Advice please - Jaguar XF 3.0d Portfolio S

[The Beaver King]

Hello Jaguar enthusiasts of PH, I'm wondering if you could provide some advice/feedback/comment on the below?

I'm changing jobs in the next month or so and looking at going down the car allowance route in lieu of the company car. I've been doing a bit of research over the last few few weeks and I'm jumping between a BMW 4/6 series or the Jaguar XF. The Jaguars seem to be far better 'bang for buck' compared to the German options, have pretty good reviews and I think the 2011-16 XFs are super sexy, so I'm leaning more this way.

So I'm looking in particular at the XF 3.0 litre diesel Portfolio S. £17.5 - £22.5k seems to get you a 3 - 4 year old model with sub- 40k miles and FSH. Specification-wise, I'm adamant it has to have reversing camera (couldn't be without now) and memory seats. I've heard the sports seats are a border-line 'must have' for long journeys and the basic sound system is pants and you need the H/K upgrade. I'd like a sunroof as well, but these seem even rarer...

So a few questions really before I take the plunge:

• Any common faults to expect with the XF or 3.0 diesel? I've heard mention of DPF issues, which I'm hoping shouldn't affect me as I do circa 500-1000 miles a week.
• Given the above mileage, do you think the standard suits are okay or should I be hunting down something with the sport seats? (Do these come at a certain trim level or are they an optional extra?)
• Is there anything I should know about the XF before buying one? Like 'make sure you get one with X, Y & Z because...'

Appreciate this is a bit of a brain dump, but any comments are really welcome.

Thanks

ETA - Just to provide some insight into my driving habits:

• I do circa 25,000 miles a year, mainly long distance (circa 100 mile runs).
• Currently have a Mercedes C350e (the plug-in hybrid), so I've been a bit spoilt with circa 250 bhp and reverse camera.
• I'm budgeting about £1000 a year for servicing and general maintenance. Assuming no major faults, does that sound about right?

Edited by The Beaver King on Thursday 25th October 15:35

[Wooda80]

Assuming we are talking about the last of the old shape here?

All post 2011 Diesel S Portfolios came with the Sports Seats as standard. A delete option to the seats out of the non-S Portfolio was available but was rare, usually only specced on cars which were originally owned by Jaguar themselves. These delete option seats are easily identifiable by the contrast hoop ( different colour leather ) in the seat facings.

Apart from the side bolster adjustment the delete option seats have the same adjustments as the sports seats so any difference in comfort would be down to personal preference. I suspect most people judge their preference on the appearance of the respective seats rather than their feel.

Similarly, all Portfolios will have either Bowers & Wilkins or Meridian Surround sound systems. This is dependent on their age rather than one being an extra cost option.

Hope that helps

ETA - Reverse Camera & memory seats were standard on Portfolio. Harmon Karden was never available, see above for premium audio fitments. Belt change at 7 years / 112000miles. Crank bearing failure at six figure mileage has been reported, but most makes have some kind of Achilles' Heel when you get to those realms of age & mileage, Certainly doesnt affect them all.

Edited by Wooda80 on Thursday 25th October 19:27

[10storeylovesong]

I’ve had my 2010 xf-s Portfolio for just over 2 years. Got it from a main dealer with 53k and it’s just rolled over 80k. I used to drive from Reading to Peterborough every week and could do the drive there, full day in the office an£ drive back again with no bother.

It’s great to drive and really comfy. I would recommend the extended warranty as i’ve Had a couple of issues including failed tyre pressure sensor, fuel level sensor and a minor oil leak. The worst was a crack in the inlet manifold that caused it to go into l8mp mode on the M1, but Jag dealt with them all with no issues - even loaned me an F-Pace whilst they fixed the manifold as I was supposed to be the driver for my sister’s wedding 😎

Back to the car
Pluses: Seats v comfy and supportive, quick (especially in Dynamic, sport and manual), spacious interior, quiet, good camera and sensors for parking, B&W stereo sounds great & good sat nav. I’ve got some other toys like directional headlights and cooling seats which are nice touches and finally th3 air vents opening and closing are fun, if slightly pointless😃

Minuses: Economy could be better, but if you’re generally motorway driving then you’ll get about 450/500 miles out of a tank), 20” low profile wheels are prone to cracks (but that’s not just Jags),

Still puts a smile on my face when I get in it, was a toss up between this and a 430 grand coupe, glad I went for this.

Hope this helps

[fatboy b]

I’m currently doing 20k a year in an XFR-S. I do about 12k business, so that covers much of the fuel costs. I did have an XFS, bought new in 2014, but kicked myself for not getting V8 at the time. The R-S was 18 months old with 2600 on the clock at putchase. 2 years on the worst I’ve had go wrong is a creaky driver’s seat.

[flying-banana]

I can't offer any diesel specific comments, only some general XF ones...

- air con condenser can fail £300+
- 20 inch wheels aren't the most robust
- 2011 onwards standard seats are better than the earlier ones, so it might be worth trying them before dismissing cars without sports seats
- B&W hi fi is worth having
- heated front windscreen is great
- gearbox benefits from an oil & filter change at 60k
- I'm not sure if the S has the option of the LSD (it might be part of a performance pack), if so, then expect rear brake wear to be higher than the front
- check the Premium Luxury trim level, it may have all you need...

I don't think that there's anything to be scared of, so good luck

[fatboy b]

The 20” Varunas on the R-S are very robust. They’re forged. I’ve hit a bad pothole that would have buckled a Draco. The Varuna didn’t blink.