I been in this journo game for knocking on 5 years now and yet this is the first time that I’ve managed to scoop a British Jaguar to review.

Now maybe that’s because I have a bit of a background in Jaguar. After all, I did once own an independent Jaguar workshop. I was also a member of the Ontario Jaguar Owners’ Club for many years and judged several of their JCNA concourse events.

Maybe the company was a bit worried that I had a little too much history in the Jag world, or that I might be as critical with its new cars as I was with its older classics?

Well, they shouldn’t have worried on the first score, at least not when the model we’re talking about is the Jaguar XF, because I simply adore the vehicle.

Honestly, I had been waiting with bated breath to drive the XF ever since the vehicle was first revealed in 2007.

Of course, I’ve seen the XF shows, and even sat in one or two, but I was waiting to drive the vehicle myself before I voiced any kind of real opinion. After all, a Jaguar has to offer more than simply good looks, it has to perform and handle like a cat to be worthy of the Jaguar name. “Grace, space and pace”, as the old saying goes. Anything short of that is a no no!

Well, the results are in, and I give it two big thumbs up. In fact, after living with the XF for a week, the only question remaining in my mind is, “why aren’t we seeing them prowling on every street corner”?

In my opinion, for the money, I can’t think of another vehicle which can compare to the XF. Prices range from $59,000 for the base car, $65,000 for the Premium Luxury edition, and $77,000 for the Super-charged model (My test vehicle was the nicely appointed mid-range Premium Luxury model).

The exterior styling is almost perfect (Or should that be Purfect). I say “almost” because I’m still not totally enthralled by the front grille. To me, it appears a little too plastic for my liking and I believe that the badge should have been mounted on the hood. Never mind though, because the rest of the vehicle makes up for that by being simply drop dead gorgeous.

Ok, some might have knocked the blue oval’s ownership of Jaguar but I think that they got several things right. For one, they improved product quality no end (more on that later). Much of this was due to them “re-educating” the British factory staff. In fact, Ford told them more then once, if you don’t improve the overall quality, we’ll move Jaguar production out of Britain.

Many improvements came from Ford redesigning such items as gaskets and oil seals. Ask any older Jag owner and they’ll tell you, “If a Jag’s not dripping oil on your driveway, then you’d better check that it has some in it”.

Lastly, they allowed designers to get creative without worrying about upsetting the whole apple cart. Do yourself a favor and take a look at the XF from the hind quarters, if that doesn’t look like a 4 door Aston Martin, then I don’t know what does!

Ok, so the car looks the part, but does it prowl and prance like a true feline?

Well, as soon as you climb aboard the XF, you’re in for a bit of a shock. Yes, it feels like a Jaguar, but one that’s suddenly leapt into the 21st century. A small button on the center console pulses in blood red, like the cars heartbeat, and gentle pressure on this awakens the 4.2L V8 resting under the hood, just as a rotary-style gear selector gracefully rises close by. This entire procedure is wonderful to watch, although if the ventilation system is in operating mode, you could be distracted by the electronically revolving air vents on the dashboard.