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Comfy and quiet yet brilliant to drive. The handling-nerd’s car in this class.

So much praise was lavished upon the Jaguar XE when it launched back in 2015. Its brand-new, lightweight mechanicals endowed it with a deft driving experience that embarrassed every single one of its rivals, yet it only takes a swift look at the sales charts over the four years since to conclude that’s not where the posh saloon car buyer’s priorities lie.

Surprisingly, perhaps, when you consider the enduring success of the BMW 3 Series in this part of the market. Thus the XE’s reboot has addressed some of the areas where it lagged behind the 3 Series, as well as the Audi A4, Mercedes C-Class and the more recently launched Alfa Romeo Giulia.

First up, sharpening up the slightly dowdy styling of before. It manages to be familiar yet oh so different, the appearance of an unflatteringly shrunken Jaguar XF replaced by some real vigour, all via thinner LED lights, reshaped bumpers and an optional lip spoiler. Spec the 20in alloy wheels (you can, the ride is comfy) and you end up with a car that’s fantastically handsome.

Next, plusher cabin materials and a wealth of new technology, with the option of up to four screens inside (!), one cleverly embedded within the rear view mirror to stream a wide-angle camera view that’s notably more informative than the narrow squint through a wiper-less rear screen most four-doors offer. Beneath that you’ll find the twin screens seen in the Jaguar I-Pace that can swap between nav, phone link-up and climate control at your whim.

Finally, a much simpler engine and trim range, which does unfortunately mean you now must have a four-cylinder engine. The V6 has gone for good, and we suspect the £150k, V8-powered Project 8 special won’t live on beyond its initial 300-car run in the earlier XE shape…

Thus all versions comprise two litres, with a 178bhp diesel and two petrols, offering either 247 or 296bhp. All employ an eight-speed automatic transmission – with newly elongated paddleshifters and a proper gear selector in the middle – while they offer a mixture of rear- and all-wheel drive depending on how much money you spend.

There’s still no estate version, which is perhaps a shame given just how purposeful it would look, but it’s probably understandable given the XE’s modest sales numbers and Jaguar’s increasing focus on SUVs. But how does the regular four-door fare against its seemingly insurmountable German foes?

Driving

What is it like on the road?

Where the XE has never put a foot wrong is dynamically, and so it remains. The way Jag’s engineering folk find a way of balancing ride and handling – in other words, comfort and fun – is simply unmatched.

I’m not sure a C-Class can ride this well, nor a 3 Series exhibit such fine balance, yet the XE manages to beat them both with a side order of wonderfully old-fashioned steering feel for good measure. Whether you’ve gone RWD or AWD, this is an exemplary car to drive. You can choose the biggest, prettiest alloys with no concern for how it’ll affect the ride, which is high (and rare) praise indeed.

There’s no longer a manual gearbox but we really don’t mind; this auto’s a belter, and with longer, aluminium paddles exhibiting properly sharp responses, you really are inclined to use manual mode quite a lot of the time, especially when its eight ratios are so shortly stacked.

What’s less satisfying is the bunch of engines it comes attached to. It’s a capable but uninspiring range of four-cylinders, and when the 296bhp petrol in the range-topping P300 sounds uncannily like a diesel at low revs, you might as well have the cheaper to buy and run engine it accidentally imitates.

Happily even the most powerful engines fall completely silent when you’re not driving hard, though, and the XE proves as refined as an XJ at a cruise. The gearbox is smooth and intelligent when left to make its own decisions, too, sharpening up sweetly when you prod it into Sport (or take full control yourself).

In short, it’ll make the dull motorway grind painless, but has a chassis so satisfying you might genuinely avoid the 70mph slog and use a longer, more interesting route instead.

On the inside

Layout, finish and space

A facelift can fix just about everything except the XE’s chronic lack of space in the back or the absence of an estate version. Thus it remains one of the less practical cars in its class, and by quite a margin. But if you regularly travel alone or with only sub six-footers in the back, it should work well enough.

And up front it feels fantastic. You can set the driving position nice and low, while the updated XE’s posher materials and fancier stitching are immediately obvious, and its big dose of new technology welcome.

The upper and lower screens borrowed from the I-Pace both look great, respond well and give the XE a genuine air of freshness inside. Same goes for the rear view mirror that doubles as a screen, a feature that debuted on the mk2 Range Rover Evoque.

It takes some getting used to, but offers a brilliantly wide angle view that’s far more informative than the sliver of rear screen you’d traditionally get in a saloon car. But boy, does it get warm when you’re on the go for a few hours.

Perhaps that’s a teething problem of this early car we’re driving. Though given the XE we ran in the Top Gear Garage back in 2016 suffered numerous electronic maladies, a question mark hangs over the long-term appeal of cramming in so much screen-based tech. There’s wow factor now, at least.

Owning

Running costs and reliability

Indeed, our big concern about owning one of these we can’t really answer yet, but the past form of Jaguar Land Rover products on the Top Gear fleet doesn’t set our expectations for electronic reliability especially high. Fingers crossed Jag’s learned from previous mistakes and nailed it, because everything looks and feels good new. At least the three-year/unlimited-mileage warranty should cover the length of most people’s lease deals should anything prove dim-witted.

The competitiveness in this class of car – especially when it comes to tax and BIK rates – means each of the XE’s engines punches hard when it comes to balancing power output and CO2 emissions.

And such is the disparity between how fun the chassis is and how plain those engines feel, you’re might as well choose the one that makes the sums work best. With three tunes each of two different engines – all of them possessing four cylinders – there’s not going to be any great leap in character between choosing a base-spec petrol, top-spec diesel, or anything in between.

This new XE gets a simplified trim range, though numerous option packs do scupper that a bit if you’re trying to configure something lower down the range. If you want to take a punt on all the fancy screens, then you’ll want to add the handily titled Technology Pack (£1,820) which brings the clever rear-view mirror, twin touchscreens, wireless phone charging and a head-up display.

Comfy and quiet yet brilliant to drive. The handling-nerd’s car in this class

Love driving? Don’t need acres of room in the back? Look no further, because this car – for your needs – is the best in its class. No small feat when that class is full of talent such as the BMW 3 Series and Alfa Giulia, but Jag’s ability to make a car ride supply while slapping a big grin on your face borders on witchcraft.

If only there was more interior room and a greater array of engines – some sonorous six-cylinders, basically – and it might top the class without caveats or clauses. Smarter looks and more gob-smacking tech mean the updated XE is a very convincing small saloon car, but if you’re not a proper handling geek you might not fully appreciate its charms when the standard of its rivals is so high too.

Source topgear.com