2006 Jaguar X-type on 2040-cars

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Freelander name making jump from old Land Rover model to new EV brand

The Jaguar Land Rover House of Brands is about to grow by one. JLR signed a Letter of Intent to license a new brand called Freelander to its Chinese joint-venture partner of 12 years, Chery. For those who missed it, Land Rover sold a compact four-wheel-drive model called the Freelander or LR2, depending on market and generation, from 1997 to 2015. The Freelander didn't get the best press, but that didn't stop it from being popular because, before the Evoque, it was the least expensive way to get into something bearing the green oval. The moniker's rebirth will also apply to "mainstream" products, this time pure-electric vehicles outside of JLR's or Chery's current lineups. What's more, the Freelander range won't be limited to China, although JLR wouldn't say how long it would be before international markets could expect Freelander arrival.  They new cars will be designed by teams from both automakers and sit on Chery's E0X battery-electric architecture. Car News China reports that the E0X can support an 800-volt architecture, Level 3 autonomous driving, and air suspension setups. The platform also plays nice with range-extended EVs, a powertrain type enjoying the same upswing in popularity over there as in other markets. Autocar writes that extended-range EV sales from January 2023 to September 2023 rose 157% over the same span in 2022. Chery's Luxeed R7, above, sits on E0X bones. The Luxeed R7 EV comes in single- and dual-motor variants from 288 horsepower to 489 hp, and offers a maximum range of 531 miles on the Chinese cycle. Previous to this new announcement, Chery said it would also share its M3X platform with the Chery Jaguar Land Rover collaboration, the vehicle structure said to have been developed with Magna International. The M3X is suited to internal combustion and PHEV powertrains. JLR's press release specifies that for now, Freelander will be "an advanced portfolio of electric vehicles," so it's possible future Freelanders will expand powertrain options once the electric lineup gains momentum, or the M3X might be applied to a different set of products.

1964 Jaguar XKE slinks into Jay Leno's Garage

The idea of altering a classic Jaguar E-Type might seem preposterous to some, but Jasen Len of XKs Unlimited managed to create a modified 1964 E-Type that stays true to the Jag's timeless design. Just a few months after Jay Leno featured his own original E-Type on Jay Leno's Garage, Len stopped by to show off his custom Jaguar creation.
Starting out with a rust-ravaged body, Len made the car just the way he wanted it to be. He started off with some minor changes to the car's exterior like the Le Mans-inspired racing lights and handmade front bumpers, handmade sills with integrated exhaust and flared rear fenders. Inside, he dropped the floor to make more interior space and reworked the E-Type's styling for more of a modern look. We have to say, if you're going to mess with a Series 1 E-Type, this is the way to do it.
Sadly, even though Len and Leno spend plenty of time talking about the car's 300-horsepower 3.8-liter inline six-cylinder, we never get to hear the car fire up. Check out the JLG video, which is posted below, and as a bonus, enjoy the gallery from Jaguar showing a 1961 E-Type.

Jaguar F-Pace will debut in Frankfurt

Jaguar makes sports cars and it makes luxury sedans, but it is set to expand into new territory altogether at the Frankfurt Motor Show this coming September. That's where and when it will reveal the F-Pace, Jaguar's very first crossover, and the production version of the C-X17 concept pictured here. Developed with critical input from sister-company Land Rover, the Jaguar F-Pace is being billed as a "sports crossover," with a more on-road focus than the SUVs of its off-road counterpart. Expect a range of engines to draw principally off of the new Ingenium family of four-cylinder gasoline and diesel powerplants, capped by Jag's signature supercharged V6 – just like the new XE sedan with which it will share much of its underpinnings. We can always hope, though, for an even more potent SVR version to follow with the JLR's sensational 5.0-liter supercharged V8. The Frankfurt reveal will mark two years since the C-X17 concept was first presented at the same show in 2013. Its arrival, coupled to that of the aforementioned XE, promise to push Jaguar's global output up from around 80,000 units last year to more than 200,000 once both models hit their stride.