2008 Jaguar Xj Xj8 Vanden Plas Select Edition Warranty Navi Heated Cooled Seats on 2040-cars

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CMC to produce limited run of Callum's Jaguar Mark 2 [w/video]

We were a more than a little jealous when designer Ian Callum revealed his Jaguar Mark 2 restomod that he commissioned from Classic Motor Cars. It turns out that we weren't the only ones that dug it - the reaction was so great that CMC got Callum's permission to create a limited run of them for customers. Although, with prices quoted between £350,000 and £375,000 ($572,000 - $613,000), we doubt Ian needs to worry about seeing a copy of his creation pass him too soon.
"Within hours we had received calls from people all over the globe asking if they could buy one," said Peter Neumark, Chairman of CMC in the latest announcement. The reaction came as a surprise to Callum, who said he designed the car entirely to his own specifications and actually wasn't sure if people would like it.
Among Callum's many changes are new bumpers, wider front fenders with functional louvers and less chrome trim. Under the hood is a 4.3-liter six-cylinder fitted with two SU carbs putting out around 260 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque. It should be a much better driver too, with a completely re-engineered independent rear suspension, adjustable dampers at all four corners, improved brakes and a new rack and pinion steering system designed by CMC with electric assist.

Audi, Jag, Kia and Tesla top Strategic Vision 2014 Total Quality Index

A couple weeks ago, J.D. Power released its latest Initial Quality Study, which gave high marks to Porsche, Hyundai and General Motors, with the latter earning more individual IQS awards than any other manufacturer. Now, it's Strategic Vision's turn, and it's doling out its praise not to Porsche, but to Tesla, which wasn't even included in the JD Power IQS.
The Model S was named the best vehicle overall in total quality, while Porsche's corporate brother and endurance-racing rival, Audi, was named the best premium brand, alongside Jaguar. Strategic Vision cited the Q5 and the ancient Q7 for individual segment awards, as well as the A5, which was a mere point off the top of its segment. SV also handed out compliments for the Audi's interior work. The win for the German brand is a nice improvement over its IQS score, with which it landed above the industry average, but solidly mid-pack.
Jaguar was without a segment winner, although SV did say that the Indian-owned English brand had a number of vehicles very near the top of their segments. This is the second significant win for Jag in two weeks, after it finished second overall on the JD Power IQS a few weeks ago.

Jay Leno hits the road in a 1951 Jaguar XK 120 Hot Rod

The 1951 Jaguar XK120 featured in this episode of Jay Leno's Garage might look vaguely like a classic Jag roadster at first, but underneath this cat is something completely different. It was built by Leno's buddy Jason Len of XK's Unlimited when he grew tired of keeping these convertibles stock, and this aluminum-bodied beast was the result. Practically the only major Jaguar part left is the engine. It's a tuned 3.8-liter inline six from an E-Type with Weber carbs that makes an estimated 300 horsepower out of some gorgeous side-exit exhausts. The mill is backed up to a BorgWarner five-speed manual. However, the big surprise is the chassis. In place of Jag's original solution, Len has a custom tubular space frame that he claims sheds some 1,000 pounds over the stock example. There are still some classic Jaguar touches left, though, such as the fin over the driver's head that is reminiscent of the D-Type, and both the wheels and gauges are replicas based on that classic racer. Of course the best part is watching Jay drive this Jag hot rod. This big cat really knows how to purr.