Vintage racing and roadster enthusiasts know Jaguar as a great performance car, an identity rightfully manifested in the beautiful XKE and D-Type.

Most Americans seem to think of them as unreliable and a generally sub-Mercedes luxury car…

…and pretty much nobody has heard of the XJ220 or XJR-15.

Come on guys… it was in Need For Speed 2?

Car companies live and die by their image and identity.  So what the hell is Jaguars?

It’s my feeling that this lack of brand-consistency is a big part of why Jaguar is sucking butt through a garden hose right now.  That, and the fact that they’re associated with Land Rover can’t help.

Let’s take it back to the 1950’s, 60’s, and even the 70’s.  Jaguar was building striking cars with lots of power, and lots of style.  They were cool.  Guys who drove them were cool.  The thunderous roar of a Jag V-12 was more effective than Viagra at doing… what I’m told that does.

This is what cool looked like in 1956

Two decades later, Jag was still money.

Even the treacherous 80’s weren’t nearly as bad to Jaguar as they were to many other automakers.  The XJ220 supercar came out, which may have suffered from the same interior blandness as its contemporary supercars but looked pretty damn sexy from every other angle.  The XJ6 sedan was elegant, if rusty… and the XJS is not one of my favorites, but I have friends who say it’s a design you learn to love.  And I have to admit it’s probably the cheapest car you can buy used today that’ll pull 150 MPH out of the box.

Jag survives… 1985

Then the 90’s hit, and they hit hard.

The E-Type was long gone, nobody bought any XJ220s, and the once decent-looking XJS and XJ6 got some seriously offensive headlamps that only a mother could love.  If she was blind.

And don’t try to tell me the XK8 doesn’t suck, cause it does.  A weak V8, oddly too-large wheels, and a dinky transmission helped it give convertibles a bad name.  The early 2000’s weren’t much of an improvement.  The S-Type tried and failed and rekindle that old-school “classic British” vibe, and the X-Type was a station wagon that would fit in the cargo area of its competitors (Volvo, Merc, ect.).  At least the XJS went away and the XJ6 was returned to its original round-faced splendor.

Jag knew it was in trouble.  And I’ve got to hand it to them for making a valiant comeback effort.

Enter, the XK.

Sexy, F1-style paddle shifters, a supercharged “R” variant, and did I mention sexy?  Chicks could mistake it for an Aston Martin, which would of course be awesome for the guy behind the heated steering wheel (I loved the heated steering wheel also).

The XK was just what Jaguar needed to bring its old moniker of “Grace, Pace and Space” back.  It’s a fantastic car that lets you feel like you’re in a real European GT for a whole lot less money than an Aston or Ferrari.

But, Jag’s determination to shake their slow, stodgy and unreliable image didn’t stop with a great coupe.  They brought in a sedan to match.

The XF pushed it even further.  Way cooler than the little buttboxes it replaces (S-Type and X-Type) the XF is a pretty little sedan that looks fine parked next to a fabulous XK.  Sadly, I haven’t had the opportunity to experience it, but Top Gear seemed to approve and that’s good enough for me.

Now, the new XJ completes the Jaguar refacing- it’s modern, quick, wide-mouthed and (I’m told) a pleasure to drive.  Otherwise worded as- nothing at all like the old XJ.

And for highly privileged journalists such as myself, Jaguar has launched a new PR website called “Interactive Jaguar.”  Go ahead, take a look here.

Looks like the old cat is poised to pounce on BMW and Mercedes as the sport-luxury leaders in the eyes of the consumer.

When the S-Type was new, I breathed a sigh of dismay and wrote off Jaguar.  But after seeing and driving the XK I really would love to see Jaguar succeed.

So good luck chaps, and watch your back Mercedes.

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Jaguar XF 2009

The Jaguar XF 3.0 litre V6 luxury executive car, retained its award-winning crown at the WhatCar? Awards held in London last week after winning ‘Best Executive Car’ for 2009. The jaguar is a deserving winner and with its new greener engines, style and pace, driving this car is always a special occasion.

Geoff Cousins, Managing Director of Jaguar Cars in the UK, said: “It is fantastic news for XF to win this esteemed Whatcar? Award for the second time….It has been a resounding success since launch and despite the current challenging economic conditions; Jaguar has made great progress in 2008.

What with the launch of the greatly anticipated XFR and the new XF Diesel S – both cars set new benchmarks in terms of performance, economy and efficiency which is great news for the consumer. What is also great news is that the new Model XF and XFR are available to order now at around £32,000 with first customer deliveries beginning in March.

As recently announced Jaguar has a new 275PS high-performance XF Diesel S for 2010 Model Year featuring Jaguar’s new AJ-V6D Gen III S 3.0-litre diesel engine that reaches 0-60mph in just 5.9 seconds. It has a combined Fuel Economy of 42.0mpg which is 12 percent better than the acclaimed 2.7-litre V6 diesel engine and emits a 10 percent reduction in CO2.

The new XFR is powered by the all-new supercharged V8 with acceleration from 0-60mph in a mere 4.7 seconds making it the ultimate Jaguar sport saloon. Its distinguished unique exterior and interior design features includes revised bumpers and lower front air intakes, sill extensions, bonnet louvres and grilles, four tailpipes, a boot-lid spoiler, unique seats and stunning 20-inch alloy wheels.

Since the launch this executive XF has won more than 30 commendations from respected UK publications, including Top Gear, CAR magazine and The Sun motoring, thus proving again that it is a deserving winner, so contact your Jaguar dealer today to get the best deal for your new XF.

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The Detroit News

“They could create a legacy like PCBs,” Gearhart said of the flame retardant BDE, referring to a now-banned toxic chemical that found its way up the food chain. “They have all the lineage of that type of environmental disaster. We think the writing is on the wall. The smart people within the auto industry know that.”

The Ecology Center cited Ford subsidiary Volvo Car Corp. as an industry leader in following a policy to reduce flame-retardant chemicals as concern has grown in Europe. Volvo and other well-performing companies prove the feasibility of providing safer alternatives, Gearhart said.

After the report, Volvo issued a statement touting its models’ “best interior air quality.” The test scores were the result of a conscious company policy to reduce interior emissions and improve air filtering, the company said.

Go, Volvo! The report does not state, however, that playing Volvo’s preferred musical instrument, the hooterglaven, makes one look like a dork. Or, in Swedish, a dorkenborken.

Slideshow From Forbes
Forbes reports: Best- And Worst-Selling Cars By Company. Forbes likes slideshows. We like slideshows. We prefer slideshows of Claire, but we will settle for slideshows of cars. And Morena. We’re not looking at this article for real facts since

In many ways the title of this article is a misnomer because for many makers the “worst” sellers are simply the cars with the lowest sales volumes and often the highest prices.

It would have been more interesting if the article/slideshow was about winners and losers in regards to sales expectations. Why didn’t we do that ourselves, if we’re so smart? You think we’re smart? We love you!

Volvo Updates S80 to S80!
Autoblog reports: Holy Geneva! 2007 Volvo S80 revealed in advance of Swiss debut. Autoblog says, based on its looks, this car couldn’t be anything but a Volvo. We don’t think so. We don’t know what it looks like to us, but Volvo doesn’t spring to mind. Anyway, we’re all bummed because Volvo went the big V-8 route and… Volvo goes from best interior air quality to big ol’ V-8–havin’ fatty o’fatfat.

Jaguar: No Jaguar For You!
Leftlane News reports: Jaguar shoots for “refinement and rarity” over volume. Now this is something. If Jaguar turns it around with better interiors (design and materials) and then makes them harder to come by… they might be on to something. We wrote the same thing recently so, you know it’s brilliant.

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The X-type is Jaguar’s smallest and least expensive car. Launched in 2000, it was designed to compete against other luxury brands’ entry vehicles such as the BMW 3-series. The company had hoped the X-type’s cachet but low price would appeal more to the average consumer in both in Europe and in the U.S. While global sales were as high as 130,330 units in 2002, projected sales for 2007 have dropped as low as 33,770.

Jaguar representatives, when asked about such news, stated, “the X-Type will continue to be available in the US.”

If the information proves to be correct, it is not known if the X-Type will continued to be sold in Europe.

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click image for see Jaguar XJ

The Jaguar XJ is is a near clean-sheet design for the 2011 model year with all-new sheet metal, interior bits and powertrains. All that change leads to a new price tag when the biggest cat hits UK dealerships this April, and the MSRP ranges wildly depending on what you’re looking for. UK site Autocar reports that the XJ will range from £53,775 ($86,741 in U.S. funds, though that’s not directly comparable) for the 3.0 diesel Luxury model to £90,455 ($145,638 U.S.) for the “base” 5.0 Supersport LWB. Those prices will climb based on the options chosen, and we’re sure plenty of models will crest the £100,000 mark. The middling XJ 5.0 V8 Premium Luxury comes in at £64,355 ($103,579 U.S).

Jaguar will reportedly sell three different versions of the XJ, with powertrain options ranging from five versions of the 3.0-liter diesel model to four versions with the petrol-powered 5.0-liter V8 and finally two different supercharged 5.0-liter Supersport models. All models will reportedly be available with both standard and long wheelbases, with the longer Jags coming with a £3,000 price premium.

Keep in mind that UK pricing very often has very little to do with the XJ MSRP we’re likely to see here in the U.S. due to the much higher value of the British Pound versus the U.S. dollar and the UK’s wonky Value Added Tax. In other words, don’t read much into the pricing unless you live on a very large island just north of mainland Europe. Head over to Autocar to see cross-pond pricing for all ‘11 XJ models.

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