Welcome to drive the debate

After two and a half years I still look forward to every drive in this car, even just down to the shops; it is very quiet, smooth and comfortable but most of all it has character - you'll never be mistaken for a company car driver! The auto box is superb -in Sport mode it is a very engaging drive on twisty roads, in Normal mode you can cruise all day long at 70 and get 44 mpg or so. My normal mixture of urban commute and some longer drives of 30 miles or so means I usually get about 26 mpg overall. The electronic parking brake is great - why don't all cars have them? Jaguar dealers always seem to be enthusiasts and genuinely proud of what they sell- my local dealer goes out of his way to look after me, but the car is so reliable I only ever see him at the annual 15k service!

Having owned three Mercedes previously I have to admit that the ride quality on mormal roads is not up to their high standards - I imagine in the Sport version this is even more noticeable. It is also quite a big car to zip around country roads and you have to stay more alert than in a Merc, as it doesn't have the same forgiving suspension set up. Servicing costs are quite high - about £800 for a "big" service and £500 for the intermediate.

This car is so good my main problem is that I can't even seriously think about changing it, although depreciation is a great concern with the advent of the XF. The S-Type is now so well sorted that the 2004-on models are a dream to own and to drive so long as you don't feel you have to have a Merc or a BMW for the image.