Autoblog

Jaguar C-X75 production run canceled

Jeremy Korzeniewski — Tue, 11 Dec 2012 10:58:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, Jaguar

"We feel we could make the car work, but looking at the global austerity measures in place now, it seems the wrong time to launch an 800,000-pound to 1 million-pound supercar."

Those words are from Jaguar Global Brand Director Adrian Hallmark, and as true as they may be, it still stings a little bit. After all, we've been looking forward to the Jaguar C-X75 ever since word came from Jolly Olde that it was green-lit for a short production run.

Some of the cool bits and pieces the world will now be without: a powerful but relatively miserly 1.6-liter turbocharged and supercharged four-cylinder engine, two electric motors driving all four wheels and a carbon fiber chassis developed by Williams F1. Sigh.

All is not lost, however. According to Autocar, Jaguar says five working prototypes will be completed, and as many as three of those will be sold at auction, though we don't know if they will be legal for street use. Jaguar will also be able to carry 60 percent of the C-X75's weight-saving and hybrid powertrain technology in future products.

And, lest we forget, those wealthy individuals holding out for a ridiculously fast and stupendously expensive hybrid supercar can always plunk down some cash for the Porsche 918...

Jaguar C-X75 production run canceled originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 11 Dec 2012 10:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jaguar to confine turbine-powered C-X75 to track use? [w/poll]

Noah Joseph — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 13:01:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, Government/Legal, Jaguar, Specialty, Electric

We can appreciate a good track car as much as the next enthusiast, but we're beginning to bemoan their creation as a way out for automakers to charge wealthy customers obscene amounts of money for cars they're not even legally allowed to drive on the road. (As least, not in countries were homologation can't be circumvented with a sufficient bribe to the right bureaucrat. Which we're not entirely sure includes these United States.)

It's the road that Lamborghini is expected to take with the "production" version of the Sesto Elemento concept, and it appears to be the way Jaguar plans to bring its C-X75 concept to production. At least, the jet-powered one, anyway.

The C-X75, as you may recall, bowed at the 2010 Paris Auto Salon with an awesomely innovative powertrain: two micro-turbines acting as range-extenders to electric motors. Reports then began to surface that Jaguar intended to build the supercar, only that the commercially available version would pack a 1.6-liter turbo four being developed with the Williams Formula One team and packing about 500 horsepower instead of the turbine setup. (Not too shabby, but still no turbine.)

Then parent company Tata invested in a turbine outfit called Bladon Jets near Jaguar's headquarters in Coventry, leading to the development that a limited quantity would be offered with turbine power like the concept's. The latest reports, however, indicate that even those would be confined strictly to the track.

Now don't get us wrong, we applaud Jaguar and Tata pursuing the technology of getting this experimental powertrain into a "marketable" car, however much it may cost. We're just not sure that keeping it confined to the race track, given the prices they'll be bound to charge, is the right way to go about it. Agree or disagree? Cast your vote in the poll below.

View Poll

Jaguar to confine turbine-powered C-X75 to track use? [w/poll] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 14 Mar 2012 13:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Jaguar gears up to produce small run of turbine-powered C-X75 supercars

Noah Joseph — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:01:00 EST

Filed under: Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, Jaguar

Jaguar has a bit of a tricky history with supercars. The only previous example it actually built was the XJ220, which remains an impressive specimen even 20 years later, even though it never quite lived up to what the original concept car promised those who put down their deposits. Then in 2010 the British automaker unveiled the C-X75 and our hearts stopped.

The show car packed an intriguing twin-turbine powerplant into an alluring svelte shape, which only begged the question: would Jaguar build it, and if so, would it incorporate such an experimental propulsion system?

We had what we thought was the full answer last year when Jaguar announced that it would indeed produce the C-X75, but that the turbines wouldn't make it to the road, replaced instead by a hybrid drivetrain including a turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Disappointing, sure, but a little less so considering that the Williams F1 team would help develop the powertrain.

Now it seems that, while the hybrid turbo four will power most of the 250 examples of the C-X75 earmarked for production, a limited quantity will actually include micro-turbines as envisioned in the concept car. The jet engines (which will drive the rear wheels, so don't go expecting flames shooting out the back, Batmobile style) are reportedly being produced by the Bladon Jets Engineering Centre in Coventry - a company based near Jaguar's headquarters and partially owned by Jaguar's parent company Tata.

Although the turbines are only expected to produce 95 horsepower each (they are just a bit smaller than the ones you might find in a jet airplane), they need none of the cooling or lubrication systems required by traditional internal-combustion engines, leaving them lighter and easier to package - and making plenty of room for additional electric power to help the turbine-hybrid C-X75 hit 60 in just three seconds while returning exceptional fuel economy and emissions figures.

It'll be a few years still before this super-cat hits the road, but when it does, we're looking at something that will re-write the rule book even more than the XJ220 that came before.

Jaguar gears up to produce small run of turbine-powered C-X75 supercars originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 08 Feb 2012 10:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Williams hopes for further collaboration with Jaguar

Noah Joseph — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 08:00:00 EST

Filed under: Motorsports, Jaguar, UK

Could Williams emerge as the outsourced competition department for Jaguar? It very well might if Adam Parr has his way. The chairman of the Williams F1 team and its related subsidiaries is enthusiastic about his company's collaboration with the British automaker, and is keen to see it move forward into new areas.

Currently, Williams is helping Jaguar develop the C-X75 concept into a roadgoing supercar. And while the micro-turbines housed in the show car's engine bay aren't likely to make the production cut - at least, not initially - the hybrid element of the drivetrain is. That's where Williams comes in, supplying its expertise with the Kinetic Energy Recovery System it developed for use in F1 towards road-going application on the production C-X75.

Williams could, potentially, be called back in to service to develop hybrid systems for other Jaguar road cars if its work on the C-X75 turns out well, but Parr is also looking towards Le Mans. Jaguar has no less than seven victories at the famed endurance race to its name, including five in the 1950s and another two in 1988 and 1990, and is rumored to be working on a new LMP1 racing prototype, but whether Williams is in on the program remains to be seen.

Williams hopes for further collaboration with Jaguar originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 24 Aug 2011 08:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Autoblog Podcast #229: Autoblog changes, Jaguar C-X75 and more

Dan Roth — Tue, 10 May 2011 16:50:00 EST

Filed under: Podcasts

Click above for the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes, RSS or listen now!

Editor in Chief John Neff kicks it old school with Chris Shunk and Dan Roth this week for Episode #229 of the Autoblog Podcast. The big changes afoot for Autoblog are but one topic of conversation, which ranges from the chatter about an Acura RSX successor, Jaguar's C-X75 heading for production, the Opel Astra GTC coming to Buick, and Toyota's commitment to plug-in hybrids for the 2014 Prius. Your feedback and questions finish it off, and we've re-posted the Q&A at the bottom of this post so you can play along at home, too. Thanks for listening, we'll see you next week!

Autoblog Podcast #229: Autoblog changes, Acura RSX successor, Jaguar C-X75, Astra GTC for Buick, Plug-in Prius

In the Autoblog Garage:

2011 Jaguar XF Supercharged
2011 Hyundai Elantra Limited

Hosts: Dan Roth, Chris Shunk, John Neff
Runtime: 01:26:24

Get the podcast:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes
[RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator
[MP3] Download the MP3 directly

Feedback:
Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com
Voicemail: 734-288-8POD (734-288-8763)

Review the show in iTunes and take our survey

Autoblog Podcast #229: Autoblog changes, Jaguar C-X75 and more originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 10 May 2011 16:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #229

Dan Roth — Mon, 09 May 2011 18:00:00 EST

Click above to subscribe to The Autoblog Podcast in iTunes

We record Episode #229 of the Autoblog Podcast tonight, so check out our discussion topics below. Publisher John Neff is coming on to talk about big changes to our site, and we've also picked out some news-related topics. You can use the forum below to drop us your own feedback and questions, or vote on your fellow readers' submissions to help determine what else we discuss this evening. You can subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes if you haven't already to hear your question answered by our esteemed panel of 'casters.

Discussion Topics for Autoblog Podcast Episode #229

Subscribe to the Autoblog Podacast and hear your questions asked:
[iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes
[RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator

Submit your questions for Autoblog Podcast #229 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 09 May 2011 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Of Course They Are: Jaguar reportedly investigating C-X75 production

Jonathon Ramsey — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 09:32:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Coupe, Hybrid, Performance, Technology, Paris Motor Show, Jaguar, Luxury

Jaguar C-X75 Concept - Click above for high-res image gallery

Remember the Jaguar C-X75 Concept at the Paris Motor Show? Of course you do. The company repeatedly said it was "a pure concept" that wouldn't ever learn what the word "production" meant. Well, along with Galileo, Jaguar is reportedly joining the list of those who took it all back - well, almost - by admitting it's studying the production feasibility of what would become the X-75.

The stats again: Two 96-horsepower micro gas turbines powering batteries which in turn feed a quartet of 195-hp electric motors at the wheels for a shuddering 780 hp and 1,187 pound-feet, a 3.4-second run to 62 miles per hour, a top speed of 205 mph, an electric range of 68 miles and a range-extended blast of 560 miles. Autocar says that although Jag is studying only making 1,000 or 2,000 per year and could charge a fortune for every one of them, it's those turbines that could decide - or more likely, terminate - the car's fate.

See, Jag doesn't want to stick a plain old combustion engine in it. Otherwise it would have to be redesigned because the turbines' small footprint don't allow room for what would need to be a very powerful V8 or a large V12. Even though the company says developing the turbines for production would cost less than doing so for an ICE, it will take up to eight years to get them ready - for even a low-volume item. Of course, we can't imagine Jaguar is going to stand up at the 2016 Paris Auto Show and declare "The six-year-old concept car you loved in 2010 will be here in two more years! Get ready!" As far as we're concerned, we're happy to imagine gas turbines coming in some kind of Jaguar at some kind of date, whenever it is.

Gallery: Paris 2010: Jaguar C-X75 Concept

Of Course They Are: Jaguar reportedly investigating C-X75 production originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 07 Oct 2010 09:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Report: Jaguar's Paris concept to be called C-X75

Jonathon Ramsey — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST

Filed under: Concept Cars, Hybrid, Paris Motor Show, Jaguar, Luxury

At the end of August, Autocar revealed details of a concept car that it said Jaguar would bring to this week's Paris Motor Show. That concept car is now said to have a name - C-X75 - and not much else is known about it beyond the speculation we already have.

Laid out as a pure concept, it reportedly isn't meant for production, but rather to tip Jaguar's hand about the company's future plans for design, luxury and sustainability while celebrating the marque's 75th anniversary (hence the name). That means we can probably expect a glimpse of a new grille treatment and supposedly a V6 hybrid powertrain, both indicative of what could be seen on the next generation of Leaping Cats that will begin arriving in 2012.

[Source: Top Speed]

Report: Jaguar's Paris concept to be called C-X75 originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 27 Sep 2010 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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