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Jaguar XJ50 Road Trip Review | Driving the XJ50's history

PARIS, France – It's motor show week in Paris, and Jaguar – which launched the original XJ here in 1968 – is indulging in a little nostalgia to celebrate the 50th anniversary that event. In the half century since, it's become the brand's definitive model – as the Wrangler is to Jeep and the 911 is to Porsche. This sexy, curvaceous and unashamedly sporty sedan set the template for generations of XJs. And to get to the show, I'm going to drive examples of each on a roadtrip from Jaguar's home in Coventry and onward to Paris, via Goodwood and Le Mans. There's new product to enjoy along the way, too, in the shape of the celebratory XJ50 trim level created to mark the anniversary. But this is really a chance to explore Jaguar's past, and how previous XJs will inform the company's future. Respecting traditions without being chained to them is a recurring theme in the XJ story and one Jaguar has, at times, struggled with. Nobody understands this better than design boss Ian Callum, who says the original XJ inspired his dream to one day design cars for Jaguar. When his moment came, however, the opposing pressures of nostalgia and innovation became apparent. He recalls seeing the clay models for the circa 2002 XJ, code named X350, styling for which had already been signed off when he started. "I asked 'this is the new one?' because, to me, it looked just like the old version," he says with characteristic bluntness. Callum's chance to truly reinvent the XJ finally came in 2009 with the current model, a car that jolted Jaguar and its customers out of their comfortable slumber. "It's nearly 10 years old now but I still think it looks good – I'm very proud of what we did with that car," he says. Professionally Callum is always looking ahead. Personally he's happy to indulge himself in what came before. He even brought his own XJC – the rare coupe version of the 70s XJ – to drive on the event. Sadly, the XJC didn't make it off the start line in England, but he's clearly enjoying the chance to immerse himself in XJ history. As am I. Given his appraisal of its retro looks, it's interesting to start in the X350. Here you encounter those aforementioned opposing forces: the forward-thinking aluminum construction (which inspired manufacturing techniques used by Jaguar to this day) and the staid styling. Like many of the heritage fleet examples here, this one is actually badged as a Daimler – to Jaguar what Maybach is to Mercedes.

Junkyard Gem: 2000 Jaguar S-Type

My junkyard studies of Jaguars have focused mostly on the four-wheeled felines of the 1960s through 1980s, but plenty of more recent Jags may be found in U-Pull-type yards around the continent. Today's Junkyard Gem appeared in a Northern California boneyard last summer, and it had stories to tell. Once Ford took over Jaguar in 1990, the idea of a midsize Jaguar saloon to steal sales from the BMW E39 5 Series and Lexus GS seemed like an increasingly good idea, and so a name used on a mid-1960s version of the Jaguar Mark 2 was revived for use on a car built on the same platform as the Lincoln LS. Both the new S-Type and LS appeared during the 1999 model year, and both are fairly easy to find in your local Ewe Pullet today. American S-Type buyers could choose between a 3.0-liter V6 and various flavors of V8 (including a hairy supercharged V8 good for 400 horses in the S-Type R). This car has the V6, which was based on the Duratec out of the Taurus and made 281 horsepower. In theory, American S-Type (and Lincoln LS) buyers could get a five-speed manual transmission on V6-equipped 1999-2003 cars … but I've never seen a three-pedal S-Type/LS, and I've been looking hard. As you'd expect, European S-Type buyers could get both manual transmissions and diesel engines for the duration of the car's 1999-2007 production run. This car has a ZF six-speed slushbox. The interior looks to have been in good condition when the car showed up here, and the original manuals were still in the car. Some of the wood trim got a bit cracked in the California sun during the car's two decades on the road. That sure looks a lot like a Kia Amanti nose, doesn't it? The Amanti appeared a few years later and showed strong S-Type (and E-Class) styling influence. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Beyond beautiful. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. History repeating.

Could Jaguar become an EV-only brand?

Just yesterday we wrote about the Heisenbergian uncertainty surrounding the future of the Jaguar F-Type. A new report in Autocar prompts us to consider extending that ambiguity to the entire Jaguar brand. The UK magazine reports the automaker's product planners have devised a ten-year plan to switch to a pure EV lineup of cars and crossovers. According to Autocar's sources this is a planning exercise and doesn't have the green light, but it's "fairly advanced" and has adherents inside the company. The first shot fired would be an all-electric XJ replacement. That sedan, a "no-holds-barred luxury car" to challenge the Tesla Model S and Porsche Taycan, would provide emissions-free motoring before the Mercedes-Benz S-Class and BMW 7 Series come with their EV propositions. Around 2023, an EV crossover a touch larger than the full-sized Audi E-tron would replace both the XF and XE sedans. Two years later, a new mid-sized I-Pace would debut as both the F-Pace and E-Pace fade out. And two years after that, around 2027, the J-Pace luxury crossover would sigh its last ICE gasp. And what about the F-Type? The report says "with no replacement for F-Type in the works," an electric sports car "is also a possibility." There's no mention of the XK revival. Right now, Jaguar sells seven models - four sedans and three crossovers. As the Autocar article's written, come 2027 Jaguar would have an electric XJ sedan, a full-sized EV crossover, the I-Pace, and perhaps an electric sports car. That's a brave new world - one we're not sure Jaguar dealers could survive in. Problem is that Jaguar and its dealers are having plenty of problems now. Chinese-market volatility, the cloud around diesels, and Brexit uncertainty have contributed to a sales slump so dire that Jaguar's Castle Bromwich plant is going to a three-day week for the rest of the year. The sales flu has spread to Land Rover, too, the brand's Solihull plant closing for two weeks to realign dealer inventory. Considering all that, and with no easy relief in sight, the product planners are apparently debating whether a new, traditional three-model sedan range is worth the investment. The upside of going all-electric is said to be higher sales, with internal estimates supposing 300,000 units annually. Last year Jaguar sold 178,500 units. The marque could rake in larger profit margins on those sales, too, thanks to premium buyers being ready to shell out big ducats for EVs.