Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

2014 Jaguar F-Type

Gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2014-...photo-5625280/

For every car, there is a passionate group of fans who love it, and the F-Type already has a few million rabid followers. These are fabulous things, sports cars, and we're very happy that Jaguar is making one again. Finally. (Before you start relishing the prospect of correcting us, the XK is really a grand tourer, not a sports car.)

The main question, however, will be whether someone in a position to buy a lifestyle-enhancing yet impractical F-Type will do so in the face of more established competitors from Porsche, Aston Martin, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and BMW. The last time Jaguar built a true two-seater sports car (1974 E-Type; the last of the XJ220 limited run in 1994 doesn't count in this league), most of today's new buyers were too young or may not yet have been born. At any rate, the F-Type has a lot of work to do for the brand beyond just selling itself.

Jaguar inviting us to Wales for an early ride in both the 375-horsepower F-Type S and 488-hp V8 S can be interpreted in many ways. Perhaps they want our opinions, as they are now in the final phase of pre-production testing. Or maybe they wish to stretch out coverage by key media outlets instead of depending entirely on the first drive "big bang" that will happen shortly. It's a little of both, we'd guess. The inevitable comparison tests in early summer should be quite revealing, as well.


The hills of north-central Wales are where Jaguar frequently wrings out the ride and dynamics of its cars prior to public launch. These country two-lanes (and more frequently 1.5-lanes peaking right on the center line and with no shoulder) are exactly the sort of roads for which all British car brands engineer their sportier offerings. Rain squalls howl through regularly, temperatures vary from hour to hour, and the sun emerges from dark, low clouds as brightly as the reflection from a sheet of Mylar. It's all dramatic and blustery, like five acts of a Shakespeare play, and so the job of the British car is to handle it all so that there is never any loss of face. No quivering of the iconic stiff upper lip. The car can snort and holler as much as it pleases while dominating its environs, but in the end, we need a simple cup of tea or a preferred pint of ale consumed quietly to celebrate.

For our rides in both the S, with its supercharged V6, and the also supercharged V8 S, we were driven by the F-Type's vehicle engineering manager with the thrillingly fabulous name of Erol Mustafa. (We promised Jaguar we would exaggerate the wonder of his name.) From what we could tell riding shotgun, the hot, low-lying Jag is a properly quick sports car that can at the very least compete with, and perhaps even scare, the occasional Porsche 911.

In most basic terms, the 3,558-pound, $81,875 F-Type S with 375 hp and 339 pound-feet of torque is thrilling in a different manner from the 3,671-pound, $92,875 V8 S and its 488 hp and 460 lb-ft. This happens a lot with such choices, such as the one between a base Boxster/Cayman or the S versions. The 3.0-liter F-Type S is more the traditional nimble sports car, and it utilizes more of its rev range while piping out a lovelier sound more readily than the V8 S. Meanwhile, the 5.0-liter V8 S (the white car featured in our photo gallery and Short Cut video) seeks longer straights between the curves in order to stretch its considerable legs and make more of its belligerent noise. Both engines benefit from a twin-scroll Eaton supercharger packing a punch but producing absolutely no whine.

In a setting like this Welsh one, we would honestly crave a manual shifter and clutch pedal for enhancing our interface with the F-Type. Well, at least they've left the recessed gearbox rheostat found in the rest of the brand's lineup out of the F-Type recipe. We can choose to manually shift the ZF eight-speed automatic transmission using either steering-wheel-mounted paddles or the shift lever when it's moved left from Drive into Sport. Fortunately, there are rumors being carried by the winds from Coventry that Jaguar intends to grace the F-Type with a manual transmission before too long.


Happily, the ZF Quickshift sequential automatic eight-speed still performs extremely well whether upshifting or downshifting. Timings are nicely placed for each flick of the paddles, especially in Jaguar Drive Mode's Dynamic setting, where the little checkered flag icon lights up. It's easy, as well, to induce a nice raspy shift sound in between gears, like a well-traveled jazz vocalist's signature growl in a smoke-filled room. The two S models get this sport exhaust as part of the base price.

The base S trim also gets a self-locking mechanical limited-slip differential in back as standard kit, while the V8 S comes with an active electronic rear differential. With the roads as they were on this typically blustery West Country day, both cars – the S on standard 19-inch wheels and tires, the V8 S on a standard 20-inch set – performed smoothly while dancing over the scrubby hills whether the electronic stability control was engaged or switched off. The V8 S rear axle is noticeably quicker thinking and the power and torque delivery solid from low revs, so the throttle play is subtler stuff than with the S. It's simply two understandably separate driving styles and both are well executed. We're comfortable referring to both setups in the F-Type as true driver's cars and we're eager to see if future plans include a member of the F-Type clan hitting 3.5 seconds on acceleration dashes to 60 miles per hour. F-Type R, anyone?


The tracks front and rear are wider than on a Porsche 911, and the steering has been left up to trusted hydraulics (huzzah!). We have the feeling we'll really enjoy the steering, too, once given the chance to drive an F-Type for ourselves in a couple of months. With either engine located mostly arrears of the front axle and a more rigid suspension than any other recent Jag, turn-in can nearly be called kart-like, though a Leaping Cat is always more civil than that. The standard adaptive suspension on S models is supplied by Bilstein, and we enjoyed the authority with which it negotiated these demanding roads. Most of the all-aluminum body-in-white is derived directly from the XK lineup, but torsional stiffness is up by 8 percent and lateral stiffness up 30 percent.

We enjoyed the ambiance inside the F-Type, especially because much of the whizbang gadgetry seen elsewhere in the Jaguar lineup is absent here. We like the cleanliness of the cabin design, and the Jaguar onboard interface is equally clean and simple to interact with. Our seats in both test cars were the optional XKR-S performance seats with adjustable support wherever you need it, which we've always enjoyed as they hold one firmly in place laterally.


The F-Type launching as a convertible – the fixed-roof version comes for the 2014 model year – makes sense for several of Jaguar's key markets, China excepted. The simple, fully automated cloth top uses 12 seconds to open or close and is a lighter-weight roof system than a folding hardtop would be. When up, it doesn't quite make you feel as though you're in a coupe. Roof stowed, the F-Type cockpit is pretty well isolated when it comes to wind noise at interstate speeds, though it could always do a bit better in this regard.

It's good that the base 2014 Jaguar F-Type with a 335-hp V6 will start at $69,000, because the pricing of the two S models we sat in this day in Wales frankly worries us. The explanation from Jaguar for pegging its prices nearly spot-on with the iconic Porsche 911 is that there is far more standard equipment on these cars than Porsche's obsession with profits from options would ever allow.

Here's hoping true shoppers for this heady bracket care to keep these practical things in mind and manage to see the real beauty of this new Jaguar F-Type.

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/02/08/2...t-ride-review/

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Sexy sexy and more sexy

Coconut

Come on, sliding calipers?!

Motor

Carmaker1

I'm intensely proud of Jaguar to see how far we've come in the past 20 years. I never understood the idiotic complaints of the F-Type being "too overpriced", when obviously Jaguar is not a high-volume luxury brand and this was not developed under the Ford umbrella using Ford parts nor any from Tata. Ford may have fixed reliability issues between 1989-2008, but watering down Jaguars with Ford parts or sharing Jaguar parts with Fords was detrimental to the brand's image.

Hopefully when the X260 XF starts production next year, all ties will be broken with the DEW98 platform(1994-1998). BTW, to anyone who again accuses me of being a "corporate shill" for Infiniti, Hyundai, Kia, or Mercedes-Benz, I do not work for either company(neither am I paid by them), except for Jaguar Land Rover Limited as of this September. I look forward to contributing to the development of future Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles(that likely won't surface until 2018-19).

LexFather

I had the pleasure to attend a F type debut in Tampa and it is lovely in person, the interior is fantastic. I wasn't a fan of the flat white paint used though and the brakes were ugly. Didn't get to drive it but they nailed the looks! Pricing IMO was kind of nutty...

Carmaker1

It is rather inane to assume that, when the F-Type does not have any direct competitors, as it's positioned between competitors like the Boxter/SLK/Z4, Mercedes SL/Porsche 911(not similar to each other). It's hypocritical to assume that, considering how the LFA was unfairly ridiculed for it's own very justifiable pricing and TMC didn't even profit from a single one. Yet it was much more bespoke and rarer than many other offerings, such as this will be (to a much smaller degree) with at least Mercedes-Benz and BMW.

bitkahuna

iTrader: (20)

not feeling it. looks like a transformer toy.

Outrage

I think the new F-Type has given me "Camaroitis". You can contract that when you've seen a vehicle in show car form for too long. Symptoms include making you feel like a new vehicle is already dated.

I8ABMR

LOL at the price. Guess we wont be seeing to many on the roads. Its the first year of a new model. Sounds like issues in the mail. They should have priced it at 55-65K. I like what they did but they are high if they think people will jump from their already over priced proven Porsches for this little unknown new model.

I will admit it sounds amazing and dynamically it looks like fun to drive. The price is insane still

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

2014 Jaguar F-Type

Gallery:
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2014-...photo-5818085/

If you're like me – and our demographics suggests you are – you've probably never seen a new Jaguar sportscar at your local showroom. I'm 36, and it hasn't happened in my lifetime... and not by a little bit. Oh, there have been a string of XK coupes and convertibles, and as of late, there have even been some genuine high-performance specials – namely the R, R-S and R-S GT models – but their basis has always been the 2+2 grand tourer shell, not a lighter and smaller footprint with more intrinsic sporting intent. The truth is that it's been a half-century since Jaguar introduced a proper new sportscar. Today, most people know the brand strictly as a purveyor of wood- and hide-lined luxury sedans.

In fact, if you're not an enthusiast with some appreciation for the marque's history, it's a bit odd to hear Jaguar executives proclaim that they are a sportscar company and always have been. By their reckoning, the 2014 F-Type seen here is in fact a return to form, a Rip Van Winkled brand pillar reanimated and reimagined to take center stage. It's a sentiment that must be particularly odd for car shoppers in developing markets like China, where Jaguar hasn't even been selling cars for very long. Yet because the original 1961 E-Type is perhaps the most gorgeous car ever to lay ply on the world's roads, we're prepared to cut them some slack.

Given a desire to project its lengthy and distinguished (if distant) sportscar history into the present, we couldn't really have blamed Jaguar if they decided to just update the E-Type's visuals and pull what's underneath into modernity, à la Ford GT. (In fact, there's already a well-respected British outfit, Eagle, commanding big dollars for doing largely the same thing). There's also a middle 'homage' path – think 1956 BMW 507 begets 2000 Z8 roadster. Yet Jaguar hasn't taken the easy way out and created a doppelganger or even a historical pastiche. Yes, if you look hard enough, you'll find subtle nods to the E-Type, but they aren't immediately obvious. In fact, Jaguar has embarked on nothing short of a radical design overhaul of its entire lineup over the last half-decade or so (beginning with 2008's XF sedan) in an effort to upend its image as traditional luxury transport for the world's elderly elite.


In the metal, the F-Type is nothing short of stunning. That's particularly impressive in light of something Jaguar design boss Ian Callum confided to us: Droptops are a lot more challenging to work out than their fixed-head counterparts. "Convertibles are inherently more difficult to give drama... it's basically a straight line with a hole in it." Despite the tougher design brief, our time crawling around each variant (V6, V6 S, and V8 S), along with countless admiring looks on our drive through the Northern Spanish countryside, suggests that Jaguar has more than nailed it.

The F-Type's face is dominated by a pair of vertically oriented bi-xenon headlamps (Easter Egg: their chromed innards were influenced by the Star Wars Tie Fighter – the result is far less hokey than it sounds) along with a large, rectangular grille opening with softened corners bookended by a set of aggressive air intakes. Callum says the design team originally penned the car with an oval grille like that of the original E-Type, "but it looked old," so they started over.

There's no confusing the F-Type's profile for anything other than a modern car, despite its classic long-hood, short rear deck proportions. The clamshell hood's lower shutline is made clear by a blade-shaped air inlet with a subtle crease that extends into the doors. Side mirrors that stand proud of the steeply raked windshield are small and graceful, propped up on stanchions with integrated turn signal repeaters. The doors themselves have a lot of surface interest thanks to their deeply barreled form and a rising character line that sets the stage for the swollen rear fenders. Hidden door handles even spring to life when you push a recessed button. Trick, but annoyingly, they don't retract and lock the doors when you push the button again – you have to use the key fob.


The tail section is arguably the F-Type's best and most distinctive design attribute, with a low, tapered shape accented by a narrow band of taillamps that subtly recall those of the E-Type. Unusually, the latter feature places more lens on the side of the car than facing rearward. Aerodynamicists will tell you that artfully pointed tails like this may look great, but they wreak havoc with a car's high-speed stability, so the F-Type features a deployable active rear wing that keeps the rump's lines unspoiled. Overall, you really have to look underhood to find a missed opportunity design-wise. The engine bay is sadly nondescript, with the powerplant covered in a massive black shroud.

The F-Type's interior is essentially a clean-sheet proposition, with an appropriately driver-centric focus. You sit low, with the doorsills up around your shoulder (but not too much) and the windshield header isn't intrusive whether the top is open or closed. Straight ahead is a three-spoke wheel with a small airbag and simpler button array than on other Jaguars. Available with both heat and a grippy faux suede finish, it's just the right thickness. A pair of wheel-mounted paddle shifters also peek out from behind the helm on all models. That's right, there's no manual gearbox available, only a ZF eight-speed automatic. Stifle your guffaws for a moment – we'll get to the transmission situation momentarily.

One might have expected Jaguar to go with a fully digital, TFT-based gauge package – after all, its other new models have been eschewing physical analog gauges for digital representations on an in-cluster screen. But this car is stuck with two oversized analog dials – a speedometer on the left and a tachometer on the right. While digital gauges are neat and reconfigurable, if Jaguar's aim was to create a more classically sporting roadster experience, they made the right choice. When additional information is called for, there's still a small screen between the gauges to provide details like mileage and navigation instructions. Notably, there's no wood to be found in the whole of the interior – instead, you'll find more technical finishes like aluminum and stainless steel.


Also filed under the "right choice" column are the F-Type's seats. Even the standard chairs offer real support, with fixed headrests that snug up to the back of one's belfry. Both the headrests and the deep seating position (20 millimeters lower than the XKR-S) telegraph the car's sporting intent – no lazy postures here. Performance seats are also available on all models, featuring more aggressive bolstering (particularly around the shoulders) and slots for five-point harnesses, and all are electrically adjustable.

Jaguar's cabins are not without theater these days – the XF's rolling motorized air vents, for instance. The F-Type carries on that tradition with active center air vents that emerge from atop the center stack when the climate control system's brain deems it necessary, disappearing when parked or when the system doesn't need them to maintain the correct temperature. Callum says the vents were critical to maintaining the sports-car-correct low dashboard, but they still strike us as a bit of well-meaning hokum. When deployed, the vents really don't add much visual height and the motorized assembly adds weight, complexity and cost for what amounts to a party trick. We like the simple three-dial temperature control **** array better, with their clever integrated displays and seat heater operations. The latter keep usage of the touchscreen infotainment system to a minimum, which is a bonus, because it's the same dim-witted Denso system that causes headaches in other Jaguars.

We also like the new console-mounted e-shift controller quite a bit. It's more intuitive to use than some others we've seen (BMW, we're looking in your direction), and it's more appropriate for a sportscar than the rotary controller found in other Jaguars. We also appreciate the mechanical quality of the toggle switches below the climate controls and the JaguarDrive Control switch that governs Dynamic and Winter modes.


So, the F-Type looks great and has been a long time coming, but the true measure of a sportscar is what lies beneath. So what have we got? By the basics, an aluminum-chassis'd, front-engined, rear-wheel-drive two-seat roadster powered by a family of V6 and V8 engines. More specifically, we have a front-mid-engined two-seater with a fast-acting soft top (12 seconds up or down, even on the move up to 30 mph), available in three different trims – V6, V6 S, and V8 S. Because we're the dedicated sort and figure you'd appreciate our hard work, we toughed it out and sampled all three variants on the mountain roads surrounding Pamplona, Spain, and on the region's Circuito de Navarra roadcourse we first visited with the Bentley Continental GT V8.

Jaguar started our drive in the 3.0-liter V6 model, which features 340 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque and starts from $69,000. The engine is a tuned version of the supercharged V6 first shown in the 2013 XJ and XF sedans, and it's a sweetheart. Even with the roof down, there's barely a hint of supercharger whine, but the engine still sounds great on boil and pulls well after a few revs are built, delivering a 0-60 mph time of 5.1 seconds. That stomps the 265 horses and 5.5-second 0-60 of the Porsche Boxster, but is fractionally slower than the 315-hp Boxster S, which does the trick in 4.8 seconds. Still, that's plenty quick for a base model, and top speed is a respectable 161 mph. Peak torque doesn't come on until 3,500 rpm, so you still have to put your foot down a bit to awaken the Eaton twin-vortex supercharger, but driven in isolation, we don't imagine many owners will be left wanting for more power.

The ZF eight-speed automatic does its best twin-clutch imitation, with quick, firm shifts under hard acceleration and a willingness to hold gears at redline when in Sport mode. It might give up a few hundredths in reaction time to something like Porsche's PDK, but under most circumstances it's hardly noticeable, and it offers more refined full automatic operation, particularly at low speeds. We only had a couple of occasions where the silicon chippery thought it was smarter than we were on paddleshift requests, and it was probably right. Good as it is, we'd still appreciate if Jaguar finds a way to put a manual gearbox option on the order sheet. It might be lower-tech and slower, but the added degree of interaction would be a welcome and appropriate choice for a full-range sportscar.


At the track, Jaguar wisely put us behind the wheel of the V6 S (pictured), which posts gains in horsepower (380) and torque (339) for your hard-won $81,000. More importantly, the 171-mph V6 S adds a lower final drive ratio (3.31:1 vs. 3.15:1), larger 15-inch brake rotors, a mechanical limited-slip differential, 19-inch alloys with Pirelli P Zero rubber (our photo car has optional 20s), active exhaust (optional on the base car) and perhaps most critically, Adaptive Dynamic Suspension, standard on the upper two trims.

The V6 S was a proper blast on the 15-turn, 2.44-mile circuit, with quick, accurate steering and a great big bellow of a soundtrack featuring plenty of rev-matched burble and pop on overrun, particularly with the center-mounted exhaust pipes opened up. The power and noise is only half the story, though – the car is beautifully balanced, with near-perfect weight distribution and the driver's rump sitting on the axis. Better still, the suite of electronic nannies don't slam the door on driving fun. Rather, they aid in getting comfortable with the car and the course and can be sent packing completely once the driver gains the necessary rapport. We weren't on the circuit in long-enough stints to find brake fade, but we liked the pedal's action just fine.

The entire package came together nicely on the region's roads, too, which ranged from mountainous zigzag switchback ascents to gate-to-gate slaloming through rolling fields aglow with a yellow riot of rapeseed flowers. We were only ever aware of the F-Type's substantial width (75.7 inches) during low-speed trundles through tightly packed medieval towns, but never did it feel vulnerable or ponderous.


After driving the V6 S on track and street, we honestly didn't see much need for a more powerful engine option, but that's exactly what we got the following day. The V8 S offers 495 horsepower and 460 pound-feet from its 5.0-liter supercharged V8, and peak torque comes in a thousand revs earlier than the V6s at 2,500 rpm. Jag quotes a 4.2-second 0-60 run, but it feels a bit quicker than that, and the mid-range acceleration on the open Autovia is positively savage. Top speed is listed at a thoroughly believable 186 mph, and the noise the V8's outboard exhaust pipes make is even better than the V6s. Further uprated brakes haul the range-topper down from speed without drama, but we do wish the hydraulic steering system offered as much feel as some German competitors.

Speaking of which, to this point, we've drawn comparisons to the Porsche Boxster, but in both size and price, the F-Type lurks somewhere in the murky midwaters between the mid-engined roadster's S model ($62,100) and the 911 Carrera Cabriolet ($96,200). This one-model-to-cover-two approach is either a brilliant masterstroke or a disaster in waiting; we won't know until the F-Type has been on sale for a bit.


When comparing like-for-like, the F-Type is at once more powerful and much more generously equipped than either Porsche model, although cargo space is decidedly limited by comparison at a paltry seven cubic feet. And the Jaguar isn't necessarily quicker, because it's heavier. The entry-level F-Type weighs 3,521 pounds and the fire-breathing V8 S checks in at 3,671 pounds. By comparison, a Boxster S PDK weighs just 2,976 pounds and the 911 Cabrio PDK tips the scales at 3,241. Blame the F-Type's extra width (it's 4.5 inches wider than the 911) and the burden of all of that additional standard kit, from navigation to power seats to that dancing air vent. The truth is, While Porsche's option sheets are more configurable, the F-Type's equipment levels are probably indicative of how most buyers outfit their cars. Oh – and a word about fuel economy – no firm EPA figures have been provided yet, but Jaguar says the base car should net 28 miles per gallon on the highway, with the V6 S dropping to 27 mpg and the V8 S plunging to 23 mpg. Defeatable start/stop comes as standard fit and works reasonably well, but with power-drunk roadsters like these, such measures feel like window dressings.

Why so much talk of Porsche? Because Stuttgart's offerings are the benchmarks in their respective segments, and their models are likely to be on the cross-shop table, as are other roadsters like the BMW Z4 sDrive35is, Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG, Chevrolet Corvette Stingray and even pricier outliers like the Aston Martin V8 Vantage. In fact, the F-Type still has enough refinement that we predict it will cannibalize some sales from the aging XK (the latter's interior really isn't much nicer and its vestigial rear seats aren't good for much more than a briefcase). There's actually a lot about the F-Type that still signals "GT" more than sportscar, particularly in base form.


We'll need to drive it back-to-back with its competitors to make sense of it all, but we think this F-Type offers a deeply compelling cocktail of virtues – drop-dead looks, hellfire soundtrack, strong power, keen handling, and arguably, pretty good value. Plus it's likely to be a comparative rarity to most of the motors above, an asset in and of itself for many buyers.

What we'd actually like to see is a more basic model based on the V6 S with equipment levels akin to what the Boxster starts off with – no nav, manual seats, and so on, with a price and curb weight reflective of the decontenting. Doing so would reinforce the F-Type's credentials as a true sportscar and minimize its GT undertones. If that's too much to ask of the roadster, we'd particularly like to see this strategy adopted with the eventual fixed-head coupe model that will be a bit harder-core by definition. The latter, by the way, is a model that Jaguar officials steadfastly refuse to confirm even as they can't help but wink and flash a wry smile.

Yet even without the coupe, there's real reason to celebrate here – we don't often see new nameplates enter this segment, and fortunately, the F-Type is damned good. We're enjoying a golden age of sorts for high-performance roadsters, just a couple of decades after the genre went all but extinct. Figuring out which one you want isn't like picking an acupuncturist out of the phone book – there's almost no risk, as there isn't a bad one in the bunch. Each of the segment's players offer compelling reasons to buy... but some of them, like this F-Type, offer a few more than most.

http://www.autoblog.com/2013/04/17/2...-drive-review/

LexFather

LFA has nothing to do with this, the LFA wasn't made to make money or save a brand. This is. I'm sorry but I find the pricing here very adventurous and I think it would have been a better idea to start off cheaper and as a value than giving people WTF moments in a place where Porsche dominates.

Look I am a Jaguar fan but I was hoping for a 45k-70k, not 70k-100k+ with options. Base 70k? Seriously?

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Jaguar is broadening their spectrum for sure. In terms of price they've always been a little more expensive than an equivalent BMW or Audi but still behind MBZ. With baby 3-Series fighter XS I'm sure base will come in around 36K and up. The addition of the F-Type will make the XK go up in price (it's only a 10K difference between the two at the moment), It'll most likely become bigger and more luxurious and start around 90K in the future. Although I agree it'd be nice if the F-Type were cheaper, I'm just glad Jaguar is coming out with new products.

LexFather

I agree and what Jaguar needs to do is figure out how to tell customers "hey we are above the brands you all know about". Their advertising is a mess to me in print and on t.v and they are non-existent with social media. They have a great lineup of cars only, no SUVs. They should be bragging "hey we don't make SUVs" and try to position as a driver's brand or something. Turn that perceived weakness into a strength.

Oh what do I know......oh wait....

UDel

Car looks nice from most angles though I am only interested in the coupe/hardtop, that black one is very nice. Pricing makes no sense, it is way too high even for the base with a supercharged V6 making just 340hp. This car is supposed to be somewhat affordable and improve sales yet it is priced too high to get decent sales or be seen all that much, once you stop up to the V8 it is not far from the XK coupe. Jaguar sales are pretty poor in the US despite having some of the best looking/driving cars in their segments, they need something more affordable to boost sales and this does not look like it is going to improve sales all that much based on its lofty pricing. Interior is nice but kind of plain for the price they are asking and not that special.

I still wish they developed that more retro silver F type concept from a couple years ago, that car was gorgeous and was going to be pretty affordable.