Comparion test: Jaguar XE vs Mercedes-Benz C-Class
No luxury car has sniffed success in Australia as much as the Mercedes-Benz C-Class. As well as overhauling the once dominant BMW 3-Series in the medium luxury segment the C-Class has become the most prolific luxury vehicle ever to be sold here. It is not only the best seller in the expansive – and expanding - Mercedes lineup, it also now outsells popular models such as the Ford Falcon, Subaru Liberty and Honda Civic.
Plus it's the 2014 Drive Car of the Year champion.
Big credentials then, which also makes it a big target among its luxury peers – most recently Jaguar.
The long awaited XE is the most affordable Jaguar since the unforgettable X-Type that departed in 2010.
Unlike that car, which shared its underpinnings with a Ford, the XE is almost entirely Jaguar, starting with the aluminium architecture and body. The four-cylinder petrol engine is a carryover Ford unit, while the diesel of the same capacity is from Jaguar-Land Rover's new Ingenium family. There's also a V6 as the performance flagship.
Prices for the XE stretch into six figures, but it's the entry level 20t Prestige we've chosen for this duel to determine which is the best mid-sized luxury car on the market.
From Mercedes-Benz it's the C200, the entry point to a family that includes wagons, coupes and a broad range of engines all the way to the mighty V8-powered C63 AMG and a soon-to-arrive plug-in hybrid.
Mercedes-Benz C-Class
The C-Class has a classically familiar yet modern look. Even in base C200 trim – a $60,900 (plus on-road costs) proposition - lashings of chrome define its exterior, to the point where the brightwork dominates, especially around the nose.
Inside, the luxury accoutrements are more restrained and convincing, with bold silver-ringed circular air vents and elegantly positioned buttons on the centre console. The handbrake button buried near your right knee is a rare ergonomic oversight, although the 7.0-inch screen can't be operated by touch, either.
An extensive options list opens a world of wood trims and leather finishes, but for the C200 there's brushed metal and Artico, Benz speak for fake hide, all of which looks and feels like an upmarket offering.
Standard kit includes dual-zone ventilation, satellite-navigation, rain-sensing wipers, parking sensors at either end, a reversing camera, electric front seats, ambient lighting and digital radio tuning.
The LED headlights are the latest in lighting tech for a more efficient and focused beam. The C200 also runs 18-inch run-flat tyres and no spare (if you utilise the run-flat functionality after a puncture you'll almost certainly need to replace the tyre).
Safety is a strong suit across the C-Class range. There's blind spot warning and nine airbags (dual front, a driver's knee airbag and thorax and head protection for all outboard occupants). It also gets a partial auto braking system - Collision Prevention Assist - which works with speed differentials up to 70km/h and can apply partial braking to prevent or reduce the severity of a crash.
However full auto braking isn't part of the deal until you buy the more powerful C250, which is $68,900 (plus on-roads); it also gets more gear, including real leather.
While it's officially a mid-sized luxury offering, the C-Class has decent interior space. There's excellent adjustability to the driving position and head room is ample throughout. Put that down to the taller stance; the C200 is almost 3cm taller than the XE and its roofline has a more traditional profile that ensures those in the rear are almost as well catered for as those up front.
Fitting three across the rear is also an easier task than its British rival. The middle seat is a tight fit for adults but will accommodate a third derriere for shorter trips. Once there, the leg room is respectable, helped by the knee-shaped scallops in the backs of the front seats. The seat squab is relatively short but supportive enough to ensure long distance comfort. There are also rear air vents and a central folding arm rest with storage within and pop-out cupholders.
The boot has a wide mouth but is relatively short; those wanting to accommodate large items can fold the 40/20/40 backrest.
On the road the C200 wins points where it's not expected. The modest power from its 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo – 135kW – is below that of the Jag, and it is channelled through a seven-speed auto. Yet a more enthusiastic initial take-off gave the Benz an acceleration advantage to 100km/h, a target it achieved in 7.6 seconds.
Put that down to its lighter body (despite being steel rather than aluminium) and the 300Nm torque peak that swells very low in the rev range, at just 1200rpm. It makes for a relaxed and effortless drive, especially with the transmission is in its Comfort mode. It habitually seeks that broad and accessible torque peak, but for undulating roads or sportier driving the Sport makes more sense, holding slightly lower gears for snappier response. In Sport+ the throttle is even more responsive and the gear shifts noticeably sharper.
Claimed fuel use swings significantly in the C200's favour, at just 6.0 litres per 100km; our drive that included some spirited back road blasts eroded its advantage, with consumption of 9.4L/100km.
The calm demeanour is carried over to the dynamic equation. The steering isn't super sharp but it's faithful and communicative, boosting driver confidence along the way. There's a sense you always know what's going on with the front wheels, and the Benz never overly challenges the driver.
That cruisiness doesn't change much once you ramp up the pace, with the Benz only scrubbing its front tyres wide once you arrive too quickly at a tighter bend. When attacking like that, though, the extra meat in the steering from the Sport or Sport+ settings makes for a nicer sensation.
That the Benz manages to do such a great job with bumps is testament to the efforts gone in to its suspension calibration. Its 18-inch tyres – 225mm wide up front and 245mm at the rear – are identical in dimensions to those on the Jag, yet it's more supple over smaller, everyday bumps. Meet an imperfection in the middle of a corner and the Benz is barely flustered, settling expertly.
It's also impressively quiet, cementing what is a polished luxury deal.
Jaguar XE
Jaguar has come out swinging with the XE when it comes to performance; perhaps it's because it's pre-empting the imminent update to BMW's 3-Series or the 2016 arrival of an all-new Audi A4. Jaguar also hasn't ever been competitive at this end of the market, so it's prudent to come out with an offering that makes people take notice.
Key to the 20t Prestige's artillery are features that cost extra on the C200; smart key entry, electric steering adjustment, a memory function for the driver's seat and – a biggie – full auto braking to help avoid crashes. Its seats, too, have some leather blended with the artificial stuff, while the puddle lights beneath the exterior mirrors illuminate the area below at night.
All in a car that costs $60,400 (plus on-road costs), undercutting the Benz by $500. Throw in the five-year/80,000km servicing plan for $1350 and the savings over the German rival run into the thousands.
The most significant deficit it gives to the Benz is digital radio tuning, one of the many options that also includes various trim and colour alternatives. Its xenon headlights, too, are a generation older tech than the LEDs in the C200.
But the standard contrasting stitching is a nice touch that emphasises the attention to detail.
Jaguar has thrown plenty at the base XE to make it a class leader for safety. It comes with airbag protection all around; front airbags, side airbags up front, a driver's knee airbag and curtain airbags protecting the heads of all outer occupants; rear side body airbags, as fitted in the Merc, aren't included. There's also blind spot warning, lane departure warning and the aforementioned auto braking.
Inside, the Jaguar has a unique flavour to the Teutonic feel of the Mercedes. The circular gear selector that pops out of the console is something different, as is the red start button that pulses like a heartbeat. The electronic handbrake is in a far more logical spot than the Benz's, too, in the centre console. The Jaguar also gets a larger colour touchscreen (8.0 inches) that has simple, logical menus.
For the driver the XE is more about a sporty flavour. The instrument cluster and steering wheel are shared with the F-Type sports car, reinforcing the sporty pedigree (although it may not be what buyers of the $120k-plus two-door want to read). That means a speedo that reads to an optimistic 280km/h, something the small increments make difficult to analyse on the run. Thankfully there's a digital speedo as part of the multi-menu screen between the two circular dials.
In the rear it's essentially a two-seater, something reinforced by the middle seatbelt that can be fully retracted out of sight. Sure, you could squeeze someone in the centre but it wouldn't be pretty, a result of the rear wheel arches that effectively push the outer positions slightly closer to the middle of the car.
For two, though, the rear pew has good under-thigh support and plenty of space for feet. Getting in and out requires a smidge more flexibility, and once there head room is slightly compromised by the sweeping roofline that drops away towards the back. Leg room, too, is tight if those up front are retracted.
But there are rear air vents and comfortable cushions while, even if the windows sit quite high, there's an encapsulated, low-slung feel.
In some ways the boot is a more useful shape than the Benz's, with a longer, flatter floor, albeit with a narrowed opening. It also gets a 40/20/40 split-fold but with a slimmer aperture once everything's down.
Indeed the Jaguar weaves a high degree of sportiness into its demeanour. The body, for example, is made of aluminium, something unique among its rivals. It's all about saving weight, although the XE's broader body (by 40mm) is actually heavier than the Benz overall by 65kg.
Under the bonnet the 2.0-litre four-cylinder musters 147kW and puts it to good effect if you rev the engine hard. While it's a stout engine in its middle revs, it's lazier than the Merc down low and calls for more encouragement to get going. The eight-speed auto helps, though, with thoughtful and direct shifts that tap into the engine's power zone, while also allowing it to rev to 6400rpm before up-shifting. Only on a reapplication of the throttle in traffic can the Jag occasionally stumble.
On the move, though, there's a fraction more zip and the Jaguar feels eager to push on.
While the XE has a significant fuel economy deficit on paper, our real world testing suggested the difference wasn't as pronounced, the Jaguar matching the C's 9.4L/100km consumption.
The sporty flavour is reinforced by the dynamic setup. Steering is noticeably more direct than the Mercedes, something that adds to the athleticism. It's particularly welcome on more challenging twisty roads, although it pays to be patient with the tiller; while it's well weighted and responsive, it's less forgiving if you're too aggressive.
Grip levels are high and the Jaguar sits flatter in bends, a result of its stiffer setup up. There's enough compliance there to soak up road uglies, but it ultimately sends more of a jolt into the cabin, again tilting the ledger towards dynamic ability over comfort.
There's also less difference between the regular dynamic mode and the Sport setting that gets the instruments glowing red. The throttle response and gear shifts are the main changes, with the latter getting more aggressive with the S mode on the gear selector. If you want to adjust the suspension it's another $1850 for the adaptive dynamics.
Verdict
Near identical prices and plenty of crossover with the target market, yet the Mercedes C200 and Jaguar XE are quite different once you delve into the detail.
In some ways Jaguar has snapped some of the sports luxury ground formerly occupied by BMW. In doing so it's created a car that's terrifically agile and fun to drive, something it revels in the harder it's pushed.
That Jaguar has endowed it with a high level of equipment – and plenty of customisable options – makes it all the more tempting. It's a fine car many will be extremely happy with.
In everyday driving, though, the Benz's roomier body, more flexible engine and more relaxed demeanour make it a fine companion that still slinks to the top of the class. Some more trinkets would be appreciated – many of which come with the step up to the more powerful C250 – but even in its base guise there's plenty of luxury for the money.
Arguably the biggest downside with the C-Class is its popularity. It's easy to see why.
SPECIFICATIONS
Jaguar XE 20t Prestige
Price: $60,400 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo petrol
Power: 147kW at 5500rpm
Torque: 280Nm at 1750-4000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Weight: 1530kg
0-100km/h: 7.7 seconds
0-400m: 15.6 seconds at 151km/h
Fuel use: 7.5L/100km
Mercedes-Benz C200
Price: $60,900 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo petrol
Power: 135kW at 5500rpm
Torque: 300Nm at 1200-4000rpm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic
Weight: 1465kg
0-100km/h: 7.6 seconds
0-400m: 15.4 seconds at 145km/h
Fuel use: 6.0L/100km