Why The Jaguar XE Got Voted The Most Beautiful Car Of 2014
It’s official. The Jaguar XE is a beautiful car! At least, that’s what the motoring public think. At the Festival Automobile International in Paris, the car won the prestigious award. Over 100,000 votes were cast in nearly 60 countries around the world.
The Jaguar XE competed with the likes of the Mazda MX-5, Fiat 500X and the Mercedes C-Class Estate. According to Jaguar Land Rover, the XE received over 28% of the votes. Jaguar’s head of design, Ian Callum, was there to accept the award on behalf of the iconic car manufacturer.
A few months before winning the beautiful car award, the XE also won “Best Production Car” by Auto Plus magazine. So, what are the secrets to such a winning formula? It turns out that there are plenty of reasons to fall in love with the Jaguar XE.
It is a highly anticipated model for 2015
In case you didn’t know, the Jaguar XE is a brand new model that the Coventry-based firm are adding to their lineup. Codenamed X760, the car is the successor to the popular X-Type that ended production back in 2009.
Jaguar are hoping to fill a gap in the compact luxury car market with the new XE. The car is a turning point for the company, as it’s one of the many new models that are moving away from Ford’s architecture.
The new Jaguar XE is using the company’s new modular aluminium architecture. Launching as a four-door saloon, the motoring press believe Jaguar will also release an estate and coupe in the future.
It had its first world premiere in London back in September 2014. Details of the car got unveiled at the 2014 Geneva International Motor Show. Although Jaguar elected not to display the car at the time.
The model will get produced at Jaguar’s Solihull plant in the West Midlands. It’s a manufacturing facility dedicated to the building of aluminium vehicles. Many of the motoring press had the chance to drive pre-production models. They had nothing but praise for the X-Type’s replacement.
The new Jaguar XE will go on sale from May 2015.
Aluminium architecture
Jaguar claims that the XE’s all-new “advanced” aluminium design will offer superior body strength. As you may know, aluminium is a lightweight but durable metal. The car maker says that it forms the basis of a durable platform for performance cars.
Company car drivers will rejoice at this fact. For them, it means that their vehicle taxes will be lower due to low engine emissions. After all; if you have a lightweight car, you don’t need a heavy engine to power it!
Engine choices
There is a choice of petrol and diesel engines for the new Jaguar XE. The car will get powered by Jaguar Land Rover’s new “Ingenium” diesel engine range. It also features the AJ-V6 used in the F-Type and the AJD-V6 from the XF and XJ.
The two petrol engines offer “sheer driving pleasure” according to Hilton Garage. They are 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo units that aim to provide low fuel consumption and cost of ownership.
For those that want an XE with extra grunt under the bonnet, there’s the 3.0-litre supercharged V6 from the F-Type. It uses a twin vortex supercharger mounted between the cylinder banks.
The diesel engines are what will interest those who will drive the new Jaguar XE for business purposes. There are two 2.0-litre turbodiesel engines, one of which has CO2 emissions of just 99 g/km!
Full engine specifications are as follows:
- 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol. Automatic transmission. 202 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 7.1 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 37.7 mpg, CO2 emissions of 179 g/km;
- 2.0-litre turbocharged petrol. Automatic transmission. 237 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 6.5 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 37.7 mpg, CO2 emissions of 179 g/km;
- 3.0-litre supercharged petrol. Automatic transmission. 237 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 4.9 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 34.9 mpg, CO2 emissions of 194 g/km;
- 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel. Manual transmission. 161 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 7.9 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 75 mpg, CO2 emissions of 99 g/km;
- 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel. Automatic transmission. 161 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 7.7 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 68.9 mpg, CO2 emissions of 106 g/km;
- 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel. Manual transmission. 178 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 67.3 mpg, CO2 emissions of 109 g/km;
- 2.0-litre turbocharged diesel. Automatic transmission. 178 brake horsepower, 0-60 mph in 7.4 seconds. Combined fuel economy of 67.3 mpg, CO2 emissions of 111 g/km.
The transmissions offered are six-speed manual, and eight-speed automatic.
Trim levels
There are five trim levels available to choose from on the new Jaguar XE.
The XE SE is the base model and starts from £26,995. As standard, it comes with 17-inch alloy wheels, and you can choose from eight different paint colours. You also have the option of choosing from one of three interior colourways. The dashboard, front doors and centre console veneer is in Gloss Black.
The XE Prestige offers the same as the SE and starts from £27,995. You also get “Taurus Leather” interior. It also comes with a brushed aluminium fascia and a Gloss Black centre console. As with the SE, you can choose from any of the engine and transmission options.
The XE R-Sport is the midrange model, with prices starting from £29,745. The exterior features a number of body enhancements and sports 18-inch five-spoke alloy wheels. You also get sports seats in “race-inspired” colours.
The XE Portfolio starts from £32,975. One of the more luxurious trim levels, it comes with “Windsor” leather interior with twin-needle stitching. Like the previous trim, you also get 18-inch alloy wheels.
The range topper is the XE-S. Prices start from £44,870. For that, you get F-Type performance thanks to the supercharged 3.0-litre V6 engine. You can choose from a variety of styling options, including 20-inch alloy wheels.
