Definitely A Class Act
by Graeme Giles (19 Apr 04)

Some motor industry crystal ball gazers predict that by 2006, 75% of cars sold in the premium D segment - that’s in the BMW 5-Series, Mercedes-Benz E-Class, Audi A6 division - will be diesels.

Essential, therefore, that Jaguar, which has been slow to jump on the DERV bandwagon (its first diesel offering, the X-Type only appeared late last year) should come up with a ‘d’-badged version of its retro-styled S-Type saloon post-haste. And the good news is that such a car will be in the showrooms in June.

The S-Type diesel will be powered by an all-new engine, which has been jointly designed and developed by Jaguar’s parent, Ford, and the PSA Peugeot Citroen group. The mid-sized "cat" has been granted first use of the state-of-the-art V6, which is built at Ford’s "centre of diesel excellence" in Dagenham, and will also appear in the just-announced third-generation Land Rover Discovery.

Dubbed the AJD-V6 for the Jaguar application, it features second-generation common rail technology, quad camshafts, 24 valves, and "smart" fuel injectors. Notably compact, it uses a material called compacted graphite iron in its construction, which is a key element in keeping weight - usually a diesel engine’s Achilles heel - in check. The end result is an engine which tips the scales just 15kg (33lb, if you are still working in "old money"), more than the company’s equivalent V6 petrol unit.

Fitted with twin turbochargers - small units which deliver their puff more quickly than one large one because they spin up more quickly - this 2.7-litre engine develops 206bhp and peak torque of 320lb/ft at 1900rpm.

That is actually more pulling power than the S-Type’s 4.2-litre petrol V8 can muster. And the good news is that 80% of that is available from 1500rpm right up to 4000rpm.

Buyers will have the choice of two six-speed transmissions. There is the tried and tested automatic box, supplied to Jaguar by ZF, or a new manual which comes from the same German source.

The S-Type diesel’s listed performance figures make impressive reading. The manual car is capable of 143mph and 0-60mph in 8.1 seconds; returns a combined fuel consumption of exactly 40mpg, and has commendably low exhaust emissions of 189g/km, good news for company car buyers. For the auto, the stats are 141mph, 8.2 seconds for the sprint, 36mpg economy and 208 g/km.

It all looks very promising on paper, but does the new Jaguar S-Type diesel deliver on the road?

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