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With a new Jaguar and the Shell app, your car can pay for its own gas

Contactless payments are making their way into the car. Jaguar and Shell have the first major rollout, allowing you to pay for fuel through the car's touchscreen. Of course you'll still have to get out of the car to actually pump the fuel into the car, but hey, progress, right? Apple Pay and PayPal will be available payment methods from the start, and Android Pay will be added later. For this all to work, you'll need a new Jaguar (or Land Rover) with the InControl infotainment system, a connected phone with the InControl app and Shell app, some space in your tank, and some electronic money. When you pull up to a Shell station and launch the Shell app through the touchscreen, the car will use geolocation to figure out which station you're at and then prompt you to enter the pump number you're next to (don't want to pay for someone else's fuel now do you?). Once that's done, you tell the system how much fuel you want (it's not clear if you can just fill the tank like most normal people do) and then the screen in the car shows you a receipt; one is also sent to you via email. While this might just seem like trading one screen for another and entering info through your car instead of at the pump, contactless payments also have an added level of security over pulling out a credit card. (Credit card skimmers, which steal card data when you go to swipe at a kiosk or ATM, have been popular at gas stations.) It will also be welcome in the winter months, when you can limit your exposure time. Plus you'll never again have to respond to this incomplete sentence, which greets us at Shell stations everywhere: "Is this debit card?" InControl is available on every Jaguar and Land Rover model. And if you get this Shell app working on an F-Pace with the Jaguar Activity Key, you'll have the latest in minimal-touch technology. The system will roll out to people in the UK first and should arrive in the US later this year. Related Video: Jaguar Land Rover Technology Smartphone Luxury shell paypal

European automakers gear up for Brazilian production

Brazil is the place to be, apparently. Toyota has been investing in the South American country, as has BMW, which announced a $261 million investment in October 2012, on the heels of an Audi factory announcement in San José Chiapa. The high-end immigration is only set to continue, as Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar-Land Rover have both announced plans to set up manufacturing operations there.
Mercedes is the big news here, as its new facility will see the German manufacturer invest 170-million euros for production of its next-generation C-Class and upcoming GLA-Class. "Brazil is an important future market. With our local production we accept the challenge and take on the competition," noted Andreas Renschler, Management Board member for Production and Procurement at Mercedes-Benz Cars and Mercedes-Benz Vans. Production is expected to begin by 2016.
Jaguar-Land Rover, meanwhile, isn't so concrete in its plans. The news of its investment in South America comes from a job posting for a plant quality manager in Brazil that was picked up by the UK's AutoCar. "Portuguese language skills will be definite advantage" for interested candidates, according to the job listing. The want ad follows on the heels of remarks by Jaguar Land Rover's Dr. Ralph Speth, who said there are "very intensive discussions" with Brazil's government. Unlike Mercedes, there's no mention of which vehicles will be produced in South America, although AutoCar thinks the Freelander, sold in the US as the LR2, is a leading contender.

Jaguar Land Rover opening its first U.S.-based classic center in Georgia

Jaguar Land Rover Classic currently operates two of its Works Centres, one in Coventry, England and the other in Essen-Kettwig, Germany (pictured). Just in time for Pebble Beach, the English carmaker has announced that it will bring its first facility to the United States next year, having signed a deal to open the latest Works operation in Savannah, Georgia. To be located in the Crossroads Business Park near Gulfstream Aerospace, the facility will engage in the sales, service, and restoration of Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles out of production for at least ten years. The 150,000-square-foot Coventry site opened two years ago and is said to be the largest dedicated factory workshop of its kind (the largest unaffiliated shop is in the Philippines). Jaguar builds its continuation cars there, like the D-Type and XKSS, while Land Rover uses it to build the Defender Works V8. Shoppers can also buy vintage models off the showroom floor, a variation of the Certified Pre-Owned program called Works Legends, that come with a 12-month warranty. Or, Jaguar Land Rover will locate, restore, and maintain one of the classic company products that a buyer chooses. In the UK, a Land Rover Series 1 starts at around $90,000, a Jaguar E-Type starts at around $400,000. The 48,000 Essen-Kettwig center opened last year with the same brief, and the U.S. center can provide those services to the world's largest classic car market. Construction on the 75,000-square-foot complex is scheduled to begin next August, and the facility will include a 42-bay workshop and showroom. The automaker will invest from $10 to $15 million, and predicts more than $45 million in revenue. Savannah Economic Development Authority President and CEO Trip Tollison told The Savannah Morning News that JLR will hire 75 workers at a starting salary of $80,000. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.