Driving Sports

Tomorrow's Big Cat - 2009 Jaguar XF

Last week we drove the ultra-luxurious Jaguar XJ Super V8 sedan and enjoyed it. The XJ is a great car but at a sticker price of about $95,000 it’s more than a bit out of reach for most people. But Jaguar followed up that superlative ride with their brand new and ultra-hot XF Coupe. With a sticker price of $62,200, it’s still what the industry calls an “aspirational vehicle,” but it’s still $30-large cheaper than the sedan, and you get all the best stuff carried over from the XJ.

The XF features the same supercharged 4.2-liter V8 engine with 400 horsepower and 413 pound-feet of torque, mated with the same excellent 6-speed automatic transmission. The tranny features paddle shifters on the steering wheel and a “Sport” mode that shifts for speed better than most people can manage. The car is rear wheel drive, which is great for sporty driving, and that’s what you can expect from the XF.

Rule Brittania - Jaguar XJ Super V8

There really is something special about a Jaguar. The XJ (originally named for eXperimental Jaguar) has been produced for 40 years with substantially the same body lines, and it remains a popular choice in the luxury market.  More than half the cars Jaguar has ever built - over 800,000 units - have been XJ models. The 2008 XJ is the seventh generation of the car according to Jaguar’s method of calculation, and the 2008 XJ Super V8 is without a doubt the most powerful and luxurious offering in XJ history.

This year, you can get your XJ with a normally aspirated 310 horsepower 4.2-liter V8 engine, or the Super V8, pulling over 400 horsepower and 408 pound-feet of torque from a supercharged 4.2-liter V8. That’s some serious grunt for a supposedly sedate British luxury car!

Western Automotive Journalists Gather For "Media Days" At Laguna Seca

The Western Automotive Journalists organization gathered this week in beautiful Monterey, Calif. to test drive the 2008 sports and luxury car field from virtually every automaker doing business in North America. Journalists from up and down the west coast arrived to test the full fleet of 2008 cars on the winding mountain roads of Carmel Valley and at speed on the track at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

Yes, that's the new Nissan GT-R parked next to the NISMO Edition 350Z in the photo to the right. Yes, they're as good as you think they are.

Events such as this serve a number of purposes, including a rare chance for side-by-side tests of comparable cars from different automakers, and also to allow a relaxed atmosphere to talk shop with the manufacturer representatives. But I wouldn't lie to you and tell you it was anything like working - this event is big-time fun.

Say Tata to Jaguar and Land Rover

Tata Motors today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement with the Ford Motor Company for the purchase of Jaguar Land Rover, comprising brands, plants and Intellectual Property Rights.

The transfer of ownership to Tata Motors is expected to close by the end of the next quarter, subject to applicable regulatory approvals.

The total amount to be paid in cash by Tata Motors for Jaguar Land Rover upon closing will be approximately US $2.3 billion. At closing, Ford will then contribute up to approximately US $600 million to the Jaguar Land Rover pension plans.

Cat Scratch Fever - 2008 Jaguar XKR Reviewed

There was a time when luxury automakers just got so staid and stuffy that they were no fun at all. Cadillac lost its mojo in a sea of GM standardization, no one was sure if Lincoln was even making cars any more, and Jaguars were just nicer-looking mid-size Fords.  The average age of luxury brand buyers was rising fast - and something had to be done.

A few years ago that all began to change - manufacturers found that their luxury brands were the perfect vehicles to attract a new generation of buyers if they could offer luxury cars with real performance - measured and proven on the dyno and on the race track, not just claimed on the brochure. Cadillac did a great job reinventing itself with rides like the CTS and STS-V, and Jaguar returned to its racing history and gave us the XK convertible and the XKR coupe.

Jag Wins Top Brit Award for Hot XF Sedan

Jaguar's new XF has claimed the top prize – the highly respected 'Car of the Year' award – at the 2008 What Car? awards in London. The XF also took top place in the 'Best Executive Car' category, ahead of the BMW 5 Series and the Mercedes CLS.

Steve Fowler, group editor of What Car?, said: "For us, the XF goes straight in there with the very best cars from Jaguar's past. And given that the car market today is more competitive than it's ever been, it's fair to say the XF is the best car Jaguar has ever built.