Our Time With A Jaguar XJL

A Bride On A Budget was allowed use of this car for this review. All thoughts and opinions belong to ABOAB.

Part of the fun of weddings is having an excuse to get dolled up. You get to buy a new dress, get your hair and makeup done, and party.

But you definitely need to show up in style.

And this month, that's exactly what we did for my brother's wedding. Prestige Jaguar lent us a Jaguar XJL for wedding weekend. If you follow us on Twitter, you saw us tweeting a stream of photos during our time with a Jaguar XJL.

Pete and I showed up to Prestige Jaguar on a Friday afternoon. We took a look around at the cars that were for sale while our paperwork was filled out.

We then got a chance to enjoy some Starbucks coffee (which yes, is complementary to customers -- and bloggers) and watch Family Guy on the huge screen. There's another huge screen in the dealership as well. It wasn't working, but it's actually a virtual test drive. When working, the series of screens is basically like an XBOX Kinect, it seemed. You can design your car, then drive it. It sounds really awesome and I'll have to get back to try it out when it's up and running.

When the Jaguar XJL was ready for us, I got a crash course about the features: how to set the Bluetooth, how to turn the car on (because it's push button start, not a key), and, my personal favorite, how to use the massaging seats.


Yes, massaging seats.

As soon as I was about to drive, the sky opened and it started to rain. Oh, not just rain. It was thunder and lightning and it was as if the sky opened to yell, "Lisa, be careful and drive the Jag like a grandma. You don't own it so you better be careful."

And so I listened.

The whole ride home, it was as if a grandma was driving.

Yes, that's my grandma, but no, she's not driving. She's just sitting in the car. In the all-leather interior.

The first ride I took with a passenger -- in the very reflective Jaguar XJL -- was to the rehearsal at the church. We were stopped at a light, waiting to make a right turn, but I waited because two girls were very slowly crossing the street in front of us.

"A Jaguar," one girl said to the other as her head spun to stare at the car.

For a minute, we were ballers.

We finally got the church, where the rehearsal was. There were only a handful of cars in the parking lot, which was great because of my sub-par parking job. The car is a lot longer than the one I drive in real life, so I definitely parked the first third of the car outside of the space. I wish I could say I did this for the photo, but that would be a lie.

We went from the rehearsal to the rehearsal dinner, then home. That's when we started exploring the features of the Jaguar XJL, like the moonroof. It actually took us a while to figure out how to close it, if you want to be honest. But no worries about getting cold because I was sitting in the heated driver's seat. Yes, heated and I was getting a massage. I really got used to that.

The next morning, we stuffed the trunk. See, we were taking the Jaguar XJL to the ceremony, then upstate for the reception, and the four of us in the car were all staying overnight. We had to fill it with our luggage -- plus gifts for the bride and groom. The trunk had enough room for everything. But speaking of the trunk, you don't use a key to open it. Nope. You just push a button and it pops open. It was great because our hands were full, so you didn't have to worry about fumbling with a key, getting it in the hole, and turning it. You just had to wiggle a finger free and push.

The glove compartment has similar technology in that you just push a button to open it. But there, you don't even push. You just get your finger close enough and pop, it's open.

We went to the ceremony then after, I had everyone cheese for some photos. While we were outside, we talked to my cousin's boyfriend who had done valet once upon a time. He pointed out features that I hadn't even noticed.

When you turn the car off, the shifter (which is on a rotater) becomes flush with the rest of the car. I had driven a few times and didn't notice that. I also didn't notice until then that when you're driving and there's someone in your blind spot, a light will illuminate on your side mirror. That's great so you don't crash your nice car into traffic.

After the ceremony, Pete set the Bluetooth to his phone and we listened to his songs as we started the drive to the reception. But I got tired of his songs, so my brother Mike hooked up his phone -- which has the Spotify app on it. It was really simple to disconnect and reconnect.

I let the passengers worry about that, and I was more concerned with the GPS. It shows up in the middle of the console ... until people are playing with other items on that screen. In that case, the GPS actually jumps into the dashboard (so the first circle is the GPS, the middle is the speedometer, and the last is the odometer). It was so easy to be able to just look down and see where I was going next rather than looking down and to the right.

And when I would look, I would check the speedometer. I was trying really hard to not speed, but it's so easy in a car that drives as smooth as the Jaguar XJL. At one point, I looked down and asked how fast they thought I was going. The average guess was 60; the actual speed was 75. It had nothing to do with me having a lead foot. It was just so incredibly smooth, you don't even realize you're going that fast.

The reception hall and hotel shared a parking lot so most of the guest walked over, including my grandma. Well, she got into her wheelchair and was rolled over. After the reception's open bar, though, I was worried about her getting rolled back through the dark parking lot. I was so scared that someone might be a little tipsy, hit a bump, and knock her out of her chair. So I decided to let them roll the empty wheelchair and I took her for a ride in the Jaguar XJL.
She was cold (she's a grandma; she's always cold) so I used the dual thermostats to turn hers up to 80 or so and left mine at sub-70. I also turned on her heated seat and gave her a massage. It was a very comfortable 90 second drive.
The next night, I asked my mom if she wanted to take a ride to Dunkin' Donuts. Inside, a customer was trying to figure out what Coolatta choices there were. I pointed out the list on the counter. "Do you work here?" she asked. "No," I said, "I was just looking at them myself." She was about to take the list outside to show her friends who were still in the car, when she said, "I know you." I thought she might have been a teacher's aide at my high school, so I told her where I went. "That's not it," she said, "But I'll tell you when I figure it out."
I got my Coolatta (frozen mocha coffee, if you're wondering) and walked outside. She was standing outside her car. "Good luck with your order," I said as I walked by.
"I know who you are," she said. "You're a movie star. I've seen you on a TV show or movie recently." I smiled, but I wanted to say, "It must be the Jag."
The next day, it was back to the dealership for my car ... which actually got great gar mileage. I drove it constantly for the entire wedding weekend on just about half a tank of gas (and that includes an hour-ish there and back to get from the church to the reception venue). The stats boast 27 miles, highway, and I definitely agree with that.
I gave the Jag back ... and traded it for a cup of coffee.

Sad.
But it was a good cup of coffee. And a great experience for wedding weekend.
BRIDAL BABBLE: How do you think a car like the Jaguar XJL could add to your wedding?