Observations about the Jaguar S-Type

General

Let me start by saying that I'm still as much in love with the S-Type today as I was the day I picked my first one up from the showroom, perhaps even more so. I love the way the seat moves back and the steering wheel tilts away when I enter/exit the car. This is great for me as I'm not exactly thin and getting in and out of some cars can be slightly awkward. The drivability and handling of the car are excellent, turning driving from a means of getting from A to B into a real pleasure. The car is a true driver's car and the more I drive it, the more I want to drive!

The car is not perfect, but it's pretty close and although I have been absolutely thrilled with it, there are some minor niggles:

There is a distinct lack of storage space inside the cabin, although I've learned to live with this and don't consider it a big problem these days.

It would also be nice to have one touch closing for the windows and sun roof. The drivers window has one touch opening, as does the sunroof so why not have one touch close too. I understand that this might have safty implications (small children/animals getting there heads stuck and so on) but I would like this feature anyway.

The tweeters could be better placed. It is an accepted rule of Hi-Fi that the tweeters should be located at (or close to) ear level. Positioning the tweeters closer to ear level would improve things greatly. Having said that, I was not at all disappointed with the premium sound system, but it did need to be turned up a little before it really sings. My current car only has the standard sound system, which I find a little disappointing. I am planning to upgrade the speakers in the near future.

Long Journeys

Long journeys are a breeze in the S-Type. I have made several long trips including a trip from Finland to Britain and back. The car is extremely comfortable and effortless to drive on motorways, just point her in the right direction and let the automatic transmission and cruise control do the rest, sit back and enjoy the ride!

After a six or seven hour drive you reach your destination feeling refreshed and counting the minutes until you can get back in the driver's seat again. This is a far cry from other cars I have driven, all of which have left me feeling in no doubt that I've been on the road all day.

The CD changer installation in the glove box may leave little space, but there's still enough room for two spare magazines, a total of 18 CDs which is enough to see you through most long journeys. If you don't have a front seat passenger, you have to pull over to swap the CD changer magazines as it's not safe to do so while driving. However on mye new car, the CD changer installation is in the boot, which I find less convenient as I change my car CD selection very frequently and my wife can't swap the magazines while we're on the road.

Handling in Winter

I have read several comments regarding problems with the S-Type in snow and ice. These comments relate to those vehicles fitted with the 17" Pirelli P Zero tyres (part of the Sports Package) as they are high performance summer tyres and are NOT suitable for winter driving conditions. If you have these tyres and expect to drive in the snow, forget it and invest in some winter tyres!

In Finland (where I used to live) it is the law that winter tyres must be used during the winter months and I had Nokian Hakkapeliitta 1 studded tyres fitted to Classic alloys for winter use. We had quite severe winter conditions over there (see the picture opposite) with temperatures frequently below -20 Celcius and substantial snowfall.

I found the S-Type to handle superbly in snow and ice. Although the car is rear wheel drive, the even weight distribution and the fact that it is a heavy car meant that the car is more controllable than many front wheel drive cars and certainly more predictable. When cornering, steering is not compromised even if traction is lost from the drive wheels, a welcome contrast to front wheel drive.

The traction control does an excellent job in very slippery conditions and is a boon if you don't have a light foot. The ABS brakes also seem to work well, retaining full control of the vehicle even when braking is difficult.

It is irritating that the wipers cannot be moved away from the windscreen when the car is left in cold conditions, thereby avoiding getting them frozen to the windscreen. However, the heated front windscreen works well in defrosting them (and the rest of the windscreen) negating this annoyance somewhat.

The mud flaps are very close to the ground and can drag in deep snow occasionally. Also the fuel flap can freeze shut after a car wash. Well to be fair it's only happened once, but it wasn't much fun trying to find the manual release in -26 Celcius with a rip-roaring wind and a queue of cars behind waiting for their turn at the pumps. Hopefully this won't happen again!

I had considered buying a cheap 'banger' for winter use, but the S-Type handles so well that there's really absolutely no need. I can happily drive in style all year round!

Handling in Summer

Contrary to popular belief, there is a summer in Finland during which time I used the standard Continental tyres on Dynamic alloys. The car was great to drive in the summer, it is very sure footed and corners like it's on rails. Unfortunately the low speed limits and speeding fine policy (based on level of income) in in Finland meant that I didn't dare do too much spirited driving in the summer, I do have a lot of fun on the country lanes in Britain now I'm back though!

The sport pack with DSC, CATS and 17" wheels is marvelous for spirited country driving in the summer. I was impressed with the handling in my previous S-Type, but this is even better. I'm beginning to wonder whether it's even possible to make the car drift when cornering!


This page was last updated 27-04-2001

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