Jaguar's XF sports sedan has been judged the most secure vehicle in the large car category by Australia's expert body on vehicle crime, the National Motor Vehicle Theft Reduction Council (NMVTRC).
"Experience has shown the level of secure design applied in the manufacturing process is the single most important factor in determining the theft rate of a particular model," said David Morgan, the chairman of the NMVTRC.
The Jaguar XF range, available in New Zealand from $90,000 has the same security features as the XFs sold across the Tasman.
Each of the winning vehicles had been expertly assessed against its leading market competitors in relation to the security of its:
Entry systems (such as door, ignition locks, alarms, rear seat/boot access and glazing)
Engine immobiliser (higher technology immobilisers attracting higher scores)
Vehicle identification (body stamping, security labelling and microdotting)
The technical assessments were undertaken by engineering experts from NRMA Insurance's Research Centre in Sydney.
The security features of more than 70 current model vehicles were rated against a comprehensive scoring matrix to determine the class winners.