1995 Jaguar XJS Review (continued)
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Walkaround

Jaguar has retained the classic proportions and styling elements of previous XJ sedans while adding contemporary curves and four round headlights that lend a distinctive touch to the front end.

Chassis and overall dimensions remain the same, but most of the mechanical particulars have been thoroughly revised: a completely redesigned aluminum in-line 6-cylinder engine, which includes a new supercharged variant; power and efficiency improvements to the super-smooth V12; a stronger chassis; and more powerful brakes.

An in-line 6-cylinder engine design is inherently smoother than a V6, and the latest Jaguar six is a honey. It produces more power and more torque than the previous generation - enough to give the basic sedan, heavy as it is, acceleration that we'd call lively.

However, if really brisk acceleration is what you're after, the new supercharged version of the engine makes this Jaguar into one very fast cat indeed, producing more power than even the V12.

Interior Features

Although the seats in the XJR are most certainly of high-performance luxury-sedan quality - deeply contoured, leather-clad, highly adjustable - the rest of the interior redesign isn't quite as successful.

The list of comfort/convenience features is certainly what you'd expect from a car in this class, but there are several less-than-terrific details.

Some examples: Adding a passenger's airbag has eliminated the glove box. At night, the instrument panel is bathed in a subdued greenish glow that doesn't compare at all favorably with, say, the excellent display in the Lexus LS 400. And the U-shaped shift pattern on the automatic transmission - standard on all XJ sedans - is an awkward device to use, at least as we found so in our test drive.

Also, rear-seat legroom, a weak point with the previous car, hasn't improved at all, even though competing manufacturers' models have. And the trunk volume of XJ sedans continues to be the smallest in this class.

On the other hand, assembly quality in our test car seemed to be excellent, and the materials were first-rate. And with the addition of the aforementioned passenger airbag, the new Jaguar's safety features - including standard anti-lock brakes (ABS) and side-impact protection - certainly measure up as current.