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Jaguar Land Rover backs Arc startup that sells $100,000 electric motorcycles

Before it even put its first motorcycle on the road, new startup Arc reeled in a major player to back its ambitious product plan. In conjunction with the reveal of the fully electric Vector superbike at the Esposizione Internazionale Ciclo Motociclo e Accessori ( EICMA) show in Milan, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) announced it is placing capital in Arc, using JLR's investment company InMotion Ventures. Arc claims the Vector is the first all-electric motorcycle with integrated Human Machine Interface (HMI) to come to market. Arc, not to be confused with Keanu Reeve's Arch motorcycle company, has a pretty typical mission statement: "To use progressive design and technology to transform people's relationship with an automative experience. For us, for you, for our planet." At the core, Arc wants to make connected, clean, exclusive superbikes, and the Vector is its first try. Although Arc didn't get into the nitty gritty details about the make-up of the bike, it did give some surface specs and information. The bike's structure is built using a carbon composite to create a "unique Arc battery monocoque." Weight is also kept low using carbon fiber swing arms. There is no mention of the size or type of electric powertrain, but Arc claims it will have a highway range of about 120 miles or a city range of 170 miles on a single charge. Arc says it will be able to sprint from 0 to 60 miles per hour in 2.7 seconds and has a top speed of 124 mph. Stopping power comes from a Brembo brake system, while ride and handling relies on Ohlins dampers. The launch does not stop at the motorcycle, but includes gear, as well. The Vector links up with a jacket and a helmet for a fully connected experience. Partnering with U.K.-based impact protection design company Knox, Arc created the Arc Pilot System. Using audio, the armored Origin riding jacket provides haptic feedback based on numerous riding inputs to help keep the driver safe and aware. Furthermore, Arc linked up with luxury helmet maker Hedon to build the WiFi-connected Zenith helmet that houses an integrated projection heads-up display. In addition to showing things such as speed or battery life of the bike, the helmet uses a built-in rear camera to display other vehicles in the rider's blind spots. The rider can command the system using controls on the bike or via voice commands.

All-electric Jaguar XJ coming soon on platform shared with 'Road Rover'

We've been posting on the likelihood of electric Jaguars for a while now, especially the XJ leading the charge as a new EV flagship. Rumors at the beginning of 2018 predicted an XJ EV on our doorstep by the end of 2018, the 50th anniversary year of the XJ. By April this year, it was looking like the battery-powered XJ would use the I-Pace platform and make an appearance sometime in 2019. Now, Automotive News Europe reports that during Jaguar Land Rover's Investor's Day presentations, the automaker said it would debut a "large SUV and a large premium sedan" on its Modular Longitudinal Architecture (MLA) suitable for EVs, hybrids and traditional ICE-powered cars. The sedan in question is the next-gen XJ. Nick Rogers, JLR's product engineering boss, said electric MLA vehicles will get 90.2-kWh batteries that return range of up to 400 kilometers (292 miles) on the European cycle. That would effectively be the same size battery as the I-Pace, which rides on its own one-off platform, and the same range; in the U.S., the I-Pace is rated at 234 miles. It's said the XJ's design, produced by former Jaguar design chief Ian Callum and his team, has already been cleared. It swaps the four-door body for a five-door, a la the Audi A7, and introduces a new design language for the car and the carmaker. Car and Driver says the new statement sedan aims to be "a cutting-edge alternative to the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes-Benz S-Class," and Autocar saying it will "remain Jaguar's flagship in preference to a large SUV, such as the rumored J-Pace." The point of introducing the EV first is to establish the car's technology and sporting credentials — hopefully before the Porsche Taycan and Audi E-Tron GT arrive. Eventually, an ICE version of the XJ powered by an Ingenium inline-six should come; that will welcome buyers not ready to make the all-EV switch, a necessary move in keeping with the XJ's competition for global sales with the S-Class and 7 Series. However, leaving room in the design for a conventional drivetrain will force compromises that the all-electric competition doesn't face. Production of the current XJ ends at the Castle Bromwich facility on July 5. The new sedan is slated to be "announced in the near future" and built at JLR's plant in Solihull, which assembles Land Rover products. The same MLA platform will support a road-focused Land Rover as a sibling to the XJ, dubbed the "Road Rover" internally.

Second 'No Time To Die' trailer drops with lots of crunching metal

The second trailer for the new James Bond film, "No Time To Die," was posted to social media Thursday morning, getting us thoroughly hyped for the forthcoming installment thanks to some spicy car content and lots of other ridiculous, big-budget action sequences.  Fair warning for the purists: This might contain plot- and character-related information from the trailer itself. Also, it appears that many Land Rover Defenders died in the making of this film, so the footage may not be for the faint of heart; don't say we didn't give you advance notice.  As is typical of Bond films, most of the automotive eye candy is of the European variety. The classic Aston Martin DB5 gadget car (which we saw doing some crazy machine-gun donuts in the first trailer) makes yet another appearance, as does what appears to be fourth-generation Maserati Quattroporte. There's even something which might be a car, but also appears to be both some sort of airplane and submersible. Never change, Bond. We love it.  And then there are the Defenders. We've got Defenders speeding down hillsides, Defenders crashing through forests, Defenders flying over Land Cruisers. Yeah, do you like Land Cruisers? There's a Land Cruiser. It even (spoiler alert!) survives relatively unscathed; the same cannot be said for most of the automotive shenanigans we get to see here.  "No Time To Die" was originally slated to debut back in April, but its original release date roughly coincided with the projected peak of early coronavirus infections. Given how important the Bond film franchise's continued success is to MGM (it's virtually the only thing the studio has had going for it for 30 years) and the producers (who only make Bond films), meager box office returns were not an option. The last film, Spectre, pulled in the worldwide gross of $880 million, including $200 million in the United States and $83.5 million in China. The wait is almost over. "No Time to Die" will hit theaters Nov. 25 in the United States.  Related Video: