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2018 Jaguar F-Pace: Heated windshield option may drive you crazy

Our long-term Jaguar F-Pace is stuffed full of options. It's the top-trim S model with the most powerful engine, and we selected five of seven available option packages. The two we didn't pick were the cheapest ones. There were a handful of individual options we selected, as well, and one of them, the heated windshield, is one that you should definitely think twice about before choosing. The reason being that, in this editor's opinion, it's thoroughly irritating. I actually didn't even know our F-Pace had it the first time I signed it out for an evening. At the end of the day, I grabbed the key, walked down to the parking lot and drove it away without a second thought. A couple miles down Woodward Avenue, though, I noticed that my view out wasn't quite as clear as I expected. I figured the windshield was dusty or something, so on went the windshield washer for a few moments. After everything dried off, I had the same issue. I pulled the washer lever again and still nothing. I leaned forward and squinted my eyes, and that's when I spotted the minuscule heater wires across the entire pane of glass. And once I saw the wires, it was almost impossible to unsee them. My unobstructed view out the car suddenly turned into a CRT screen full of scan lines. They never kept me from safely driving the F-Pace (after all, they are extremely small), but I could never completely forget they were there. It's incredibly frustrating and it gets worse at night as the wires combine with oncoming headlights. I'm not the only one who dislikes them either, as Senior Editor John Snyder and Contributing Editor James Riswick voiced their displeasure with the feature. Not everyone in the office feels this way about the heated windshield, though. Associate Editor Reese Counts said that they don't bother him one bit. And in cold weather climates like Michigan, it should be handy for clearing snow, ice and condensation from the windshield. With these differing opinions, then, this is an option that you'll definitely want to experience for yourself before actually choosing it. You might find it unobtrusive or you might find it insufferable. As for me, I don't think I could deal with having those wires in my face all year 'round. I would rather spend 10 percent of the year when we have accumulating snow and ice scraping it off manually so that the other 90 percent of the year I have a crystal clear view of the road.

Jaguar E-Type Series 3 gets tasteful upgrades thanks to E-Type UK

The Jaguar E-Type is one of the most important and recognizable cars of all time. The E-Type — also called the XK-E here in the U.S. — was in production from 1961 until 1975. That said, when most people think of E-Types, they think of the early Series I cars. The later ones (especially federalized models with those horrendous bumpers) don't get much love. E-Type UK, a restoration shop in England, is giving those Series 3 models a second life. The car in these photos is a 1974 Jaguar E-Type V12. This Series 3 underwent a 3,000-hour restoration, getting a number of upgrades along the way. The engine — originally displacing 5.3 liters — has been enlarged to 6.1 liters. It ditched the original Stromberg carbs for a custom downdraft fuel-injection system. Just take a look at those velocity stacks. The car has also been fitted with a custom stainless-steel exhaust system. Power is sent to the rear through a new close-ratio five-speed manual transmission. E-Type UK says it now makes 284 horsepower at the wheels. Other upgrades include a new steering rack, adjustable suspension with new torsion bars, AP Racing brakes with four-piston calipers and ventilated rotors and custom one-off 62 spoke 16-inch Turino wire wheels wrapped in whitewall tires. New louvres and air ducts were added to help cooling. All external lighting has been upgraded to LEDs, including the daytime-running lights. Inside, the E-Type has been fitted with air conditioning, modified heated leather seats from an XJS, iPod and Bluetooth connectivity, piano black trim and a red start button. The interior, including the factory hardtop, has also been fitted with Dynamat to reduce road noise. The car even has remote door locks. E-Type UK didn't post the price for this car, but a similar S3 E-Type is listed for GBP190,000, or about $250,000. If Series 3 or V12-powered cars aren't your thing, the website has a few listings for Series 1 cars with the classic inline-six. There's even an XK120 under the "sold" listings. Related Video:

Jaguar C-X17 Concept teased before Frankfurt

Just ahead of the Frankfurt Motor Show, which begins September 10, Jaguar is teasing the reveal of a design study to introduce its new advanced vehicle architecture. Dubbed the C-X17, the mysterious concept "illustrates the diversity of vehicles that could be produced using this architecture, which underpins the innovative future of the Jaguar brand."
While it's not entirely clear what this architecture involves or what type of vehicle the C-X17 may be, this reveal is reminiscent of Jaguar's decision to unveil the C-X16 concept, a hybrid electric sports car, in Frankfurt in 2011. From the looks of the teaser image Jaguar released (click above to enlarge), we're guessing the C-X17 will be something between a low-slung crossover and a sporty wagon. But we won't have to wait too long to find out - Jaguar is streaming the live pre-show reveal to invited guests on its Facebook page on Monday, Sept. 9.
In addition to the C-X17, Jaguar be showing off the performance-oriented XJR and XFR-S, and, of course, the F-Type convertible. Scroll down for the official press release.