"Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever" (superchan7)
09/11/2019 at 21:25 • Filed to: Jaguar, Jaguar XJ, X351, California, Road Trip
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"Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever" (superchan7)
09/11/2019 at 21:25 • Filed to: Jaguar, Jaguar XJ, X351, California, Road Trip | 4
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Comfort: 7/10
Performance: 9/10
Douche factor: 7/10
Overall score: 8/10
Visited Monterey, Carmel-by-the-Sea and Big Sur, which are a 2+ hour drive from home.
Comfort: Unsurprisingly, the Jag’s swoopy roofline gave demerits and would be a bit claustrophobic for those over six feet tall (i.e. me). Somewhat of an actual surprise was my lack of fatigue. I’m known to have poor driving stamina and my bum hurts after an hour or so driving most cars. However, despite the rather firm seats with tightly stretched leather everywhere, I felt OK after 2+ hours at the kitty’s reins. Seems like Jag has done some ergonomics homework for low cars. Storage-wise, the cabin is a bit lacking in cubbies for the sake of style. The shamelessly be-wooden door panels and exquisite illuminated air outlets lend the vibe of a chic lounge.
Performance: Not much to be said, even with the base engine, a flagship car sells on thick, rich cruising and passing power. In Dynamic Mode, it took all the curves as well as a 207" saloon should ever hope to. Fuel economy hovers around 24 mpg in mixed cruising, and if you don’t stop it can probably hit 28. Gridlock commuting returns a dismal 18 mpg.
Douche factor: Even in generic silver , the car will draw some attention, especially in Carmel where we weren’t exactly the typical age and race group.
Conclusion: Great for short trips, not enough storage space for longer trips.
gettingoldercarguy
> Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
09/11/2019 at 22:25 |
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You get free wine and sports gear. Jeremy Clarkson told me so.
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Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
> gettingoldercarguy
09/11/2019 at 22:42 |
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MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
09/12/2019 at 08:47 |
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You have basically the biggest sedan you can buy and it’s too small to road trip in? You and I have very different definitions of small. This thing is near 3 feet longer than our Matrix that we’ve road tripped in from Arizona to Wisconsin and back and from Arizona up the California coast to SF and numerous other shorter* road trips.
*We regularly take trips of 4+ hours on weekends.
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MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
09/12/2019 at 08:47 |
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You have basically the biggest sedan you can buy and it’s too small to road trip in? You and I have very different definitions of small. This thing is near 3 feet longer than our Matrix than we’ve road tripped in from Arizona to Wisconsin and back and from Arizona up the California coast to SF and numerous other shorter* road trips.
*We regularly take trips of 4+ hours on weekends.
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Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
> MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
09/12/2019 at 12:08 |
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It’s not small for passengers, it’s small for luggage and the various debris that must be brought along for road trips. It’s short on:
-Cup/bottle holders
-Trunk space (it’s OK, but could be better. Not a problem for our weekend trip
)
-Centre console storage
-Door pocket space
In fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if your Matrix has more usable storage space in the cabin.
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MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
09/12/2019 at 12:38 |
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Ahhh...gotcha. Trunk space is the one thing I really think might be an issue if I buy a sedan over a wagon for my next car.
Maybe you just need less stuff? *
*This argument never seems to work with my wife for some reason
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Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
> MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
09/12/2019 at 12:54 |
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We didn’t have a problem with just the two of us. It was our first official “vacation” without our kid. With more than one kid, you would run out of cup holders (there’s only 4 in a car that seats five, and the rear ones are in the fold-down arm rest)
and the door bins are tiny. Also, there’s no open storage bin for phones, etc. in the centre console.
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MasterMario - Keeper of the V8s
> Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever
09/12/2019 at 12:57 |
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You’d think a car designed for transporting people in comfort would have given more thought to things like cup holders.