It’s a long way to the top, but Jaguar is ready to leap
As I stated in part 1 of my 2015 forecast for the Jaguar brand, the consumers today are hard to please and they want more for their money. The compact sports sedan has become more of a luxury line than in years past and they expect more refinement and sophistication in the car they drive. The premium materials used inside the XE along with the infotainment system (8 inch touch screen) will help to scale this smaller sedan up a bit. Multiple screens will also show additional functions like apps, surround view camera, integrated Wi-Fi hot-spot, navigation, phone, audio, and climate controls.
The high-tech is not just limited to the interior; Jaguar is ready to present the future with the kind of sedan they want to drive. Almost 75% of the body and suspension construction is made of high strength/lightweight aluminum alloy. The XE will also employ Jaguar first use of an electric power steering system which will give the driver multiple driving modes including a sport option. And the driver can also choose to buy an eight-speed automatic or six-speed manual transmission.
Owners can also choose to equip their new XE with an integrated laser-based heads-up display (HUD) that will show specific driver assistance features making it safer and more efficient to navigate traffic. The ability to display outside climate, roadway conditions, images, vehicle information, directions, and points of interest to the driver with taking his eyes off the road, may change the way we commute. Sounds more like an advanced fighter jet than a sports sedan and Jaguar is ready to take on the world in this all-new high-tech cat.
Lee Iacocca when he was dreaming and laying the ground work for building the first Ford Mustang in the early 60’s was thinking outside the box. He was preparing to design and build a car for a generation that was not even driving yet. When the car released in 1964 it was a huge success and everyone lined up to buy it. The key was having the vision to see what was going to be the next big thing and build one for the consumer. Jaguar needs to look down the road at what the automakers could do next, and build it now! This forward thinking and future focus will help Jaguar to rise to the top and by then they will be so far ahead of the competition it will be impossible for anyone to catch them.
In case you are still not sure the 2016 Jaguar XE is packing the punches to get in the ring with the big boys, how does 75 mpg sound? I’d say that sound too good to be true, it sounds like a figure that might be achieved in a few years from now. Well…..maybe that’s what they want the competition to think.
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