OFFICIAL NEWS: 2013 Jaguar XF and XJ get new powertrains, all-wheel drive.

A little more than a year ago Jaguar promised it would soon be closing a massive hole in its product line-up – the lack of all-wheel-drive vehicles. With the 2013 XF and XJ, that job is done... sort of.

AWD can be had on the XJ and XF only when paired with the new 3.0L V6.

The 385-horsepower 5.0-liter naturally-aspirated V8 is only available on one car – the XJL Portfolio – otherwise it has been effaced from the XF and XJ lineups. A new 340-hp 3.0-liter supercharged V6 with 332 pound-feet of torque, engineered off the bones of the V8, joins the range and is the standard engine for the large XJ sedan. It is that motor that can be paired with Jaguar's new Instinctive All-Wheel Drive; you can't get all-wheel drive with the XF's new 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo or the 5.0-liter supercharged V8.

The new standard engine in the XF is a 240-hp 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 251 pound-feet of torque that Jaguar estimates will return 29 mpg on the highway. It will get the XF from a stop to 60 mph in 7.5 seconds, whereas the rear-wheel-drive supercharged V6 can drop that sprint down to 5.7 seconds, which is the same time it takes in the XJ with the same engine.

To finish that engine discussion, beyond the new supercharged 3.0-liter V6 and 2.0-liter turbo, the larger XJ line keeps the naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V8 in the regular long-wheelbase sedan, a 470-hp supercharged V8 in the XJ Supercharged and a 510-hp supercharged V8 in the XJ Supersport and Ultimate. The XF Supercharged, meanwhile, gets the 470-hp V8, and XFR the full-fat 510-hp unit.



The electronically controlled Instinctive All-Wheel Drive does maintain a rear-drive bias, but via a transfer case with a multi-plate wet clutch that can transfer up to 50 percent of the torque to the front wheels. It is programmed to pre-load torque to the front wheels to improve traction from a standstill, and it features a Winter mode with a default 30-70 front-to-rear split. The XJ Supercharged, Supersport and XJL Ultimate also sport torque-vectoring on their rear axles.

With the V6, fuel economy is improved by about 11 percent in the city and 22 percent on the highway compared to the V8.

The XF and XJ both also get new ZF eight-speed transmissions – and paddle shifters – to replace their old six-speed units, and all engines save the 2.0-liter turbo are paired with the twin-solenoid-starter Intelligent Stop/Start system first introduced on the Euro-spec XF with the 2.2-liter diesel. With the V6, fuel economy is improved by about 11 percent in the city and 22 percent on the highway compared to the V8.

Moving away from the mechanicals, three stereo systems are offered among the XJ and XF. The base, only available on the XF, is a 250-watt, 10-speaker Jaguar-branded system. Above that it looks like Bowers & Wilkins is out and Meridian is in: the two Meridian audio options start with a 380-watt, 14-speaker unit and end with an 825-watt, 20-speaker setup. They are said to be equivalent to the more powerful B&W units while using less power, and are accessorized with Bluetooth audio streaming, 30GB hard drives, a single-slot CD player and a virtual CD changer to upload 10 CDs, HD radio, aux jacks and two USB ports, and more.




The navigation system has been "enhanced" with features like the ability to import points of interest from a USB drive, lane guidance selection for intersections and a Road Sign Board display that presents overhead sign information in a split-screen view.

Finally, new for 2013, the loudest purrs will come from the Jaguar Ultimate, of which just 30 will come to the U.S. Based on the long-wheelbase XJ Supersport, everything has been thrown at it, such as ebony herringbone trim, two power adjustable ventilated and individually tailored rear seats, a power-operated aluminum rear table and beverage chiller with Jaguar flutes, iPads and keyboards in leather docks, and 20-way power front seats so the plebs ahead don't feel so bad. The only meager options are the colors: Black Amethyst outside and Jet Black or Ivory White inside are the only choices.

What will all this cost? Not much more than the 2012 offerings, and in some cases, less.

What will all this cost? Not much more than the 2012 offerings, and in some cases, less. The base XJ drops $500 to $73,200, having given up its V8 for the supercharged V6. The other models go up from one to two thousand dollars, with the XJL Supersport going from $117,700 to $119,100. The XJL Ultimate holds pat at $155,000.

The entry-model XF plunges steeply from $53,000 to $46,975, reflecting the move from the 385-hp V8 to the 240-hp four cylinder, and the supercharged V6 still comes in below the current mark at $50,000 even. The XF supercharged stays at $68,100 and the XFR jumps up a tad to $83,200 from $82,000. All of the prices listed here for the XJ and XF are before an $875 destination and handling charge.