Illustrated: Jaguar's Porsche 911 fighter

February8

february2008/jag-911.jpg

For the past several weeks, rumors have been circulating about a possible new model from Jaguar to compete with the Porsche 911. The project has not yet been approved, but Jaguar insiders have described it as the "top priority" for the automaker in terms of targeting a new niche.

Well-placed sources recently confirmed Jaguar presented the idea to Tata Motors, which is likely to acquire the company from Ford. Since the project is so early on, a final design probably doesn't even exist yet. But that didn't stop our artists from creating an illustration of how such a vehicle might look.

Jaguar is widely expected to borrow some design cues from the popular F-Type concept, with a more modern twist. Our illustration depicts a car with a shorter overall wheelbase than the XK, plus an F-Type-inspired nose.

Even if approved, the two-seater is still a few years away. Tata's "can-do" mindset might lead to a faster development process, but we're still in for a long wait. Using an existing platform — such as a shortened version of the XK chassis — might also help bring the new model to market sooner.

The puristic sports car could wear the F-Type badge, but Jaguar appears to be switching to a lineup of models starting with "X," so we wouldn't be surprised to see a different nameplate.




 


27 Comments

  1. Jaguar goes with this fish-face on their coupes
    Not feelin' it.
    DrFill

    Comment by DrFill, posted on February8 at 2:24 pm
  2. A lot of cars look like they have fish or cartoon faces. So what?

    Too early to tell what to make of this. It'll be interesting if it gets made.

    Comment by Blakkarr, posted on February8 at 2:35 pm
  3. Wow! A squished Camaro with a Buick nose. I'm feelin' something alright.

    Comment by johnnycanuck, posted on February8 at 2:38 pm
  4. the front gives me too much of a solstice feel.

    Comment by jumpoffit, posted on February8 at 2:40 pm
  5. Now that Jag and Aston aren't under the same owner, it would make sense. They couldn't do it before, though, as Aston was the British Porsche fighter for Ford.

    Comment by bdizzlefizzle, posted on February8 at 2:44 pm
  6. The only thing the XK has is style. Everything else is below the M6. If this is going to be around $60K, then maybe it'll have a chance. Either way it has to be priced below the Cayman S.

    Comment by Veda, posted on February8 at 2:48 pm
  7. Alfa 8C anyone?

    Comment by monkeybars, posted on February8 at 3:58 pm
  8. Drivers' over five-feet tall need not apply.

    Comment by F451, posted on February8 at 4:06 pm
  9. LLN - I'm glad it didn't "stoop" your artists… :P

    Comment by SR, posted on February8 at 4:17 pm
  10. Must be a slow news day at LLN

    Comment by Rover3500, posted on February8 at 7:03 pm
  11. This looks more in line with Jaguars previous design language and nothing like the style that was set forth with the XF. I think this illustrator is way off the mark with this sketch…

    Comment by MurcieMe, posted on February8 at 7:37 pm
  12. Looks better than a POrSche 911.

    Comment by RicardoHead, posted on February8 at 7:37 pm
  13. Jaguar! Bring back the XJ220! There problem solved!

    Comment by SS4LIFE, posted on February8 at 8:36 pm
  14. Ford's oval attached to japanese cartoon

    Comment by autonut, posted on February8 at 10:31 pm
  15. @autonut, Ford anime? Is Jaguar secretly being purchased by the Japanese through Tata?

    Comment by F451, posted on February8 at 11:42 pm
  16. Comment by RicardoHead, posted on February9 at 12:36 am
  17. Might be able to compete in terms of performance but never on history.

    Comment by The Stig, posted on February9 at 12:36 am
  18. The Stig is right!
    It reminds me of a 2000 Jaguar XK180 Concept, but this is somehow worse; Hell, I think I'll stick with the 911 for the years to come, again!!!
    Anyway, wasn't the old XK8 from the late 90s a 911 fighter, why this title like it's the first 911 fighter from Jag?!?!?!?!

    Comment by mg198242, posted on February9 at 4:13 am
  19. @Stig "Might be able to compete in terms of performance but never on history."
    Therein lies the true legacy of Jaguar, or lack of.

    Comment by F451, posted on February9 at 11:43 am
  20. @RicardoHead, Hey, pretty good! Now, rebadge this as the new NSX, and the secret is out.

    Comment by F451, posted on February9 at 11:45 am
  21. Wow. Somebody completely unaffiliated with Jaguar drew a picture of a car based on zero information and this is news? Ummm, okay. Incidentally the pic looks like it's at least 5 years old based on the design cues.

    Comment by rsg, posted on February9 at 1:19 pm
  22. FOO-EEE

    Comment by Noah, posted on February9 at 3:07 pm
  23. Thanks Ricardo. Tastefully done.

    Comment by autonut, posted on February9 at 5:25 pm
  24. RSG, my thoughts exactly… commenting on this is so irrelevant.

    Ricardo, Nicely done!

    Comment by stick2clutch, posted on February9 at 9:18 pm
  25. Every time I see a new jaguar article I just have to laugh. Why doesn’t jaguar just die? Nobody buys these shit cars and to say they are going to make a 911 competitor is an insult to the great German company. Just let Tata motors buy this 2-bit company so jaguar can produce a new line of up market tractors and farm equipment for the fucking Indians.

    Comment by V2, posted on February11 at 5:36 am
  26. Maybe if British stopped concentrating on being 2-bit carsalesmen and recruiters they could actually buy some pride back.

    Comment by Poisonous Cinquecento, posted on February11 at 5:41 am
  27. V2

    I absolutely agree with you. Maybe jag has a PR dept that just won't die.

    Comment by Noah, posted on February11 at 2:36 pm

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