Compared: Jaguar XE S or the BMW 340i

The world is a funny place. Why should we be punished like we are through the likes of exchange rates? Is our currency really worth so little – surely not? Pretty sure you often ponder that too and this test is perfect evidence why there is something fundamentally wrong with the system we’re subjected to. Three years ago when Jaguar was in early planning to bring Jaguar XE to SA, things looked pretty rosy – the planning looked good and it seemed that by the time the car would arrive, it’d take a pretty impressive stick to its intended rival. Trouble is they never bargained on the rand quite literally falling apart – it was R13 to the pound then, it’s just recovered to R23 as I write.

So for the bulk of this test, I’ve chosen to ignore price, simply because one of these cars has fallen victim to its origin and that is just not fair – not to you, not to the car and not to me. It’s pretty darned depressing come to think of it, so rather let’s just consider these two in the metal and on the road for now… Jaguar says it reset the entry executive saloon playing field with Jaguar XE. Which is a pretty tall order considering what’s already there between Mercedes-Benz’ C Class, the Audi A4 we’ll be driving as you read this, never mind Lexus’ IS, the Infiniti Q50, Mazda’s latest Six, that fine new Passat, Alfa’s forthcoming Giulia and of course this good old yardstick Three. We’ve already had one prod at this class of late but this time we consider the top of the normal range (remember M3, C63 and RS4 all roam the streets already, waiting in fear for Giulia SV and an R version of XE to rock up). But the BMW 340i represents the latest in a scintillating timeline that commenced here in the early ‘eighties with the 323i and progressed through 325i to 328i to 330i, 335i and now this. Three decades of brilliance is a a hell of a lot of pedigree, so for Jaguar to be so bold about taking on such a well sorted machine is pretty brave…

Make no mistake, the Jaguar certainly looks the part – it’s the better-looking car in our (subjective) eyes – from the front and sides that is. I think they miscued on the rear end, but who am I to say – it’s what you think that matters.  We’re comparing it to a car of marginal style anyway, even if I’ve come to like the BMW 3 – especially in this M trim and with its fresh nuances in that facelift. It looks the part and seems well balanced versus the Jaguar – even it the Jag’s face is the prettier. Open the door and slide into the Jaguar and if you share my views, you may be a little disappointed. Look – quality is great and it’s a really cool cabin, but it’s dull in comparison to the BMW. The facelifted 3’s best improvements are inside thanks to a slick if a bit busy dash with angular angst and a far more refined look in the updated cabin. I prefer the Beemer inside.

Jaguar XE however really comes into its own on the road – it certainly is a class act and Jaguar has done a sublime job engineering it in a way that it can take the best on in every driving respect. Quiet, responsive and quick, it benefits its stiff, all-new allaluminium chassis to at least match the BMW dynamically. Driven hard it’s precise and predictable and if it steps out, it’s fun to drift and cavort. But then the Jaguar has a more serene ride than the Beemer – it delivers a dynamic poise to match while still feeling slicker at hand, defter at foot.

There is not much to choose between these two from a technical point of view either – the direct petrol injection straight six BMW depends on variable vane turbocharging to deliver its creamy outputs, while the Jaguar sports a similarly direct petrol injected bent six with a supercharger slipped between the vee. They sound different too – the gruff Beemer makes a perhaps cooler noise than the droning Jag, but then S sounds just like the old original 1960s S did so it’s quite justified. Both get eight-speed autoboxes turning the rear axle and while suspension approaches may differ, the upshot is pretty similar outside of the nuances I speak of above.

Rushing down the drag strip however, the BMW 340i beats the Jaguar in a straight line – it’s two-tenths of a second quicker to 100km/h, almost a second clear by 160 and well ahead and still going away through the quarter mile, while it’s tractive acceleration is also a little better too.

All of which is slightly confusing considering the Jaguar’s apparent lightweight benefits – the BMW is still lighter and is resultant power to weight advantage ensures it is the quicker car. Makes us winder how Jaguar squandered that aluminium advantage – it should be the lighter car but it isn’t? And that hurts it against the clock, which is pretty important in this neck of the woods.

So by now we’re in a pretty interesting position. We prefer the Jaguar’s looks, but we cannot say it’s overall better looking the BMW, which also has a more enticing cabin. The Jag is however more fluent on the road than the perhaps more dynamic Beemer, but the BMW 340i wins the drag race, although I reckon they will fight it out all day long on a track day. All of which makes this a pretty closefought match and all things being equal, we should really call this thing here. Which would mean we’d be tossing and turning trying to balance things up in a in a Libran nightmare. I would score them even and let you choose what is more important to you between a slight drag strip advantage and a classic cabin and a perhaps sweeter responding chassis and super cool cat looks. But all is not equal and it galls us that we have to bring price into an equation that sees one of these contenders, well discriminated against.

I suppose it’s a shame, but the Jaguar is built in the UK and shipped against an invoice generated in pound sterling. Which is problem number one considering that the rand slipped to almost half its value in the past three years. Then Jaguar XE S V6 arrives in sunny SA where it is slapped with import duty, ad valorem tax and VAT. Add to that that Jaguar has minimal export credits versus BMW, which ships Threes like this out the country by the thousand to earn rebates and discounts, let alone dodge import duty and punitive ad valorem. The BMW is also built in SA on rand-based labour rates with a significant level of local content that is all far cheaper to do in rands – especially when you are paying for the car in rands.

So even if you throw every conceivable bit of spec at your BMW 340i and load it up to the max versus the pretty well fully specced Jaguar, there will still be a 150 grand step up to the otherwise pretty equal Jaguar, which is just not fair. But unavoidable.

And that turns this brilliant BMW into a bloody well bargain that when price is considered, wins this fight hands down. It is certainly a great pity for the Jaguar. Priced as it is, it does not have a hope in hell because it finds itself hugely overpriced in this market, which quite sadly renders it hors de combat in this mission. All of which means that the entry executive status quo stays just where it was – it’s just such a pity that like the rest of us, the Jaguar is a prisoner of the rand. This review was first published in AutoNews by Michele Lupini. Make sure to get your copy.