Jaguar XE.

This is a new Jaguar sports car that is likely to blow the Germans away at the Frankfurt motor show in September.

The engines the car is planned to use include various sized V6s, a turbocharged four cylinder and maybe even a V8 for a special hardcore model. These will be coupled with an eight speed gearbox. The benefit of this will be that the engines stay in the peak torque band for longer. The other major indication of how fast this car will go is it's proposed weight, a little over 1,500kgs. That's not particularly heavy.

The way Jaguar will be keeping the weight down is supposedly using aluminium body panels. It will use various forging techniques to create the shapes needed for the car. The aluminium will also feature heavily in keeping rigity when the open top comes along. The metal will form extrusions underneath the car which will act as a sort of, extra floor. It's in fact quite a fair bit more complicated than that but that's the best analogy I can come up with to explain what it does.

The styling is likely going to reflect the E Types design whilst modernising it. I haven't seen what it's going to look like yet but I can guarantee it'll be stunning. What Jag want to stress is that the XE isn't a replacement for the E Type but is more a new car designed with the same spirit and priciples of the original. The styling philosophy has been described as "expressing lightness" which sounds like drivel to me but the meaning behind it is that they hope the car will look sleek.

Whatever happens the car is seemingly going to cost £40,000 which will place it in direct competition with Porsches Boxter and is set to go on sale in late 2012. My guess is that Jag are going to harp on a bit about the original E Type in the promotional documents. That wouldn't be a bad idea however and I think if it is done properly then the XE will fly off the shelves, after all, we have been waiting for a proper Jag sports car in quite some time.

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