i.e. the vent cover on the side behind the front wheel.

I'm only asking because I've seen two different answers, one which says they are and one which says they're not and are only for show. 

Hi Gary,

In my XF (2011, XF-S Portfolio) they are def for real!

I enjoy the "theatre" of the startup as the vents rotate and the gear selector emerges.

All four vents blow cold (or hot) as desired, normally cold on my side, hotter on the boss's side. (Boss has her seat set to heat, mine to chill, mostly).
Have to say as well, that I love the way the demisting/de-icing just works in the winter, and have now got over the annoyance of the heating elements in the screen

Cheers
Jon 

Hi

Pure styling (IMHO). Only theoretical performance boost would be by increasing engine bay cooling by extracting heated air and thus increasing charge density. Only problem with that is that the panel behind them only has holes for fixing the air vent 😞

John

T

2 hours ago, Big John said:

Hi

Pure styling (IMHO). Only theoretical performance boost would be by increasing engine bay cooling by extracting heated air and thus increasing charge density. Only problem with that is that the panel behind them only has holes for fixing the air vent 😞

John

 

That's what I meant John. Doesn't bother me either way, I was just curious as people seem to have differing opinions with others saying it's for extra engine cooling. 

I don't get my car until Wednesday or so, and I'm thinking of changing the vent panels on mine as they're all black, with only the Jag logo in silver. Because the car is black they're hardly noticeable, which seems a shame as they really set the car off IMO, so I may swap them for silver/chrome to make them stand out. 

Hi Gary,

Oops - I misread your original post - I thought you were asking about the aircon vents inside - my bad!

Apologies for that.

Jon

Yes, I figured. No problem, I probably should have worded it better, I wasn't entirely sure what they were called. 

Mines got knocked off by someone’s kids opening a door on it! Looks like they are just part of the look but serve no other technical purpose. 

Well I guess they do offer some protection and save an otherwise expensive repair bill. 

Has anyone tried those on ebay for around £35? OEM prices are, as usual, extortionate for a piece of plastic. I'd rather have chrome than black as it stands out more, but it defeats the object if they look cheap and nasty.  

 

3 hours ago, Coolcity said:

Well I guess they do offer some protection and save an otherwise expensive repair bill. 

Has anyone tried those on ebay for around £35? OEM prices are, as usual, extortionate for a piece of plastic. I'd rather have chrome than black as it stands out more, but it defeats the object if they look cheap and nasty.  

 

Definitely. Was cheaper than a big dent no doubt. I got a new one with Chrome from the dealer for £75ish. Needed painted tho which bumped up total overall cost.