L.A. Auto Show 2017: Jaguar fields a sporty Sportbrake wagon

Nov. 28, 2017 5 AM PT

Though the station wagon has gone to soccer mom heaven, along with the minivan, a number of companies are still building cars that try to bridge the gap between sporty sedan and sensible people mover. Jaguar offers its variation on what the English call a “shooting brake.”

What is it?

The Sportbrake is a four-door, five-seater “premium wagon,” styled to look like a sports car up front and a station wagon out back. Part of Jaguar’s XF line of luxury sedans, it’s meant to carry a load and use the standard all-wheel-drive system to maneuver gracefully in wet or winter weather.

Why it matters

Jaguar has seen sales soar by almost 50% this year as buyers new to the brand have snapped up the company’s new F-Pace. The Sportbrake is an attempt to go after the customer who might find that SUV a little big or bulky, and might not be ready for the pricier Land Rover products, but wants English sports car styling matched with bigger storage and cargo space.

What's new?

Jaguar hasn’t been in the premium wagon segment since it discontinued the X-Type Sportwagon in 2008. This time around, Jaguar has loaded the Sportbrake with considerable layers of new technology. The car comes standard with the drive dynamics system found on the company’s F-Type sports cars, parallel and perpendicular parking assist, and a self-leveling suspension system that guarantees a sporty ride even when the cargo space is carrying a load.

The competition

The shooting brake category isn’t as hot as the SUV segment, but Sportbrake cross-shoppers have a lot to choose from, like BMW’s 3-series, Audi’s A4, Mercedes-Benz’s E-class, Volvo’s V90 Cross Country and even Porsche’s Panamera.

The details

The Sportbrake, making its U.S. debut, gets a supercharged V6 gasoline engine, making 380 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque, mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission and all-wheel drive. It’s said to get from zero to 60 mph in 5.3 seconds, though probably not that quickly with the 70 cubic feet of cargo space filled. Jaguar is pricing the Sportbrake from $71,445.

The L.A. Auto Show runs Friday through Dec. 10 at the Los Angeles Convention Center. Times coverage is at latimes.com/autos.

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Charles Fleming

Charles Fleming writes about automobiles and motorcycles for the Los Angeles Times’ Business section. He also writes the urban hiking column LA Walks. A former staff writer for Newsweek, Variety and the Los Angeles Herald Examiner, he is the author of the Los Angeles Times bestseller “High Concept: Don Simpson and the Hollywood Culture of Excess,” the New York Times bestseller “My Lobotomy,” and “Secret Stairs, A Walking Guide to the Historic Staircases of Los Angeles” and its sequel, “Secret Walks: A Walking Guide to the Hidden Trails of Los Angeles.”