The new 186 mph Jaguar XKR-S.
There will be plenty of reasons to celebrate on the Jaguar stand at the New York Auto Show, this year. The maker will not only mark the 50th anniversary of the launch of its classic E-Type sports car but will also roll out a significant update of its current midsize “saloon car,” the XF.
Putting a premium on performance, the Brits will have several new muscle cars to unveil, as well, including both the XFR and the 186 mph XKR-S
With the new offerings, “Jaguar is at full strength,” contends the maker’s design chief Ian Callum – though there remain plenty of rumblings that even more product is in the works, notably a downsized “entry luxury” sedan that will eventually replace the largely unloved X-Type.
The maker has received a far more positive response to its sporty XF, which helped reframe the design equation for Jaguar when it made its debut several years back.
The Jaguar XF gets revised front and rear detailing for the 2012 model-year.
Many of the more inspired details, like the pop-up shift dial, will remain, but there will be some subtle changes to the front and rear bodywork, as the images reveal.
More significant, perhaps, are the changes coming for the 2012 Jaguar XFR. The goal is to better differentiate the performance package – with its 510 horsepower supercharged V8 – from the “base” car.
But for those who want the maximum muscle, Jaguar will introduce the XKR-S coupe, a restyled visage that stands apart from the stock XK coupe. Its 550-horsepower “blown” V8 will make 550 horsepower – getting you from 0 to 60 in just 4.2 seconds, on the way to a top speed of 186 mph.
Barely a year after launch, the flagship XJ sedan also gets some enhancements, though the focus is on the interior, with a new Rear Seat Comfort Package, among other 2012 options.
Even the competition loved the E-Type, Enzo Ferrari once declaring the Jaguar the most beautiful car he had ever seen.
Since its sale by Ford to Indian automaker Tata Motors, Jaguar has been moving to rebuild its line-up and the poster child for the brand is once again the legendary E-Type.
“It is impossible to overstate the impact the E-Type had when it was unveiled in 1961,” said Callum, “Here was a car that encapsulated the spirit of the revolutionary era it came to symbolize. The E-Type is a design that even today continues to inform the work we do in styling the Jaguars of the future.”
The original 2-seat version of the sports car got its launch exactly a half century ago at the New York Auto Show. To mark the occasion, Jaguar plans to follow the launch of the 2012 models with a parade of classic E-Types up New York’s Ninth Avenue.