A look at the history of the Jaguar XF.

An overview of the design history of the Jaguar XF.

The hugely popular Jaguar XF was initially introduced onto the market as a replacement for the Jaguar S-Type. Debuted at the Frankfurt Motor Show in 2007 the vehicle was instantly met with critical acclaim and interest from the public. Since then the car has become a staple for Jaguar and a favourite amongst consumers. The Jaguar XF was designed by top Jaguar design director Ian Callum who went for an entirely different look from its predecessor.

The overall style of the XF is derivative of the C-XF, features such as the iconic nose and lights including the oval mesh grille that takes inspiration from the original 1968 XJ. The very first Jaguar XF models were developed and designed at the Jaguar Whitley HQ based in Coventry under the alias X250. The actual manufacturing of the Jaguar XF was carried out in the Castle Bromwich plant in Birmingham however. New additional features were included in the new XF such as cutting edge air-conditioning vents fitted directly into the dashboard and a rotating gearshift dial which was known as the JaguarDrive Selector. 

The XF was released under a range of names in different countries including the Premium Luxury, Luxury, Portfolio, XFR and SV8. Additionally on the UK market a version was released specifically for the company car market under the name ‘Executive Edition’. This features a 3.0 litre lower tuned version and was launched in early 2011. The car also enjoyed success on the non-commercial market as in 2009 a new version of the XF Diesel S was announced for use by the UK police force.

In April 2011 new details were released by Jaguar that included an entire facelift planned for the XF. Amongst these were planned changes to both the front and rear outer design alongside more serious interior specifications such as adaptive cruise control and a brand new 187 bhp 2.2 litre four cylinder diesel engine. According to Jaguar this alongside an eight-speed automatic transmission will provide a much smoother drive and lower fuel consumption.