From its sleek, catlike looks to its pulsating red ignition button and a starting routine that makes the dashboard and instruments come alive, this car will treat you to more razzle-dazzle than you'll ever need before your morning cup of coffee.

What's more, the car backs up its "show" with a bravura road performance that includes pancake-flat handling, aggressive asphalt-swallowing cornering and steering that is almost perfectly balanced for aggressive driving.

But the styling is what you'll notice first.

On the one hand, you could argue that Jaguar has employed the coupe-inspired sedan school of thought for the XF, joining the Lincoln MKS, Mercedes CLS, Hyundai Genesis and a number of other luxury cars.

Sadly, the fact that many others got there first -- or at least introduced their cars first -- to some extent dilutes the impact of the truly beautiful lines of the new XF.

That's why the design has been criticized by some car writers as too derivative. I suspect there also will be some people who will look at the XF and say, "I've already seen this on other cars."

But I disagree.

The XF does a far better job of executing the "coupe-sedan" look. It all works better as a whole, because one thing flows into and supports the other to a degree not seen on many other cars.

And there certainly are enough other interesting details and distinctions, such as the intricate grille, the way the hood flows back into the cabin area, the jewel-like headlights, smooth flanks and side air vents that all purr "Jagh-yew-war."

As a result, the XF could be considered the pre-eminent definition of the contemporary luxury sedan in styling.

When you hop on board, you will see how seriously Jaguar has taken its reputation as a driver's car.

The high console creates a sense of a cockpit set apart from the front passenger. The array of instruments and the gracious, contemporary way in which aluminum and wood blend in the interior all set just the right ambience for the XF.

The seats are supportive, but not so much so that they grip you too tightly; the controls fall easily into your hand. When you get in, you'll see that pulsating, red starter button; push it and sit back for the show to begin.

The glittering knob that controls the transmission rises to fit precisely into the palm of your hand, while the air vents on the dash slowly rotate open. It's as though the car has come alive, and the cat is ready to prowl.

The XF comes in Luxury ($49,979 base price), Premium Luxury ($55,975 base price) and supercharged ($62,975) versions, with the bottom two models powered by a 4.2-liter, 300-horsepower V-8 that will zoom you to 60 in about six seconds. The supercharged model is powered by a 4.2-liter, 420-horsepower V-8 (15/22 miles per gallon).

Source: Pittsburgh Gazzette.