LUXURY CAR OF THE YEAR: Jaguar XJ.

[Jaguar Owners Club]

 

LUXURY Car of the Year 2013 is the Jaguar XJ while the Performance Sportscar of the Year is the Jaguar F-TYPE. It's with good reason.

 

There was still little to prepare us for the arrival of the current generation XJ.

This is as bold as Jaguar has been in 40 years and with those looks comes all-aluminium construction, a collection of world-beating engines and a beautifully judged interior.

It's been a model that has put Jaguar back amongst the luxury car elite and it's now been improved with lower emissions, more equipment and a supercharged V6 petrol powertrain as an alternative to the 3.0-litre diesel unit that almost all buyers choose.

Like it has for some time, the XJ uses all-aluminium construction which sees it tip the scales substantially lighter than steel rivals.

 

This leads to major advantages in the performance, handling and efficiency departments where an important part of the luxury car battle is fought. The engines are borrowed from the XF, so we know that they're largely outstanding.

The diesel will inevitably be popular and it's a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 that yields 271bhp, with a massive 600Nm of torque thanks to its variable geometry turbos. Petrol-wise, there's now a choice between a freshly developed 340PS supercharged 3.0-litre V6 or a supercharged 510PS 5.0-litre V8.

 

The sinewy lines of the XJ only serve to emphasise its sporting intent. The front end borrows heavily from the XF, the sharply contoured bonnet and the wire mesh grille that juts forward from the plain of the headlights giving it real presence. The car is available in standard or long wheelbase forms with the longer car gaining 125mm and somehow managing to look even sleeker in profile.

Meanwhile, the F-TYPE is not only a sportscar – it's a Jaguar sportscar: the difference is important.

Don't expect a racetrack refugee – but don't expect a luxury GT either, the kind of car sporting fans of the brand have had to be satisfied with for decades.

 

Think instead of what an Austin Healey or a Triumph TR6 might be like re-interpreted for the modern era, a roadster designed very much for the road. A machine you can't help but want to drive. And drive hard.

Even in the entry-level 340PS V6 model thanks to 450NM of torque, sixty from rest is just 5.1s away en route to 161mph.

The roof, as you've probably gathered from the clean, compact shape, is a multi-layered fabric affair with a thick Thinsulate lining.

[knightsmith]

Well I think my XJ Supersport is just fantastic !

 

ATB,

 

Trevor