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Autoblog Podcast #327

New York Auto Show, Jim Farley interview, 2014 Chevrolet Silverado fuel economy, Ford fuel economy app challenge
Episode #327 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Zach Bowman and Jeff Ross talk about this year's New York Auto Show, Chevrolet's latest assault in the pickup truck fuel economy battle, and Ford's reward for developing a better fuel economy app. Dan also has an interview with Ford's Jim Farley about the future of Lincoln. We wrap with your questions and emails, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Keep reading for our Q&A module for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #327:

Jaguar F-Type Rally Car First Ride | This cat likes gravel

SOUTH WALES, U.K. — The invitation is last-minute and somewhat vague. The location, an off-road test area in South Wales known as Walter's Arena, sounds more Land Rover than Jaguar. It's also in five hours, and only a passenger seat tease is on offer. But a Jaguar rally car? Color me curious. First impressions don't disappoint. Basking at the entrance is NUB 120, so-named after its license plate and considered the most famous Jaguar XK120 of all. Built in 1950, it took three consecutive overall wins on the insanely arduous Alpine Rally. Driven by Jaguar dealer (and Olympic skier) Ian Appleyard and navigated by his wife Pat Lyons, daughter of Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons, this car helped demonstrate the power and durability of the legendary XK engine in the toughest possible test. Carrying its original paint and a few battle scars, I could stop right here. But its presence is simply justification for what's lurking a little deeper in the forest. That being an F-Type rally car. Which is exactly as wild as it sounds. Based on a regular 2.0-liter F-Type Convertible, the project riffs on Jaguar's little-known rally heritage and pending MY20 updates to the F-Type range. The 16-inch rally wheels, gravel tires, custom fabricated roll cage and hood-mounted spots are not adornments destined for any production F-Type. That said, it's clearly been built to do more than sit on an auto show plinth. This initially seems like the sort of thing that'd be an after-hours project by Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations department, the same guys who cooked up the Project 7 F-Type and XE SV Project 8 sedan. But there's something about the Below Zero Ice Driving branding on the support truck that rings a bell. SVO supplied the graphics and items like the F-Type GT4 carbon fiber door cards, but it turns out the actual build was outsourced to a specialist outfit. Their expertise is turning sports cars into rally machines, this following the FIA's ongoing efforts to revive the sport's sideways, rear-wheel drive traditions. See the Toyota GT86 CS-R3 and initiatives like the R-GT Cup, the latter popular with privateers in converted 911 GT3s and inspiring Porsche's recent toe-in-the-water Cayman GT4 Clubsport rally car. Then it clicks — the crew are from Tuthill Porsche, a celebrated restoration and race shop between London and Birmingham with a huge presence in historic competition. They also have a sideline running Swedish ice driving experiences in old Porsches.

2019 Jaguar XJ Collection Special Edition is a 300-unit curtain call

The current 2019 Jaguar XJ is effectively a lame duck, as we have previously reported production ended in July, 2019, and a new all-electric model is on the way. But before it's sent into the archives, Jaguar designed one last special-edition variant to celebrate the luxury sedan. It's called the XJ Collection Special Edition, and it's limited to 300 examples exclusively for the U.S. market. Matching the car's personality, the overall package is quite low-key. The exterior of the XJL can been draped in Yulong White, Santorini Black or British Racing Green (the obvious choice) and wears 20-inch five-spoke wheels with a satin gray finish. A "Collection" badge on the rear deck lid signifies the limited nature of the vehicle. The white or black models can be paired with Ebony/Ebony or Mineral/Ivory interiors, while the Green models can only be paired with an Ebony/London Tan interior. All examples will have door paneling in a gloss rich oak veneer with exclusive linear laser inlay. Jaguar also used "XJ Collection" branding on the metal tread plates, and an "XJ Collection One of 300" "intaglio" tags the dashboard. All 300 units start with the rear-drive long-wheelbase XJL Supercharged. That means all 300 have 470 horsepower and 424 lb-ft of torque, so its sleeper status remains. The XJ Collection Special Edition lists at $86,025, including destination.