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Jaguar might not sell many XF Sportbrakes in the U.S., but here's why it's trying

One of the wonderful surprises of this year was when we learned that the U.S. would receive the XF Sportbrake wagon, and — less of a surprise — it's as much a looker as the previous generation. And while we're never one to look a gift car in the grille, it did seem strange that Jaguar would attempt to bring a wagon to the U.S., especially when it already had a similarly sized F-Pace crossover. So we spoke with Jaguar CEO Joe Eberhardt, Jaguar Design Director Ian Callum, and Jaguar's head of product planning in the U.S. to find out what prompted the company to bring the XF Sportbrake here. There were a few key reasons. One was simply that the folks at Jaguar really like the car, and they know that journalists like wagons. That doesn't exactly pay the bills for a car, but the enthusiasm is good. According to these people at Jaguar, though, they do believe there is a market for the car, and they expect to sell most of them on the coasts. Obviously, even if Jaguar sees a wagon market, it's still going to be much smaller than for crossover SUVs. But no matter how small that market is, Jaguar has an extra advantage for bringing the wagon here. The company knew it was going to make a wagon regardless of whether it would come to America, since the wagon market in Europe is so strong. In fact, Jaguar expects that half of XF sales in Europe will be Sportbrakes. So the majority of the engineering costs will be covered from those sales. The folks at Jaguar also told us that the car wasn't difficult to homologate for the U.S., so the cost of bringing it here was minimal. So in the worst case scenario that has the XF Sportbrake hardly selling in America, Jaguar isn't going to be seriously hurt. And if it's a success, then it's even more of a success. So the XF Sportbrake isn't purely a passion product, but that's OK. It means consumers have one more option to the multitude of crossovers in the U.S., and enthusiasts have the chance to own a super cool wagon. Also, although the XF Sportbrake is currently only available in America in top-level 380-horsepower S trim, Jaguar said lower trim levels and lower-output engines, all at lower prices, will be available here in the coming year or so. Meaning there will be even more ways to satisfy your wagon itch. Related Video:

Jaguar Buys World's Largest Collection Of British Classic Cars

This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Jaguar's Special Operations division announced today it has bought the world's largest collection of classic British cars. The 543 cars had belonged to wealthy dental entrepreneur Dr. James Hull, who sold the entire collection to the British automaker for $170 million dollars. Jaguar scored 130 of its own vehicles in the lot, including a XK, SS, C, D and E-types, XJ as well as a few rare Land Rovers, according to Road & Track. The division that bought the cars is not only responsible for the heritage museum, but also for special projects. Special Operations finished the 18-car run of the lightweight E-types, albeit 50 years late. Jaguar plans to use the cars as promotional pieces to highlight the history of the brand, according to Cars UK. Related Gallery Retro Features Car Shoppers Still Want

Jaguar Land Rover cutting production in face of falling demand

LONDON — Jaguar Land Rover will reduce or stop production on certain days at two of its British factories over the next few weeks as Britain's biggest carmaker pursues cost-cutting measures in response to falling demand. JLR posted a 2.3% drop in retail sales in the three months to the end of December and has targeted billions of pounds worth of savings to tackle falling diesel demand in Europe and a tough sales environment in China. The firm will halt production on selected days over a four-week period from late February at its Castle Bromwich factory in central England and stop production on some half or full days at its nearby Solihull facility until the end of March. "The external environment remains challenging for our industry and the company is taking decisive actions to achieve the necessary operational efficiencies to safeguard long-term success," the company said in a statement. "We have confirmed that Solihull and Castle Bromwich will make some minor changes to their production schedules to reflect fluctuating demand globally, whilst still meeting customer needs." The move is not connected to coronavirus, a spokeswoman said, which prompted Fiat Chrysler to warn on Thursday that a European plant could shut down within two to four weeks if Chinese parts suppliers cannot get back to work. Related Video: