63, and the S doesn't. It's aimed squarely at the 340i. Maybe the M340i on a good day. That's not a sports trim in the segment. That's a "slightly more sporty for people who want a comfortable commuter but want to occasionally feel like they can vroom vroom" trim.

I will say the new XE is definitely better. But it's still not quite at MB or BMW levels, though it's getting there. The problem is that it's too little too late. The reputation had been set. That and the crazy lease deals Jaguar did to get some brand recognition have devalued the brand a bit, I think. As much as I dislike Maserati, they played the comeback game much much better - the Ghibli was hot garbage when it came out, but they never devalued the brand by leasing it for cheaper than a Camry. So it maintained status and gave them time to improve the platform to match the price. Also they didn't release three levels of sedan and a sports couple at a time when sedans and sports coupes were losing sales like crazy.

That's what i like about my 19 Mazda3. I get jaguar vibes fromnthe front end.

Oh, it's for sure a fantastic alternative to the 911. That's why I got mine. But it's also a different kind of car, and is falling behind rather quickly. When it came out, it was a match for the 911 and such on pure character and "vanity" specs - the kind that seem impressive and can reasonably be accomplished by average drivers. Things like 0-60, 0-100(mph), top speed, quarter mile time. The kinds of numbers that you can reasonably show off with. And it has so much more character than the 911! But it was an objectively worse sports car in really every way. Much slower around a track, less grip, worse braking, etc.

It's still a fantastic luxury muscle car, but the 911 caught up this generation in everything but looks and sound. And the F-Type has fallen even further behind on the sports car front. It really doesn't compete against the 911 any more, if it ever really did. More like the British SL63 AMG - fast as shit in a straight line, and maneuverable enough to have fun on a back road at street speeds, but not remotely competitive on a track. They need a clean sheet redesign in order to keep it competitive, and I'm not sure Jaguar has the money for that.

Is Jaguar the Nissan of premium brands?

Because let's see, do you buy their generic compact luxury SUV that's not nearly as good as an Audi/BMW/Mercedes, or their generic midsize luxury SUV that's not nearly as good as an Audi/BMW/Mercedes? Or maybe the 8-year-old sedan that's not nearly as good as an Audi/BMW/Mercedes.

The F-Type is Jaguar's only compelling vehicle, imo, just for how good it looks and how it sounds with the V-8, but it's ancient at this point too and going away soon.

Jaguar and Land Rover have had a rough couple decades. While historically English brands, they haven't had British ownership in decades.

JLR were both sold to Ford 20 years ago. And honestly Ford did nothing with them or for them, and the brand suffered immensely for it.

In 2008, Ford sold JLR to Indian company Tata Motors, who are predominantly an economy car manufacturer. They also have struggled to figure out how to design, market, and sell luxury cars.

So I wouldn't buy a Jaguar right now, but honestly it's because of poor leadership and management.

The only impressive thing about Jaguar is that they’re still in business despite how bad their products have been for decades.

The issue with Jaguar is that their dealership and service network doesn't compare to the other big luxury brands.

Most people buying these brands new want the best experience possible. They enjoy the amenities from the dealership. When there's a problem noticed during service(there always is), they'll offer to make the repair and send the customer off in a brand new loaner to enjoy in the meantime.

The later Ford years were the most reliable Jaguar has ever been.

i feel like the ford years were pretty reliable before the Tata pruchase, they just still kept with dated, gauche styling that had a niche audience and never adapted to the crowd.

Jags had pretty ostentatious exteriors, which some liked, but also gave others the feeling of someone trying to be a "cheap" Aston or something.

They also took WAY too long to updated their drivetrains.

Tell him to look at a CPO Genesis GV70 or 80. It may not have the brand cachet of BMW, Mercedes, Audi, or Jaguar, but it easily rivals them on luxury and features.

What does he actually want out of the driving experience?

Lexus LS

Tell him he is correct and go back to looking at used vehicles.

The best is always going to be Porsche, that’s a given, the Macan and the Cayenne are stunning, but if you don’t want to spend as much, the next best thing is BMW, they’re really close to Porsche in every aspect that matters for a step down in price. A left field pick would also be the Stelvio 4C, it’s the best handling SUV in its class by far and has a stunning engine, but does compromise the interior somewhat.

The GV70 and 80 are actually quite nice, but they are slower and won’t handle as well, great value for money though, I love their interiors.

No one gets press by praising a car. Jaguar is just as reliable as every other car/suv in its class (take that for what it’s worth). I’ve driven a Jaguar daily for over 13 years and have several in my garage. They are fine cars of well maintained.

What are you used to?

If you’re coming from a 2000 Toyota Corolla, there’s a heck of a lot more to go wrong then what you’re used to.

If you’re coming from an equivalent modern Ford or VW, the components of the Jaguar will be of a higher quality and cost more.

So in those cases, or ones like them, it will be a culture shock for you, unless you take the time to prepare yourself. Even if you’re doing an oil change in your driveway, things can be very expensive, let alone taking it to a specialist/dealer (which is what I always recommend).

However, when you compare it to equivalent brands like Porsche, Masersti, and whatever else, it’ll be more reliable and affordable overall. Not that the others are “bad”, but with the exception of Porsche, Jaguar outsells all other comparable brands. This means that it can do a lot more consumer testing then brands like Alfa or Maserati can. Jaguar also does work for other companies, and does the engines for every Land Rover produced, which helps to increase reliability. Porsche can do something similar, in that it’s able to raid the VW parts bin, which helps them keep reliability up. But generally, Porsches cost more then Jags to own.

When you compare to equivalent mainstream executive brands, such as Mercedes, Jaguar tends to fair well. Generally Jags will cost less to maintain then the equivalent German or Japanese car. That’s been the general consensus since the Ford takeover in the 90s. Which again, is not to suggest that German or Japanese executive cars are bad. I ran a similarly specified Mercedes against my Jaguar for awhile, and the Merc cost two or three times more to run. Make no mistake, both cars were awesome, and I loved them both.

If you’re used to large pickup trucks or SUVs, then you’ll find Jaguars in general to be cheaper. Barring the supercar class of vehicle, there’s nothing more expensive to run then the big trucks. Not because the design is flawed, but quite literally, physics and materials.

So in short, manage your expectations. They are luxury performance cars, with lots of technology. They will cost a fair whack of change to own. But as far as the class goes, they are about the same as anything else. At the end of the day, every car has the unique ability to drain your wallet, so you may as well enjoy the car you drive. It’s all about smiles per gallon.

My F-Pace diesel is about to tick over to 100k and it's been basically flawless since 2017

Get it with a warranty from JLR and you’ll be able to extend annually until it’s 10 years old 😊

I’ve driven most of these. E type for sure. XK comes in at 2nd place for me.

A very tough choice… an XKR-S GT for track days, but for other stuff, XK120 Supersonic, Pirana concept, E Type Lightweight (I hate the FHC’s roofline), and the Lister XJS 6.0 V12. Love ‘em all.

Xj6c

XJ-S. Love the look. Love the V12. Love mine.