Jaguar will end production of the XK sports car this summer and it appears that the carmaker doesn’t plan to offer a direct successor for it. Instead, Jaguar is said to replace the XK with a larger luxury GT based on the next generation XJ sedan.
The XJ Coupe will be a more upmarket successor to the XK and will compete against 2+2 grand tourers like the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe and Bentley Continental GT.
According to Auto Express, the big Jaguar coupe will feature design cues from the F-Type like the muscular rear wheel arches, flowing lines and wraparound taillights, but it will be distinguished thanks to a larger grille, chrome-ringed lower air intakes and horizontal headlights.
The XJ Coupe will be priced from around £100,000, almost double the price of the entry-level F-Type Coupe (£51,235). Engine options are likely to be supercharged V6 and V8 petrol engines, as well as a six-cylinder diesel. However, customers that are excited by the prospect of a Jaguar XJ Coupe will have to wait until at least 2017, as Jaguar has a very busy schedule in the near future.
The UK-based automaker will launch the XE compact sedan in mid-2015, followed by an SUV in early 2016. Coupe and wagon versions of the XE are expected in 2016, as well as an all-new XF that should arrive towards the end of that year.
I don’t know about you, but I find this move a good idea, as a large luxury-orientated coupe is a model that fits the Jaguar brand perfectly. It would pick up where the XJS left off and it would focus on being luxurious, rather than trying to mix luxury with sportiness, leaving the latter to the F-Type Coupe.
By Dan Mihalascu
Note: Jaguar XJS pictured
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