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Jaguar Land Rover rescues British off-road tuner Bowler

Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicles Operation (SVO) rescued British off-road tuner Bowler from an uncertain fate. The firm has worked with Land Rover in the past, but it has always been independent. While JLR isn't in an ideal position to make acquisitions, and its recent financial troubles are well documented, Bowler was on the brink of shutting down. The small, 34-year old company had entered administration, and the 26 people it employed risked losing their jobs. Monetary details haven't been released, meaning we don't know how much Bowler was worth, but the firm pointed out it's now fully owned by SVO. It joins SV, Vehicle Personalization, and Classic as the division's fourth pillar. It's too early to tell precisely where Bowler will fit in the JLR latticework, because the initial focus will be on stabilizing the company. It will remain based in Belper, England, and every member of its full-time staff has been offered a position as a JLR employee. Bowler made a name for itself by turning the original Defender into a rally car, and Land Rover said the expertise it acquired during decades of racing is highly sought after, so that's a hint we'll see more hardcore models developed jointly by the two companies sooner or later. The new Defender would lend itself well to the Bowler treatment. The Bowler name could replace the SVX nameplate used on the stillborn, V8-powered Discovery, for example. The tuner's focus on off-pavement performance means we're unlikely to see a Bowler-badged Jaguar, but anything is possible as global demand for SUVs (especially quick ones) continues to rise. What's certain is that, once Bowler is stable, it will grow bigger.

2017 Jaguar XE 20d Quick Spin

Base models rarely get their due in the press. Big-engine, high-horsepower variants get all the headlines, but the junior version is what sells in volume. We're just as guilty here at Autoblog, with both a first and second drive of the Jaguar XE in supercharged V6 guise, and barely a mention of the entry-level, 2.0-liter diesel. So, in Perd Hapley style, the Jaguar XE diesel is the model of the Jaguar XE we're going to discuss. Yes, the volume model of the Jaguar XE is a diesel, at least for now. A turbocharged 2.0-liter gas engine, wearing the 25t badge, will arrive after the XE's early 2016 on-sale date. Oil-burners and volume are not a thing in the United States, except for heavy-duty pickup trucks. Despite that apparent contradiction, the XE 20d could find some converts. Driving Notes The biggest clue to the engine's fuel source is the tachometer, which only counts to 6,000. But you wouldn't know from the fast throttle response or the way revs climb when you mash the accelerator. All 180 peak horsepower come at 4,000 rpm, and the 317 pound-feet of torque are available from 1750 to 2500 rpm. Really, this engine is smooth. Credit the low 15.1:1 compression ratio, which also helps make the engine's aluminum construction possible. The surge of power from the turbo builds steadily instead of kicking in all at once. Jaguar's engineers focused on friction reduction with a fanatical devotion, all in the name of efficiency. One key feature is the offset crankshaft. That is, the crankshaft is located to the side of the cylinder centerline. This reduces the side load forces during the firing cycle. In the manual transmission the gears are cupped to reduce mass. A pump sprays oil directly on the cogs, which cuts back on the total amount of fluid and cuts back on friction loss due to windage. No, the manual transmission isn't coming to the US. And yes, it's really good. Not just in the cliche journalist love for the diesel-manual combo, but objectively good. That smooth responsive nature of the engine is amplified when you get to choose your own gears. So we make due with the eight-speed automatic, the 8HP45 version of the ubiquious ZF box. The coolest trick here is a pendulum-style damper in the torque converter instead of a typical spring damper. When the torque converter is locked up this cuts down on torsional vibration between the engine and transmission. And that enables low-rpm cruising and higher mpg.

2018 Jaguar E-Pace launches with a barrel roll

After months of testing – some of which we caught in spy photos – and a little teasing, Jaguar has officially entered the compact crossover space with the launch of the 2018 E-Pace. And it was a fairly grand entry, too. Instead of the usual move of driving the car onto the stage or pulling off the sheet, Jaguar did a barrel roll in the E-Pace to hail its coming. Yes, Jaguar did a 270-degree corkscrew jump with the E-Pace, launching it 50 feet through the air to earn it a Guinness World Record for the "Furthest Barrel Roll in a Production Vehicle." It's similar to the stunt the automaker pulled for the launch of the F-Pace, which entered the world with a record-setting loop. The Jaguar E-Pace is smaller than the F-Pace, and seats five. It's available with a pair of 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four gasoline engines mated to a nine-speed automatic transmission. The base motor makes 246 horsepower and 269 pound-feet of torque, and puts that power to the ground via a standard all-wheel-drive system. The R-Dynamic version ups the output figures to 296 horsepower and 295 pound-feet, comes with a pair of paddle shifters, and gets the Active Driveline AWD system. Both drivelines can transfer almost all the torque to either the front or rear axles, depending on the driving situation, but the Advanced Driveline can disengage AWD, sending power to just the front axle to save fuel, and does more to keep the car stable in dynamic driving. The E-Pace also offers an optional Configurable Dynamics package that allows the driver to select Normal or Dynamic modes, which affect throttle, transmission, and steering response. The optional Adaptive Dynamics system provides variable suspension damping based on the driving mode. Drivers can select driving modes through the E-Pace's JaguarDrive control, choosing from Normal, Dynamic, Eco, as well as a Rain, Ice and Snow mode for low-grip conditions. Inside the car, the E-Pace is equipped with a 10-inch touchscreen infotainment system that has a customizable home screen. Two premium Meridian audio systems and a head-up display are available. All models have a feature that allows the owner to check on the vehicle remotely. The E-Pace also offers 4G Wi-Fi, and a connected navigation system that offers real time traffic and parking information. The E-Pace starts at $39,595. The R-Dynamic version begins at $48,245. Jaguar will also offer a limited E-Pace First Edition at a price of $54,545.