Jaguar’s future products come into focus

The iconic British luxury car firm has really changed the winds in the recent past. Once on the brink of complete doom, the marque is now looking to challenge the Germans at their own turf after a sensational comeback under the ownership of Tata Motors.

The sheer bullish nature of Jaguar will be seen at the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show this month where the automaker plans to present two new cars. Jaguar will present the F-Type with an exclusive Black pack performance trim and the new XFR-S sedan.

When done with the 2012 Los Angeles Auto Show, Jaguar will get to work with their ‘all-new’ products which are expected to hit the stands in the next five years.

Jaguar’s 3 Series rival

First up is the most awaited product from Jaguar’s portfolio – a small sedan to rival the likes of BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C Class and Audi A4. Codenamed the X760, it will be a spiritual successor to the Jaguar X-Type. The mass market (well sort of mass market) sedan will help Jaguar with numbers. It will use Jaguar’s premium lightweight architecture (PLA) aluminum chassis with power going to either rear wheels or all four wheels. It will be available in three body styles – four door sedan, coupe and station wagon.

Jaguar XF

Jaguar’s most popular sedan is expected to get a makeover come 2015. Codenamed X260, Jaguar plans to switch to an aluminum body for the new XF. Jaguar plans to keep the station wagon variant in the future XF as well. A coupe version is expected in 2015 or 2016.

Jaguar XK

Jaguar has already started work on the all-new XK sports car. To keep the cost down, Jaguar will present the XK with a modified version of the existing platform which will get more power/torque and more equipment levels wrapped in an all new design. It will be larger than the current model to demarcate it from the current F-Type. The new XK coupe and convertible hit the stands in 2014.

Jaguar XJ

An all-new flagship sedan is expected in 2017. Codenamed X360, there will be three versions of the new XJ - a four door sedan, a long-wheelbase version and a four door coupe.

Jaguar Crossover

Jaguar is still deciding on whether to enter the SUV segment or let Land Rover do that job alone. The crossover is on the drawing board with talks of using the an all-wheel-drive platform of the Jaguar’s compact sedan to compete against the BMW X3, Audi Q5 and Mercedes M Class.

Jaguar C-X75

The halo car of Jaguar will be a production version of the C-X75 concept from the 2010 Paris Motor Show. It will have plug-in electric motors on the front and rear axles. The engine is being developed with the Williams F1 racing team and it will use a lightweight carbon-fiber chassis. Only 250 units will be sold making it a collector’s item.

The C-X75 will be priced between $1.2 million and $1.5 million making it a worthy competitor to the Bugatti Veyron.

The new products will require a considerable investment from Tata Motors. Jaguar wants to reduce the cost by increasing platform sharing with its sister brand Land Rover. Currently both brands have a total of 7 platforms which are completely unrelated. JLR wants to reduce them to two or three. To implement platform sharing ideas, Jaguar is studying Volkswagen’s MQB architecture. The new platforms will underpin almost 70% to 80% of the models in the years to come.

[Source: Automobilemag.com & Autocar.co.uk]