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Jaguar sculpture by RCA design students is a minimal beauty

With its well-deserved reputation for high design, it is not particularly surprising to see Jaguar reaching outside of the automotive realm for future inspiration. To that end, the British automaker recently enlisted the talents of students at the Royal College of Art to create a piece of forward-looking, automotive-inspired sculpture.
The result of this project can be seen above; a sculpture created by RCA students Claire Miller and Ewan Gallimore, and unveiled to a small audience to kick off London's Clerkenwell Design Week. The spare and rather elegant form created by the talented pair absolutely harkens back to coupes from Jaguar's past as well as its present (read: F-Type) without aping any one model particularly.
In a press release, the artists had this to say about the work: "Our form relates to the Jaguar brand through its sculptural volumes, bespoke materials and visual lightness. These elements helped us to create a sculpture that aimed to display a seamless transition between interior and exterior space." Get a better look at the Jaguar artwork in the gallery above, or read through the press release, which follows.

2017 Jaguar F-Type SVR is a very fast, very angry kitty

Well, Jaguar has gone and done it. The British marque hit the perfect sweet spot with its newest F-Type, the range-topping SVR, landing squarely in a price/performance segment its butt-engined rivals from Stuttgart aren't playing in. Confirming our previous reports, the new SVR will debut at the 2016 Geneva Motor Show with the latest version of Jaguar Land Rover's 5.0-liter, supercharged V8. With some fettling by the team at JLR's Special Vehicle Operations, the engine has been boosted to 575 horsepower, 25 more than F-Type R. Torque is up from 501 pound-feet to 516 pound-feet, while the 0-60 time has dropped from 3.9 to just 3.5 seconds. And yes, 200 miles per hour is possible with the hardtop – the convertible will only do 195. That means you'll be getting more power, more torque, a quicker run to 60, and a higher top speed than an all-wheel-drive Porsche 911 GTS, but for just $5,000 more, a figure that's quickly erased by Porsche's insane options catalog. The Jag can't stand up to the 0-60 performance of 540-hp, 2.9-second 911 Turbo or the high speed of the 205-mph Turbo S, but with prices for the SVR Coupe starting at just $126,945 ($129,795 for the droptop), it's going to cost anywhere from $33,000 to $62,000 less than the Carreras. With only modest increases in output, it's pretty clear SVO made some bigger changes to score an extra 14 mph on the high end and cut 0.4 seconds off the 0-60 time. At its most basic level, the SVR is 55 pounds lighter than the F-Type R, thanks in large part to the new Inconel titanium exhaust, which cuts 35 pounds of fat (and makes for a more sinister note, we're told). Tack on the optional carbon-ceramic brakes, along with a few carbon-fiber accents, and the overall savings sits around 110 pounds. JLR is also promising faster performance from the eight-speed ZF automatic transmission, which still sends its power to all four wheels. Speaking of which, the new 20-inch forged aluminum alloys are shod in wider Pirelli PZero – 265s in front and 305s in the back, compared to 255/295 on the R model. There is also the usual array of aesthetic and aerodynamic changes. You can check out the more aggressive body work in the full gallery, but know the changes contribute to improved cooling and cut the coefficients of drag and lift by up to 7.5 and 45 percent, respectively, when the adjustable rear wing is in its aerodynamic down position, and 2.5 and 15 percent with the wing up.

Jaguar axes supercar plans, focuses on luxury EVs

Jaguar is abandoning plans to replace the XK coupe and convertible and won't build a production variant of the C-X75 supercar, according to Automobile Magazine. Previous reports indicated that Jaguar could revive the XK line as a grand tourer, but the automaker has turned toward building two electric vehicles (EV). One would be a replacement for the XJ sedan and the other a premium SUV. The large luxury EV, codenamed X590, is reported to be a four-door coupe with a rear hatch that signifies a drastic shift in strategy by Jaguar. The vehicle is said to be a compromise between Jaguar Land Rover CEO Ralf Speth and Jaguar design chief Ian Callum. According to the report, the X590 will utilize a new electronic architecture that can be adapted to accommodate the software for autonomous driving capability that was developed under former BMW engineer Wolfgang Ziebart. Jaguar looks to take on the Tesla Model S and the slew of electric vehicles from Germany with the X590. While Jaguar hopes the EV will allow the automaker to expand to a new segment, it will continue to sell the current XJ alongside the X590. Meanwhile, an unnamed source claims Jaguar will put an electric SUV on the road shortly after the X590 in 2019. Originally planned as a Range Rover, the ute is reported to have a modern look with a focus on aerodynamics. The SUV will be offered as a rear-wheel-drive model with one motor or an all-wheel-drive version with two motors. Both variants will have a choice of three battery packs based on range, performance, and charge time. Jaguar expects to put 20,000 to 30,000 units of the X590 on the road every year, while the SUV, which should be more affordable, will have a production rate between 30,000 and 50,000 units. With the electric and SUV segment continuing to grow, Jaguar is looking to capitalize with two new vehicles that could set the tone for its future. Related Video: