Category: Jaguar

Ken Gorin, chairman of the Jaguar Business Operations Council said in an interview with Automotive News that American Jaguar dealers were ready to sell the new XF which will go on sale there next March.

He also described 2007 as the worst year ever for Jaguar dealers. “When you’ve been through the worst, you’ve been through the worst,” he said. Last year company’s sales dropped 24.2% to 15,683 units on the American market. This is an average of less than 10 cars per month for each one of the 170 dealers.

Gorin also hopes the future new owner will give the brand the destiny it deserves. Last december he said he wasn’t very happy with the idea to sell Jaguar coming “out of India.” In the interview he said that his comment was misconstrued.

The next Jaguar’s owner will buy an ambitious company which plans to expand its lineup new models in the coming years: a XF coupé, a possible XF SUV, a potential four door XK and a renewed XJ executive saloon.

Jaguar executives never hid their plan to expand the XF lineup with several variants. The most likely variant to appear will be the XF coupé which will feature a more exclusive design but keep the saloon interior architecture and its engine range. The company wants to keep the price under £45,000. In addition to the coupé, Jaguar executives are considering building a convertible variant but it is unlikely to come to anything. Indeed, accountants are hesitant because of the expense generated by the technical changes and engineers don’t favor it because of large amount of work generated by a large fabric roof. A SUV variant is also in the pipes, but the stricter emission regulation and the shrinking SUV segment don’t plead its cause. An estate version is being also considered, but unlikely to go beyond the discussion stage.

Aside the XF, XK might get a four door version set to compete with the Mercedes CLS. After all, Mercedes launched the CLS to compete with Jaguar. Secrecy surrounds the spec of the car due to be launched in 2011 although some observers believes that the car will feature a similar engine range to the XK’s with V6 and V8 petrol units. Insiders also talk about a sportier version of the XKR. Dubbed XKR-R, the super XK would be powered by a 500bhp 5.0-litre petrol engine thanks to a tuned supercharger and tweaked engine. The chassis would also be tuned and the XKR-R would reach a top speed of 180mph.

Closer to us, the next-generation XJ will be launched next year. Like the outgoing model, the future limousine will be available with a choice of two wheelbases. This time, the shorter version will be roomy enough for two passengers at the rear.

Source: Autocar

In an interview with Just-Auto, Ford’s Chief Technical Officer, Richard Parry-Jones has revealed that Jaguar has recorded 3,000 pre-orders for the new XF in the UK. Those pre-orders exceed the forecast.

Despite this good news, Jaguar remains on its guard and sales result will tell whether the British manufacturer succeeded or not. The XF will attract current S-Type owners but Richard Parry-Jones also thinks that the XF might “attract more design-aware people from the German brands.”

The UK is not the only country where the XF pre-orders exceed forecasts. In the US, the new XF is generating a strong demand. Customers who order their car now will have to wait until May even though the car goes on sale in March.

The picture you see here might become the symbol of a new era for Jaguar. By rolling off the first XF model yesterday at the Castle Bromwich factory, Jaguar is sending its heritage to the history books and is moving forward a troubled future. The XF is a 4.2 litre V8 SV8 model in a Vapour Grey paint. It will be given to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust collection.

The XF will be on sale in next March and first models will be delivered on the 65 markets on which the car will be exported. Thanks to a new labour agreement, Jaguar might use the Land Rover workforce to face a possible production increase due to high sales.

The Japanese car magazine Car Styling has named the Jaguar C-XF concept car of the year. Akira Fujimoto, editor-in-chief at Car Styling, commented: “The C-XF was chosen for this award as it tries to achieve a sense of high quality by using new materials and new sensibilities, not only on the exterior but also in the interior. At Car Styling we can foresee that this comprehensive, high level of styling will be fully reflected in the new generation of Jaguars.”

Unveiled at the Detroit Motor Show in January, the concept car announced the awaited new Jaguar saloon. More than a car, the C-XF was a revolution for the British carmaker, breaking years of tradition in design. With this car, Jaguar abandoned the unsuccessful current style to adopt a fresh new design language. The production car was launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show and encountered mixed reactions among specialists. American consumers, the main target, seem to appreciate the new Jaguar design, with a two month waiting list for potential buyers.

For Jaguar’s Design Director, Ian Callum, it is a new prize to add to his collection. He declared: “It is a great honour for Jaguar to receive this award from such a reputable journal like Car Styling – a magazine that all designers have grown up with for the last 30 years. My colleague Julian Thomson and I both believe it has always demonstrated the very best in our profession, so it makes us particularly proud to receive this recognition for the C-XF.”