Spy shots: next Jaguar XJ caught at, where else, the Nurburgring
by Jonathon Ramsey on Aug 27th 2008 at 3:58PM 
Since you can't even really call it a car anymore if it hasn't been blasted around the 'Ring in development, Jaguar has taken the mechanicals of the next XJ sedan to everyone's favorite playground. Those internals wear the ill-fitting sheetmetal of the current XJ, with the addition of serious wheel arches and a fire-breathing nose.The real thing to take away from the story is this: the car has been described as "the XF's features... draped over an Aston Martin Rapide." Frankly, we were happy when the XJ's design was moved away from mimicking the Mercedes CLS. And we have come to appreciate the design of the XF. But this equation: XF + Rapide = XJ is the kind of thing that could go wrong. Mr. Callum, however, has earned the benefit of the doubt, so we will wait for the feast for our eyes to decide.
[Source: Autocar]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
retsel 4:33PM (8/27/2008)
if i had the money i would buy jag and add 3 models... a small sports car, something like the Buick Enclave and this new xj... and in the future... a new small sedan to replace the X Type...
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spike 4:58PM (8/27/2008)
agree with the small sports car and the xj but i would not go further south to develop an x-type replacement. instead, i'd use daimler to develop a four door large sedan and a high end two door cruiser to compete with bentley continental gt, the silver spur and maybach.
kinott 12:39AM (8/30/2008)
can you share with me?
Benfolio 4:43PM (8/27/2008)
I still think of Jeep when I hear (or read) "XJ".
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akatsuki 4:51PM (8/27/2008)
Perhaps they should consider taking the C-XF and draping it over the Rapide instead. Those Subaru headlights aren't doing the XF any favors.
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That One Person 5:38PM (8/27/2008)
And yet it is selling.
Trent 4:47PM (8/27/2008)
not to be critical, but i didn't realize the previous XJ was such a stunning design that they decided to leave it exactly the same. =-P
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ugg.tryptophan 6:06PM (8/27/2008)
other than the technological advances, the deisgn of the XJ hasn't really changed in decades, which is a good thing
DJ 5:41PM (8/27/2008)
This may be the most important car that Tata will ever build.
They need to show the world that they can produce a flagship sports sedan that can compete head to head with BMW, MB, Audi, Lexus and the others in performance, cache, build quality and styling. Otherwise, they're going to be laughed all the way back to the Nano factory.
As a current Jaguar XJ8 owner, I wish them every success in accomplishing this.
By the way, for those commenting on the overall appearance and headlights of the mule, it's just that, a MULE. It has nothing to do with the final design. The real story is underneath that all aluminum body with a 500HP DI 5.0L V8. This thing will easily run 4.3 second 0-60 times!
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Kevin 5:50PM (8/27/2008)
Hey Retsel, you must be one of those X-type owners, too. The X-type should have never happened, but I'm glad it did, because it's only the way I ever got to own a new Jag.
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RJ 6:21PM (8/27/2008)
The inspiration for that grill[e] can be found here-
http://culturegarage.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/01/jeremy-clarkson.jpg
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ALEXDB9 7:47PM (8/27/2008)
I've heard this new XJ will look like the C-XF concept...which would make this a test mule.
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Moses 8:11AM (8/28/2008)
I am a current XJ8 owner and Jag has really nailed it on the aluminum rivot bonding. They should concentrate on this technology exclusively. The car is solid with no creaks, double wishbones all around, air suspensions... The list goes on.
A Jag that does not make noises and won't rust- Keep them coming!
The current XF will hopefully be short lived so they can relaunch it in Aluminum.
Tata is going to do wonderful things for Jaguar and I think will pull away a lot of Lexus and Infiniti buyers rather than the MB and BMW loyalists.
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David Loh 10:07PM (8/29/2008)
Oh man, please get your facts right. The CLS (launched 2004) is the one mimicking the Jaguar curves (circa 1995 and even the latest platform is launched in 2003) one year earlier than the Merc.
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smith 10:05AM (8/31/2008)
Jaguar will have one impressive looking line-up: the xf, xk, new xj and potentially the f-type. Very attractive package. I wonder if they'd consider an xf and xj coupe?
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