Jaguar XF is all purrs and claws

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Stroke the accelerator gently and this beautiful cat is quite content to pussyfoot along gently and elegantly, but stomp the pleasure pedal down onto the plush carpeting and it instantly turns into a leaping, snarling wild animal capable of hunting down just about everything else on the road.

Classy, elegant, sleek and fast, the XF brings back fond memories of the days when Britain manufacturers ruled the waves in quality car production.

Sadly, those days are gone. Brands such as Triumph, Rover, Humber, Austin, Avis, Riley, Hillman and Morris are history. Mini, Bentley and Rolls-Royce are German, Aston Martin is Kuwaiti and Land Rover and Jaguar are Indian-owned.

These days true British cars such as Ariel, Caterham, Noble, Morgan, Lotus and Bristol cater only for a small, wealthy and select market.

The Mini is more BMW than British. The Bentley Continental GT I drove recently looked and felt like a top of the range Audi.

But XF is Jaguar at is best. Clearly the clever heads at Tata had decided not to feed the cat any exotic Indian spices and thank goodness for that because it remains as British as a pint of bitter and steak-and-kidney pie.

Sure it has shed some of its stuffy image, but it's an improvement, not a loss.

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The previous generation Jaguar was OK-ish but it lacked the punch, performance and handling of the Teutonic threesome of Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

No longer. This XF is now in a class all of its own.

Under its wide, sleek bonnet there now rumbles a muscular, naturally aspirated 5.0-litre V8 capable of stonking out 283kW and 515Nm which translates into a 0-100km/h sprint of 5.7 seconds.

Considering this luxury saloon is nearly five metres long, weighs about 1.8-tons, has an enormous boot and seats four in supreme comfort and luxury, its performance is impressive, to say the least.

But it's not just the speed with which it flies out of the starting stalls, but the silky smooth way it progresses on the red-line route that blew my mind.

The XF's gearbox is without a shadow of doubt quicker and slicker than any of the three Germans. In fact, it is way better - irrespective of whether you leave the six-speed auto shift in normal drive to do its own thing, or click it into S for Sport mode, or flick your way through the gears with the floppy paddles on the steering wheel.

For its size and luxury, the XF handles with a sure-footedness that you would expect from a spots car, not from a plush wood and leather furnished snob saloon.

The XF's steering and brakes are also better than on any other Jaguar I have ever driven.

The cabin finish is immaculate. The ride is silky smooth and way better than the taut ride of the likes of BMW and Audi. The XF wafts along at city speeds and even on the open road at pace the ride remains quiet and comfortable.

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And as one would expect from a car as gracious as the XF it has all the mod cons and safety features your heart desires - more airbags than the ANC Youth League, ABS brakes with EBD, stability control, tyre pressure monitoring, fancy headlamps that move through the corners, navigation system, electric windows, mirrors and seats, trip computer, key-less entry, Bluetooth connectivity, fancy 20-inch alloys and all the rest.

The cavernous 500-litre boot was more than big enough to swallow all the luggage, cases of beer and wine, food supplies and the rest of the goodies four of us took along for a weekend break in a classy four-star cottage on the Oude Denneboom Wine Estate and Private Game Sanctuary near Wellington.

Drive a Merc, Audi or BMW and nobody looks twice. We parked the Jag in Paarl and Wellington and out came the cell phone cameras… it's just got that air of presence, class and go-fastness about it that appeals to young and old.

For once I cannot find anything wrong with XF, or even something small and personally irritating, to comment on.

Sure, it's thirsty, but what do expect from a 5.0-litre V8? Besides, if you are worried about fuel consumption you probably can't afford the XF in the first place.

And yes, it is pricey at R755,000, but so are similar status cars in the BMW 5 series, Audi A8, Lexus GS and Mercedes-Benz E Class stables.

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The XF comes standard with a three-year/100,000km warranty, a five-year/100,000km maintenance plan and roadside assist, and service intervals only come around every 24,000km.

There are a host of new Jaguars to choose from, ranging in price from R565,500 for the entry-level 3.0-litre XF Luxury Auto, all the way to the XFRs, XJs and the XK coupes and drop-tops that will take you well beyond the R1-million mark.

There is also an oil-burner in the shape of the XF 3.0-litre D Premium Auto at R672,000.

Either way, out of all the new Jags to choose from, the XF addition to the leaping cat clan is undoubtedly one of the very best in its class in terms of looks, comfort, performance and handling.