5 Series, E Class or Jag XF

[PMKeates]

I agree entirely. I am personally arriving at more refined and larger cars as time goes on, and will likely eventually wind up in an powerful S-Class if not bigger. The 535d is already at a point for me where it's ability to make progress is more than enough but the ride and comfort is probably less than ideal.

The reason I settled on it anyway was because there's nothing else in the £15-20k price range that has the same fuel effeciency and power level. If I could have upped budget to £25k I could manage an XF 3.0D, but it's 20% down on power, and while it's only £5k more than a 535d the TCO impact is much larger, as it's a newer car and in a steeper section of the depreciation curve and general residuals are weaker. The Audi and Merc offerings are not even worth considering.

 

[J1nxy]

I agree entirely. I am personally arriving at more refined and larger cars as time goes on, and will likely eventually wind up in an powerful S-Class if not bigger. The 535d is already at a point for me where it's ability to make progress is more than enough but the ride and comfort is probably less than ideal.

The reason I settled on it anyway was because there's nothing else in the £15-20k price range that has the same fuel effeciency and power level. If I could have upped budget to £25k I could manage an XF 3.0D, but it's 20% down on power, and while it's only £5k more than a 535d the TCO impact is much larger, as it's a newer car and in a steeper section of the depreciation curve and general residuals are weaker. The Audi and Merc offerings are not even worth considering.

At that price point I agree entirely with your purchase, and when I was buying at that price(ish) if I could have got a decent seating position I'd have bought the LCI 535d.

As I was looking at the 35K+ price point the XF 3.0DS fully kitted appeared and compared to everything else we looked at, including S Class's etc, there was nothing we preferred. If I could have got a new shape 3.0D XJ fully kitted that'd have been a different story but they were north of the 45K at the time...

 

[[TW]Fox]

The days where you bought a 5 Series unless you hated BMW's are sadly over - I don't think BMW will ever dominate this class quite as comprehensively as they used to again.

These days the E Class, XF and 5 Series are all absolutely fantastic cars and differ in ways of personal preference only - there is nothing inherently wrong with any of them and the type of driver you are will dictate which you like rather than which is the better car.

I'd have the 5 Series but thats because I prefer them, the XF and E Class are IMHO equally as good.

I deliberately didn't mention the A6. It's been getting less than glowing reports in comparison.

 

[Conscript]

The days where you bought a 5 Series unless you hated BMW's are sadly over - I don't think BMW will ever dominate this class quite as comprehensively as they used to again.

I wouldnt say 'sadly'. Surely its a good thing that the other manufacturers have lifted their game to level the playing field.

I wouldn't be buying a car of this sort for a long while, but if I was it would be good to know that I could comfortably choose any of the mentioned cars and not be thinking "but it's not a 5 series...'. It's nice to think that whatever you choose will be more than competent.

On a personal note, I think the Jag XF is a gorgeous looking car, with an interior to match, so Im told. Would definately love to own one if I was buying a car in this sector.

 

[Robbo]

I had an E350 CDI saloon for a day last year and it was utterly fantastic.

I much prefer them to the XF and to be fair I haven't really tried a 5 series so can't comment, but I imagine there isn't a huge difference.

I bet it will cost quite a lot more with all the kit on it though.

 

[mjt]

The new 5 Series is a quite frankly astonishing car, but it really depends on what options have been ticked and what's sitting under the bonnet.
You get a lot more for your money with an XF, which is in no way a bad car. The interior is beautiful and it drives very well too.

The A6 is a bit dull really in comparison, but still a very capable car.
I still think that the interior isn't *that* good on the A6, but then it can't be as good as an A7 or A8..

The Merc is a great car too, it really boils down to what you want from the car and how much you have to spend..

 

[griffo_001]

I love the look of the XF, especially the interior, I just wish the interior was built a bit better. The new E seems to have the better panel gaps on the interior trim, no doubt Audi and BM do to

Having said that I don't think there is a flaw in the rest of the XF package, except, up until now, the lack of a 4-pot diesel to rule the outside lane of the M6. And the lack of an estate model (Supposedly in the works).

Personally I wouldn't choose the A6 because its too similar to the A4 and A8, and because its fail-wheel-drive (Not that most reps would notice, you'd suspect).

I'd quite happily role about in either of the other 3 if given one, but if it were my money I'd side with the XF, but that's just personal preference and familiarity.

 

[J1nxy]

I love the look of the XF, especially the interior, I just wish the interior was built a bit better.

Which bit of the interior would you like them to build better?

 

[griffo_001]

Which bit of the interior would you like them to build better?

I'd like the capacitive glove box to work more often, and the shut lines in the centre console cup holder / storage bin covers to be better - I'm not sure if its the shape of the "wood" pieces or the point where they stop applying the wood finish and move to black that doesn't quite sit straight. And I'd like the chrome paint around the gear selector and on the buttons for said centre console bins/cup holders to not peel off when its accidently scratched

 

[J1nxy]

I'd like the capacitive glove box to work more often, and the shut lines in the centre console cup holder / storage bin covers to be better - I'm not sure if its the shape of the "wood" pieces or the point where they stop applying the wood finish and move to black that doesn't quite sit straight. And I'd like the chrome paint around the gear selector and on the buttons for said centre console bins/cup holders to not peel off when its accidently scratched

They've replaced the capacitive glove box release on the 2011MY cars with a button, but mines a 2010.5MY and never had a problem, the overhead lights work equally as well. Similarly with mine doesn't have an issue with the wood fit and finish, other than its got some hairline scratches on the veneer, some of the gap will be due I guess to the folding mechanism where the lid drops partly into the centre console when open. Not experienced any lose of paint on anything but again might be lucky more than anything.

 

[DM]

They've replaced the capacitive glove box release on the 2011MY cars with a button, but mines a 2010.5MY and never had a problem, the overhead lights work equally as well. Similarly with mine doesn't have an issue with the wood fit and finish, other than its got some hairline scratches on the veneer, some of the gap will be due I guess to the folding mechanism where the lid drops partly into the centre console when open. Not experienced any lose of paint on anything but again might be lucky more than anything.

See i like that, a man defending his new car, especially when its a Jag

 

[J1nxy]

See i like that, a man defending his new car, especially when its a Jag

If i thought it was crap I'd say so, you should have seen some of the comments on the FN2 Civic Type R I made the monumental mistake in buying...and don't get me started on BMW or Audi dealers