Jaguar confirmed earlier this year that it was ready a series hybrid system – like the one set to be used in the Chevrolet Volt – for use in its next-generation XJ flagship, with details of the project hitting the Web earlier on Friday.
According to Autocar, Jaguar will show the series hybrid system in concept form at next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show. Dubbed the Limo-Green concept, the showcar will be based on Jaguar’s latest XJ sedan.
The Limo-Green concept will feature a 145kw, 295 lb-ft of torque electric motor used exclusively for propulsion. Backed by a lithium-ion battery pack, the Limo-Green concept is said to have a 30-mile all-electric range. Once battery power is depleted, a 1.2L gas engine designed by Lotus kicks in, giving the car a total range of 600 miles.
Although the concept is essentially a working model, Jaguar says the system still needs some refining. “The technology is still in its infancy and there is still a lot of work to do before we can even think of production,” Anthony Harper, head of research at Jaguar Land Rover , told Autocar. “The components aren’t at the right cost or quality yet you would expect of a Jaguar product, but the technology is there.”
Jaguar officials failed to reveal a timeframe for a production version of the system, but the technology could bow in the next-generation XJ, set to launch in 2012 or 2013.
