A Great British executive express

The XFs job is to be a credible rival to the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes E-Class. Its a trick the cars predecessor, the S-Type, never quite managed to pull off, but this is an altogether different vehicle. It has the presence and grandeur of a modern executive express, and every model is a feast of high-tech gadgets. Most of all, though, the circles it moves in give it a lot to live up to on the road.

You know youre not dealing with any normal car when the cheapest model in the range has cruise, climate, leather, xenons and parking sensors as standard. The wipers and headlamps work automatically, too, and all models have Bluetooth, MP3 and a touch-screen display. On top of this, Luxury, Premium Luxury and Portfolio models variously add sat-nav, bigger alloys, softer leather and seats with electric adjustment, heating and even cooling. Theres also an SE Business model, which combines sat-nav and a DAB radio with the most economical engine in the range for drivers who need to keep the tax man at bay.

So, those diesel engines. The entry-level unit is a 2.2, tuned for 163 or 200 bhp. We drove the former, and with loads of torque at its back it doesnt feel much like a poor relation. Moving up the range, theres also a 3.0 V6 diesel, this one available in 240 and 275 bhp form the latter in particular is seriously quick, but both still manage to return 47mpg combined. Even the supercharged 3.0 V6 petrol option isnt too thirsty for what it is, though for only half a seconds advantage on the 0-62 dash youd question whether 35% worse fuel consumption and almost a grand and a half on the purchase price are really worth it.

The XFs cabin is dressed to impress from the word go. When you press the starter button, a bank of panels in the dash rotate to become vents for the air-con. Totally unnecessary but utterly splendid, in a Bond-villain kind of way. Elsewhere, our Premium Luxury model was all wood and leather, with a big stippled aluminium strip creating a full-width highlight across the facia. The seats are excellent, and the dash layout manages to be both purposeful and uncluttered. Oddment stowage isnt brilliant, though, and legroom and especially headroom are quite limited in the back, so its less practical than it is eye-catching. A split-fold rear seat is only optional, and even when its folded down the luggage area, though nice and long, is restricted by a narrow opening.

The lower-powered 2.2 diesel in our test car pulls well enough through the eight-speed auto box thats standard on all XFs, but its not fast the way you might want an executive car to be. It sounds a little gruff when pushed hard, too, though it settled down to a mellow gurgle on the motorway, where the XF is generally hushed. Handling through corners is seamlessly controlled rather than outright sporty, allowing you to push on without drama; the suspension is set up to let you make brisk progress on all sorts of roads, so you dont constantly feel like youre being kicked from underneath on uneven surfaces. You do get a bit of bumping coming through in town, though, where the cars ride is composed without falling into magic carpet territory.

You can get an XF for less than thirty grand. And as weve already established, it wont be short of toys. The more powerful engines quickly bump the price up, though, not least because the two cheapest trim levels are exclusive to the entry-level unit. Fuel economy is good whatever diesel option you take, however, as are emissions, and it you look after an XF you shouldnt struggle to sell it again when the time comes.