RJC

The long overdue replacement for the Jag XK is due in the spring, the supercharged "R" version should be quite interesting. Here's an excellent link from Jaguar USA:

http://x9.keycast.com/keycast/jaguar...tid=1&langid=8

sillydriver

Thanks for the link. I think it looks nice in profile and from behind, but has an ugly front end. Perhaps its heavy nose is due to the new European pedestrian safety regulations. It’s not much competition for the SL600. However, I hear that the car has drawn some interest away from the upcoming Aston Martin AMV8, which is quite similar but more expensive.

NeilC123

Yes, it's just a cheaper Aston Martin...same designer...same car except with a Jaguar badge. Not sure it will challenge the SL market - maybe the SLK - the "R" might challenge the "AMG".

shoes

I am interested. I plan on attending the Frankfurt show to check it out in person. I have never been much of a Jaguar fan, but I have fallen in love with the look of the DB9, but not willing to suffer the depreciation (which I suffer to a somewhat lesser degree with my SL600). The new XK8 cribs directly from the DB9 which is great for Jaguar and horrible for Aston. I don't expect it will drive like an SL600, but am looking for a little variety.

tiggerfink

I like it and I am cheap.

tandan

WOW!! I AM SOOO GLAD WE HAVE THE SL600. WE JUST SOLD OUR '99 XK8 CONV. NO COMPAINTS WITH THE CAR, JUST THE DEALER. BUT THE DRIVING EXPERIENCE BETWEEN THE TWO IS NOT EVEN COMPARABLE. I DID LIKE THE SEXY STYLING,BUT IT APPEARS THEY'VE JUST DONE AWAY WITH THAT. ALSO, WHENEVER I WAS AT THEIR LOT AND SAW THE ASTONS VIRTUALLY SIDE BY SIDE WITH THE XK8'S, IT WAS HARD TO TEL THEM APART. LIKE YOU SAID, GOOD FOR JAG, BAD FOR AM.

lorinserbenz

Poor mans Aston ... I am poor, therefore
If they release the convertible, Id consider one...

AMGfan

What about the Gran Sport Maserati...It was on the June 26 Top Gear episode and it was very sexy and they actually liked it! Download the episode and you'll see why...http://www.mininova.org

NeilC123

Yes the maserati is nice however there are fewer maserati servicers here than jaguar or aston martin. Also the paddle gear box isn't supposed to be that hot in the maserati. I hear they are hoping to release a hard top convertible of the 2 seater range so maybe that will be an SL competitor.

The convertible jaguar maybe an option but i don't think it will be hardtop as jaguar don't seem fond of doing that. I think with aston martin the car isn't that awe inspiring - but the fact is u are buying into a badge (e.g. recently in the UK women voted the aston martin as the make they find most sexiest - for your further info porsche came 2nd, lotus 3rd and merc 4th...can't remember where jaguar came). That is of course if u buy a car to impress the ladies and not all men do that. But AM is more of a brand thing - much more so than Jaguar which is always seen as a more older man's car.

Not that I prescribe to those notions in the end of the day it all depends on driving etc and we will have to wait and see what driving the cars will be like...but if you want a convertible hard top car with decent speed and good looks I can't see the SL being toppled for some time yet.

Just my thoughts.

RJC

The new Jag is in no way a fair comp. to the SL 600 or any other car costing almost twice the Jag's MSRP; it is however IMHO, a fair comp. to an SL500 though. Personally, I prefer the lines of the new coupe vs. the cab and the supercharged version should be very, very nice. The lightweight aluminum construction should add quite a bit to the driving experience of the new XK. There will be no folding hard top and that's a big disadvantage compared to the SL.

I know there has been much written that there is too much similarity to the new AM 8 but that's also been the case with the DB7's and the XK8's. There was enough to visually tell the DB7's and the XK's apart let alone more than enough in the engine bay especially in the latter years. The new XK in no way encroaches upon the boundaries of the super sweet Vanquish (nor should it for the cost). I was dinning at Mizner Park in Boca Raton last evening and in addition to a brand new black Carrera GT, there was a black Vanquish parked just behind it; what a lovely sight...lovely indeed.

ano0oj

wow...its nice, but an aston martin rip.

vraa

Because Ford doesn't own Jaguar and AM right...

NeilC123

RJC...it doesn't look like the Vanquish but it looks like the VANTAGE. No the Vanquish is an amazing car and twice the price of a SL55! But the V8Vantage looks very similar to the new jaguar as it is the same designer. I have heard the price of the vantage is still up for grabs as it has had so much interest the price is gradually going up. Here in the UK the Vantage wasn't allowed to be talked about officially on the TV or by critics till August 14th...so we wait and see.

Beltfed

Production spy shots............new XK vert is a softop (just like the DB9).

Rumored weight is around 3600-3700lbs.

RJC

excellent spy pics...thank you!

LovinMercedes

The base price of the AM V8 is $110,000.

NeilC123

Wow, that is cheap - I make that £60,500. I have heard over here that the price is considering going up to £80-85k on release and that's not including the premiums to be paid if u want it early. I wonder if that is just hype....

blueSL

Lovin's price excludes sales tax; our price without tax is $119k US, depending on the dollar exchange rate. I think AMV8 owners are going to feel seriously pissed when the Jag hits the streets. XK, DB9, DB7, Vanquish, AM V8 - they're all to similar. And, no, wild horses wouldn't make me have a Jaguar

sillydriver

Here is an item from autospies. Looks like all future car designs will be burdened by this issue.

"Although a handsome car, nobody claims the XK8 is another E-Type. Ian Callum says the huge number of modern safety regulations are to blame. One example is a US regulation about the height of the header rail above the windscreen. This is designed to protect occupants not wearing a seatbelt (one may ask why anyone cares about people too dumb to wear a seatbelt, but that is a different question). Apparently this rule makes the car 20 mm taller than it would otherwise be - and precisely the same height as the Mercedes SL. Another issue is the new European pedestrian safety regulations which mean the bonnet must be 70mm above the top of the engine - again making the car less sleek than the designers wanted."

"Ian Callum says coupes from all manufacturers are now going to look pretty similar because they all have to meet the same rules."

shoes

I love Ian Callum's explanation for why the Jaguar's looks are so derivative, but why did he have to make the front end look like a Taurus?

I spent a lot of time in the XK8 at the Frankfurt show and came away disappointed. Visually, the car is a dumbed down version of the Aston line. I don't feel that the new car matches up well to the outgoing XK8 which I like a lot better.

The driving experience in Jaguars has always left me cold- ride quality is brittle and handling prowess is limited; steering artificial; wooden brakes. To me the Jaguar has always been about the look and now the look is boring.

Also- who designs their seats? The seem totally misshapened to me, little support and I hate the way the recline and forward-back adjustments are forced to operate in tandem.

Now if I could just swallow the $190,000 that my Aston dealer wants for a new British Racing Green DB9 Volante, I would have my ride.

ruykava

Ian can claim whatever he wants for why the car looks the way it does - but the fact is, he couldn't design around those parameters to get a truly beautiful car! all he's doing is trying to get his old Aston ideas out again. since it's the same height as the SL now, why doesn't it look as hot as one? all cars on the road need to meet the same rules - so why don't they all look "pretty similar"?

sure, i guess those who aren't able to afford an Aston would be happy to get one of these. but to me, it's a disappointment.

also, check out the interior - i almost puked. looks like a Rover 25. or maybe a 1995 Toyota Camry. is this his idea of a joke?

blueSL

Talented he may be, but Ian Callum is like a band who can only play one tune. All his cars look alike and the similarities to Aston Martin are just too strong.

I was invited to a Ford car clinic at Pinewood Studios (where they make James Bond films, as it happens) in August 2002 and in a huge sound stage, whited out, there were 4 silver cars - this, the 911, the SL and the SC430 and we were invited to comment and compare the 4 - exterior, interior and ergonomics. The Jag was an ugly car then and it hasn't improved with time. I especially remember the featureless rump and the absolutely dire interior. I came away thinking they have a lot of work to do.

One of the questions we were asked, for example, 2 token rear seats and a trunk or a tailgate. At least they've got that right IMHO.

Beltfed

I think the car looks good in racing green and this is just the standard XK.

I'll bet a new XKR vert in racing green will be very nice, hopefully the nose will look a bit more exciting on the R.

Overall, I think the interior looks nice.

shoes

You left out the worst view of this car- the front grill.

Beltfed

I think the wiremesh grille on the R will look better than the bar crossing through the middle of the standard car.

With the wiremesh grille the nose should look somewhat similar to the outgoing XKR.