Jaguar: the King of Luxury Sports Cars

There’s something about a Jaguar that exceeds the technologically advanced driving capability that one enjoys when getting behind the wheel of a other high-end sports cars. It’s a more subtle, tactile experience that transcends looks, sound and engine performance and provides an all-encompassing sensual encounter that makes one feel alert, attentive, relaxed and, well, alive!

"When people get into my personal Jaguar the first thing that they do is they want to touch everything," says Tim Philippo, product manager of Jaguar Sports Cars. "They feel the leather, the suede headliner, they drink in the smell of the interior and they know that it’s something special. There’s no mistaking Jaguar for anything else."

Indeed, even the name Jaguar carries with it a status – a prestige – that denotes the finest in automotive luxury coupled with the most powerful four-wheel performance on the planet. Established over generations of superior engineering and high-quality craftsmanship, Jaguar’s heritage is built on a legacy of racing royalty and British aristocracy to bring about what truly can be considered today’s crowning jewel of the global automotive industry.

"Our advertising tagline is ‘Alive’ because that’s what a Jaguar is all about – that connection," says Philippo. "The car feels alive and you feel alive when you are driving it. It’s that connection that you get when you are driving a Jaguar that you just can’t get anywhere else."

Philippo was speaking from the floor of the Jaguar exhibit at the 2014 Los Angeles International Auto Show where the British automaker had just revealed the available upgrades to the third model year of the Jaguar F-Type, a sharply styled two-seat sports car that has been a global success since it launched for the 2014 model year. Originally available as a convertible only in 2014, then as a coupe’ in 2015, the 2016 F-Type lineup will be adding all-wheel-drive and a six-speed manual transmission for those drivers who like to get out and test the limits of the Jaguar on coastal curves and mountain roads. 

The F-Type enhancements for 2015 will broaden the model’s lineup to 14 variations, including a new 340 horsepower supercharged V-6 in the coupe’ and convertible and the F-Type R with 550 horsepower and all-wheel-drive to help keep you in line as you test the limits of the powertrain- that’s a key factor when you are behind the wheel of a rocket that does 0 to 60 mph in just 3.9 seconds and has a maximum speed of 186 mph.

"As you can imagine, with 550 horsepower you need all the traction that you can get," says Philippo. "It’s an amazingly fun car to drive with all-aluminum construction so it’s lighter weight. We’ve added great technology so it feels like rear-wheel drive even though it’s all-wheel drive. When you are driving around town, 100 percent of the power gets to the rear wheels, but if you get into a situation where you over steer, the back end is coming around a little bit, the car senses that wheel spin so it transfers 50 percent of the power to the front and helps you pull out of that skid."

The all-wheel-drive also means that the F-Type can be counted on to handle winter weekend trips to the mountain cabin without worry that icy roads may slow you down.

"Leaving after work on Friday you no longer have to worry about how it might rain or snow on Sunday so you should take the Range Rover," he says. "Now it doesn’t matter because the F-Type can handle it and it’s going to be more fun in the mountains." Pricing for the 2016 model year F-Type starts at $65,000.

For those who desire a little more legroom with their performance, Jaguar’s full-sized flagship XJ sedan comes in both standard and long wheel base. The XJR, introduced in 2014, combines supercar performance, aggressive styling and exquisite luxury into a city sedan that would be at home on the racetrack. With a 5.0-liter supercharged V-8, the XJR delivers 550 horsepower with a top speed of 174 mph.

"If you are the kind of executive who likes to ride in the backseat on the way to work, you get an extra six inches of legroom, it’s like being in the back of your private jet," explains Philippo. "Of course, like being in your private jet, it’s incredibly luxurious and it has a range of powertrains as well. It flies like a sports car. It’s luxurious when you want to take the clients out to dinner, but when it’s just you on the back roads it is like a four-door sports car and again with the sound, the 550-horsepower, the roar that it makes is unbelievable." The base manufacturer’s suggested retail price (MSRP) for the 2014 XJ starts at $74,200.

For those drivers who desire a little less length, the XF model lineup provides Autobahn-like performance with the same luxury and refinement that is truly Jaguar. Introduced for 2015, the XFR-S features Jaguar’s exclusive "Sportbrake" system with a V-8 engine that sprints from zero to 60 in 4.6 seconds with an eight-speed transmission called "Quickshift" that optimizes the sedan’s acceleration. The XF model starts with an MSRP of $50,175.

"All of our cars – the F-Type, XF, and XJ, and the new smaller sedan coming out in a year’s time called the XE, are all aluminum construction that have a lot of benefits," Philippo explains. "You save hundreds of pounds over steel, and when you save that it means that you can accelerate faster and brake faster and shorter than ever, and you get better fuel economy because you are moving less mass around. But it’s also a safer material because you are bringing less mass into the accident that you will then have to control through the crash structure and things like that. It’s an expensive way to make cars, which is why Jaguar is one of the only companies making cars out of aluminum, but it has so many benefits in terms of economy, safety and performance that it’s a technology that we believe in."

And with that iconic chrome leaping Jaguar leading the way, you can be sure you are driving a true legend.