Published:
1 February 2024The Jaguar XE never compared well with its original competitor set for outright passenger space, but now that it finds itself with cars like the Mercedes CLA, Audi A3 Saloon and BMW 2 Series Gran Coupé for company on price, what it offers seems a lot more palatable.
Passenger space feels a shade more snug in both rows than is the executive class norm, but the same could be said for its new competitors. Taller drivers might just run out of head room behind the wheel, while fully grown adults may not be too keen on travelling in the back for very long - although space back there is fine for smaller ones, and for kids.
Boot space, meanwhile, is broadly similar to what you’ll find in most compact saloons for loading length, width and height, according to our tape measure. A Mercedes CLA 250e offers a few centimetres more space here and there, but not enough to make a meaningful difference.
Jaguar changed only a few details of the interior’s design and specification for the 2024 model year: the grade of leather on the steering wheel, for example (it’s not smooth, not perforated) and the style of the treadplates on each door sill.
And here, the XE feels like it’s got off lightly relative to what was done to the interiors of the Range Rover Evoque and Land Rover Discovery Sport at the same time. The XE retains chunky rotary heater and blower rotary controls, its physical switchgear for the control of anything from audio volume, to ESC, to lane keeping, and its usefully large centre console storage cubbies. Nothing’s been taken away for the sake of ‘reductive design’ or neatness or sustainability.
