Sxynix Posted October 6, 2020 Posted October 6, 2020 Jaguar has given the midsize XF a nip and tuck to avoid a midlife crisis in an attempt to remain competitive in an SUV-hungry market. While both the sedan and wagon have gone through a facelift, the company’s media site for the North American market only mentions the four-door variant. Why? Because the more practical Sportbrake won’t be available in the United States for the 2021MY. The reveal was made by a Jaguar spokesperson in an e-mail sent to Roadshow: "We will no longer be offering the XF Sportbrake in the US." The model joined the North American lineup in 2017, and now it's going away. Fans of long-roof cars will be disappointed with the news, but we should’ve seen it coming taking into account the XF Sportbrake hasn’t been a sales success. Rumors about its US demise have been swirling around the Internet since March 2019, and now it’s official. You might remember there was a report from Autotrader published earlier this year, talking about how dealers are cutting prices to get rid of inventory. We highlighted a 2018 XF S AWD wagon with $20,000 off the original MSRP. The XF Sportbrake in the facelifted form will soldier on in other markets where Jaguar will apply the same updates received by the sedan. It’s certainly a classy wagon and we’d argue it looks even better in its family-oriented specification, but it’s understandable why the company is pulling the plug in the US. To show what Americans are missing out on, Jaguar has released a separate gallery with the Sportbrake and its 31.7 cubic feet of cargo capacity. Fold down the rear seats and the number grows to 69.7 cubic feet. There had been some rumors about a smaller XE Sportbrake, but these were quashed a while ago by former Jaguar design director Ian Callum. In an interview with Autocar, he explained the reasoning behind the decision, pointing out the tough competition (BMW 3 Series Touring, Audi A4 Avant, Mercedes C-Class Estate) and the shrinking demand for wagons. The silver lining is the US market still has a decent number of wagons available, even after the demise of the Buick Regal TourX and the VW Golf SportWagen / Alltrack. We’re talking about Audi’s A4 and A6 Allroads, the RS6 Avant, E-Class All-Terrain and E63 S, the Volvo V60, V90 / V90 Cross Country, Subaru Outback, Mini Clubman, and the Porsche Panamera Sport Turismo. Other 2021 XF updates include a new fully-digital instrument cluster and a convention gear lever replacing the rotary knob of the outgoing model – similar to the 2021 Jaguar F-Pace updates. Buyers of the 2021 Jaguar XF will have two engines and powertrain options to choose from upon its arrival in U.S. showrooms by the end of this year. These choices include a rear-wheel-drive, 246-horsepower (183 kilowatts), 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder; and an all-wheel-drive 296-hp (221 kW), 2.0-liter turbo four-banger. These mills allow the executive sedan to bolt from 0-60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in 6.5 seconds and 5.8 seconds, respectively. Pricing for the 2021 Jaguar XF will be announced as its market launch draws near.
Premium
Recommended Posts