2012 Range Rover Evoque to Offer Plenty of Customization Options

If the 2012 Range Rover Evoque you order later this year arrives feeling like a stripped-down econo-ute, you didn’t check enough boxes. At the 2011 Geneva Auto Show, Land Rover announced a comprehensive customization and option program that allows customers to tailor their three- or five-door Evoque to suit a wide variety of tastes (and budgets), from clean simplicity to Range Rover–esque opulence. The Evoque will be available in 12 exterior colors and with three contrasting roof treatments, as well as with five wheel designs ranging from 18 to 20 inches in diameter. A dozen interior colors also are available, along with different wood and metal trim pieces. Kick plates are available in aluminum and chrome, while roof rails can be rendered in black or chrome.

If that’s too much decision-making for a person to bear, fear not: the combinations will be aligned along three themes: “Pure” (think base model), “Prestige” (dressier exterior, glitzy 19-inch wheels, two-tone interior coated in leather and wood), and “Dynamic” (sportier exterior with unique fascias and wheels, available contrasting roof treatment, intensified interior in darker colors). Beyond that, Land Rover has come up with its own “designers choice” themes, which it “with carefully coordinated color and material combinations that have their own distinctive character,” according to Gerry McGovern, Land Rover Design Director.

A final bit of fine-tuning can be done once customers take delivery of their Evoque: LED-based ambient lighting is provided in a range of colors that can be selected by the occupants, although if the sportiest mode of the adjustable Terrain Response chassis-adjustment system is selected, the interior is bathed in red. Cool.

Read More: http://blog.caranddriver.com/range-rover-evoque-to-offer-plenty-of-customization-options/

AUTO SHOWS: First Look: 2011 Jaguar XKR-S

Three years after Jaguar launched a performance-tuned XKR-S model at the Geneva Motor Show, the automaker revealed it will be bringing an all-new, more powerful XKR-S to this year's Geneva extravaganza. Deja vu? Perhaps, but the latest XKR-S promises to be a much more intimidating cat than the last.

If nothing else, the new XKR-S certainly looks the part. Designers have added a number of bespoke touches from head to toe, including an aggressive front fascia with a large lower air intake, sweeping air scoops on the front corners, and small, slender air ducts just beneath the hood's lower edge. XKR-S models eschew the XK's vertical fender vent in favor of a horizontal port. Flared side sills are much smoother than those used on both the XKR Speed Pack and the previous XKR-S. A flared rear valence, similar to that used on the Speed Pack, provides room for four exhaust tips, while a wild wing spoiler rests atop the decklid.

Unlike the previous XKR-S, however, the new model receives some additional go along with all this show. The supercharged, direct-injection 5.0-liter V-8 is boosted to roughly 542 horsepower and 501 pound-feet of torque, a gain of 32 horsepower and 40 pound-feet of torque. Jaguar says the power allows the new XKR-S to sprint from 0-60 in a blistering 4.2 seconds, run from 0-100 mph in 8.6 seconds, and hit a top speed of 186 mph. That's plenty quick, but the automaker says the XKR-S is the "fastest Jaguar ever" -- perhaps, unless you consider the XJ220...

Jaguar is keeping a number of the other XKR-S details under wraps until the car's official unveiling next week, but does note the car will receive unique suspension modifications at both ends, and a recalibrated stability system, which potentially allows drivers to push the envelope a little further.

Read More: http://www.automobilemag.com/auto_shows/geneva/2011/1102_2011_jaguar_xkr_s/index.html

FEATURES: Jaguar Is Thinking Big

Jaguar scaled back its big-volume ambitions after the Premiere Auto Group years, but now, under Tata, is scaling them back up again. Together with Land Rover, Jaguar's unofficial long- term plan is to build 750,000 vehicles by 2018. This is a dramatic threefold increase in production. New executives John Edwards at Land Rover and Adrian Hallmark at Jaguar have, together with Carl-Peter Forster and Ralph Speth, agreed to jointly conceive more efficient, universally applicable drivetrains, vehicle architectures, and production processes.

For Land Rover that means evaluating a common components matrix for the next Freelander/LR2, the Discovery/LR4 replacement -- and the future Defender. Jaguar is meanwhile working on the facelifted XF complete with an interesting wagon variant to appear later this year, on a more affordable two-seater sports car (in 2013), on a family of all-new entry-level models aimed at the Audi A4/BMW 3-series/Mercedes-Benz C-class (also in 2013), and on the next-generation XF (in 2014) and XK (also 2014).

Comments the recently appointed (ex-VW) senior brand manager Adrian Hallmark: "We won't have a 1-series-size car in the next five to ten years, but we are working on some compelling alternative body styles that are quite anti-German luxury car establishment. I don't think for instance that Jaguar should rely on the traditional sedan, wagon, coupe, and convertible mix in every segment we compete in. Not when there are alternatives like a four- or five-door coupe, a shooting brake [sports hatch/wagon], or a crossover. I also don't think that we can compromise on engines. What effect would a four-cylinder unit designed and made in India have on the brand image? At the upper end of the spectrum, it would be relatively easy to create a lightweight XKR R-type spyder, a high-performance diesel, or a more accessible variation of the C-X75 concept."

One new model in the pipeline is a striking XJ coupe on a shortened wheelbase. The pillarless four-seater features a glass roof and its own sheet metal, sources say. Hallmark describes it as "much more dynamic and emotional than a Mercedes CL."

Word is that Jaguar is seriously contemplating a four-door shooting brake based either on the entry-level model or the next XF. Although this model would boost XF sales by only 15 percent overall due to its strong focus on the European market, the cost basis is said to be attractive enough to turn a profit.

Read More: http://www.automobilemag.com/features/news/1101_future_jaguar_lineup/index.html

Jaguar Dealers

A Third Year Running A Jaguar Is An "All-Star"

The Jaguar XJ has been picked from 271 eligible cars to win Automobile magazine’s All-Star Award for 2011. The award was presented at the North American International Motor Show in Detroit and means the XJ has now won more than 20 international accolades since its launch in 2010.

According to Automobile magazine: “The toughest part about this class is that it’s very hard for any one car to stand out, and yet the XJ manages to do just that, in both its design and its dynamics. Both for the aesthete and the enthusiast, the all-new Jaguar XJ is an All-Star.”

It’s the third consecutive year a Jaguar has been named an All-Star – the XF won the honor in both 2009 and 2010.

Jaguar Illinois

2011 Jaguar XF Gives Up on Glove-Box Touch Control, Gets Other Minor Changes

We noted a couple of quiet updates made to a 2011 Jaguar XF Supercharged that recently graced the C/D lot. Two buttons caught our eye—specifically the one that operates the newly available heated windshield (thanks, Land Rover!) and another that opens the glove-compartment door.

A read of the 2011 XF press release reveals this line: “JaguarSense® glove box opening sensor replaced by a pushbutton for more convenient operation.” Interestingly, the same change does not appear to have been made to U.K.-market XFs. And the all-new XJ also includes the JaguarSense button-y thing.

Our 2009 XF long-termer’s touch-sensitive bull’s-eye worked consistently for only a handful of operators, and many of us wondered what would happen if the battery died, trapping the owner’s manual inside. That first complaint has been addressed in a switch to a more traditional momentary switch. But pressing it—tactile feedback and all—still activates a solenoid that actually does the job of releasing the door, so tough luck when the battery’s flat.

Other changes for the 2011 XF: the base model gets the naturally aspirated 5.0-liter V-8 that was previously only the province of the XF Premium model; XF Supercharged and XFR models continue with the supercharged 5.0-liter in two states of tune. This means the 4.2-liter V-8 that the car was originally introduced with is now entirely gone from the lineup. The newfound 5.0-liter in the base car is accompanied by a commensurate increase in front brake-disc size, matching the Premium’s. Also, the 2011 XFR gets a black grille, which looks pretty good.

Oh, and the wave-to-operate overhead lights? They’re still there, as are the pop-up shift knob and rotating HVAC vents. Sometimes the opposite of progress is slow, too.

Read More: http://blog.caranddriver.com/2011-jaguar-xf-gives-up-on-glove-box-touch-control-gets-other-minor-changes/

Land Rover Dealers

2012 Land Rover Range Rover Evoque Five-Door Official Photos and Info - Auto Shows

After showing the three-door Range Rover Evoque at the Paris auto show in September, Land Rover, as expected, used the occasion of the Los Angeles show to unveil the five-door version.

With 20-inch wheels and styling that eschews typical SUV tough-guy cues such as faux skidplates, the three-door and five-door are aimed at upscale urban drivers who aspire to but can’t quite reach the $60,495 Range Rover Sport. Dimensionally, the Evoque twins are the same except that the five-door is about one inch taller and rear-seat passengers get about two more inches of shoulder room in the more-spacious back seat.

As in the three-door, the five’s powertrain will be a 2.0-liter turbocharged direct-injection four-cylinder making about 240 hp paired with full-time all-wheel drive. The engine is from Ford’s new family of EcoBoost four-cylinders. The powertrain will make the Evoque twins the two most expensive four-cylinder vehicles on the U.S. market.

The Evoque uses the largely steel, front-drive-based car platform under the Land Rover LR2, although only about 30 percent of the parts are carry-over. The Evoque’s sportier stance and proportions required major changes to the body stampings and suspension, says Land Rover managing director Phil Popham. The three-door Evoque should come in around 220 pounds lighter than the 4250-pound LR2, the five-door about 154 pounds lighter, says Popham.

One crucial difference between the three- and five-door: under U.S. law, sport-utility vehicles with two passenger doors are subjected to a withering 25-percent import duty. The so-called “chicken tax” owes its name to a 1963 trade dispute with France and Germany when the U.S. placed the duty on some agricultural goods and trucks in response to European duties on American-sourced chickens.

Trucks were different then, but the duty remains on the books and the urban-chic three-door (two passenger doors plus one tailgate) Evoque will have to pay it, while the five-door Evoque will be exempt. So beyond rear-seat comfort, the biggest difference between the two body styles will be their profit margins for Land Rover.

 Read More: http://www.caranddriver.com/news/car/10q4/2012_land_rover_range_rover_evoque_five-door_official_photos_and_info-auto_shows

Land Rover Illinois

2011 Jaguar XJ Supersport – Short Take Road Test

With the new XJ, Jaguar has clarified the menu. Where once buyers had to choose between XJ8, XJ8 L, Vanden Plas, XJR, Super V-8, and Super V-8 Portfolio, now the car is offered as either a standard length XJ or the supersize-me long-wheelbase XJL. In the spirit of Jaguar’s Indian ownership, we envision the engine lineup as three levels of spiciness: the mild 385-hp base car, the medium 470-hp Supercharged, and the extra-spicy 510-hp Supersport. We already sampled the XJ Supercharged, and now we have a chance to taste the extra heat of the Supersport.

The XJ Supersport starts at a base price of $111,075, or $22,500 more than an XJ Supercharged. Nearly everything Jaguar offers is standard on both; the only major options are different wheels, rear-seat entertainment, a heated windshield, and adaptive cruise control, a $2300 upgrade on the Supercharged that is included on the Supersport. The flagship also adds little bits of garnish throughout the interior and, as if the XJ’s leather-and-wood trappings weren’t enough, the Supersport goes whole-cow and adds a leather headliner. Otherwise, it appears to be exactly like the lesser car. In other words, you don’t get a lot more for your money.

You do, however, get 40 more horsepower and an extra 37 lb-ft of torque. We weren’t exactly complaining about the performance of the XJ Supercharged, but if you’re one of those more-is-better types, then the Supersport will please you mightily. The 0-to-60-mph sprint takes 4.1 seconds, a 0.3-second improvement, while the quarter-mile time drops 0.4 second, to 12.4 at 115 mph. The brakes are excellent as well, stopping the XJ from 70 mph in 156 feet and showing no performance degradation after repeated panic stops. Skidpad grip, at 0.87 g, is perhaps the only performance figure that suggests the XJ Supersport is a 4316-pound luxury sedan and not an all-out sports car.

Have We Met?

Driving the Supersport is, well, nearly exactly like driving the XJ Supercharged—this is, after all, the same dish with a little more seasoning. In our previous XJ review, we said the car feels like the “most rigid, untwistable, and confidence-inspiring platform in Jaguar’s history.” This is still true. The Supersport simply makes the scenery blur a little more quickly on the way to its governed 161-mph top speed.

Read More: http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/car/10q4/2011_jaguar_xj_supersport-short_take_road_test

Jaguar Dealers