Autoblog

The S-Type is dead. Long live the XF! Perhaps trying to make a break from a moniker that hasn't exactly been associated with good things for Jag, they have decided to switch things up and at the same time bring the midsize model inline with the current corporate nomenclature by using the new XF tag.

Although it might get confusing with an X-Type, XF, XJ and XK in the house. Maybe the X-Type will be renamed XC? Too Volvo. XD? XE? Similar to what Lincoln has done with the MKZ and MKX, these names might be too similar for consumers, or aging bloggers, to keep straight. The new XF was designed and developed in Coventry and will be built at the West Bromwich plant with a projected on-sale date of spring 2008.

And no matter what they call it, the new S-Type is an important car for Jaguar and parent Ford. We've shown you spy shots at the beginning and end of October that both point towards a look that will take cues from recent Jaguar concepts like the RD6 and R-Coupe up front, while from the rear it could be a booty double for the XK coupe.

As we reported previously, the new XF will not use aluminum in its construction to help speed up the production development process and cut costs. The interior should mimic the XK's cockpit, and engines will also be familiar, with the XF-R (?) getting the XKR's 420-bhp supercharged V8. A six-speed automatic will be standard across the entire model range.

[Source: Autocar]