1969 Jaguar Xke on 2040-cars

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Xcar focuses on famed Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis

If you have any interest at all in motoring history, especially when it comes to European sports car racing from the '50s and '60s, do absolutely whatever you can to set aside 38 minutes for this interview with former Jaguar test driver Norman Dewis from XCar. Dewis had a hand in developing the British brand's vehicles from 1952 to 1985, and as expected over that time, he amassed some fantastic stories. Xcar did a great job of teasing a few of those great tales out of him here. From the very beginning, Dewis was gifted with a natural talent to read a car as a test driver. When he was just 16, he was taken out on his first chance to evaluate a vehicle and picked out even more intricacies than his instructor. Dewis eventually wound up at Jaguar, and that's where his career really took off. Among his many accomplishments there, he had a role in developing disc brakes both for racing and the road, set multiple world top speed records, and helped bring the E-Type to the world. Dewis even made the famous overnight drive in an XKE convertible from England to display it at the Geneva Motor Show. Dewis tells a first-hand account of being in the Jaguar paddock during the tragic accident during the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans that took the lives of dozens of spectators. It's a story that we usually can only read about or watch in black-and-white films. Hearing Dewis' side really brings this history to life.

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

2021 Jaguar F-Type pricing announced, including a big decrease

CHICAGO — Jaguar unveiled the redesigned 2021 F-Type coupe and convertible just before the end of 2019, but pricing was kept in the dark. Today, at the 2020 Chicago Auto Show, Jaguar put numbers to trims, and the starting price remains the same at $62,625, including destination. Other trims, however, see somewhat significant price increases or decreases. For now, Jaguar released information for coupe and convertible versions of the P300, the P300 First Edition, the all-wheel-drive P380 R-Dynamic, and the all-wheel-drive R. The P300, with a 296-horsepower turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four and rear-wheel drive, opens the books at $62,625, including destination, which is the same as the 2020 model. A First Edition, which is based on the P300 R-Dynamic, features the Exterior Design Pack and 20-inch Gloss Technical Gray wheels and starts at $74,125.  The P380 R-Dynamic with a 380-horsepower supercharged 3.0-liter V6 and all-wheel drive starts at $82,825, which is a major price decrease from 2020's price of $88,325. The most powerful version in the current 2021 F-Type lineup is the R (an SVR is expected at a later time). With a 575-horsepower supercharged V8 and all-wheel drive, the 2021 F-Type R starts at $104,225, which is slightly more expensive than the $102,825 price for 2020. All four detailed trims are also available as convertibles. On the P300 and P380 R-Dynamic, the convertible is a $3,100 upcharge. For the First Edition, the convertible is $2,300 more expensive, and the convertible R is $2,700 more expensive than the coupe.