It looks as though last week’s unveiling of the 2010 XJ was just a curtain-raiser to a number of spinoffs from the dramatically-styled luxury saloon – a coupé and a hybrid could also be on the cards.By Gareth Dean
During an interview at the XJ launch, project design director Ian Callum hinted that Jaguar is giving serious consideration to introducing hybrid and coupé-bodied versions of the new car within the next couple of years.
Jaguar has been toying with the idea of a hybrid XJ for some time, and with the acceptance of a loan for green technology from the EU it looks as though such a vehicle could well materialize.
The project is still in a phase of relative infancy, but it is believed that technology similar to that exhibited by GM’s Opel Ampera/Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrids could be utilized in the new car. These cars run on electric power from batteries that can either be charged from the grid or topped up on the move by a small-capacity petrol engine.
Jaguar has set goals for this vehicle of an electrically-powered range of 50 km, fuel economy of around 4,8-litres per 100 km, CO2 emissions of less than 120g/km and a top speed of 180 km/h. The extensive use of lightweight alloys in the company’s latest cars should help to keep the kerb weight down, and there is word that the electric powertrain is being developed in conjunction with British engineering brains at Lotus Engineering, MIRA and Caparo.
With regards to the two-door XJ, Callum claims that a mock-up of an XJ Coupé has already been penned. The introduction of a coupé-bodied XJ would be the first time such a model has featured in the company’s line up since the 1978 XJC. This short-lived model was built on a short wheelbase version of the saloon’s platform with just 8 378 units produced between 1973 and 1978.
Such a model could give Jaguar a genuine rival to the likes of Mercedes’ E-Class Coupé/CL and BMW’s ageing 6 Series.
