Ahead of its first public appearance at tomorrow's Paris motor show, Jaguar has released some key details on their new mid-size sports saloon, the Jaguar XE. We are in Paris today with key figures from the Jaguar XE design and engineering team to run through the details of what's potentially going to be their volume seller. Jaguar Ireland is unable to confirm pricing at this stage, however we estimate that the new XE will have a sub €40,000 price tag when it goes on sale in Ireland next March.
The XE is powered by Jaguar’s new Ingenium diesel and petrol engines, the 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine is available with two power outputs, 163hp and 180hp. The former makes the XE the most fuel-efficient Jaguar ever, returning a combined fuel consumption of 75mpg, with CO2 emissions of 99g/km. The petrol engine range commences with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder unit that delivers two power outputs, 200hp and 240hp. The supercharged 3.0-litre V6 petrol engine that we’ve experienced in the F-TYPE is utilised in the XE S, it’s a powerful unit producing a stern 340hp and 450Nm of torque.
Jaguar Land Rover has invested heavily into the production of the XE, with the construction of a new facility in Solihull that has the capability to produce one vehicle every 78 seconds. The body of the XE consists of 75 per cent aluminium and 25 per cent steel. Jaguar's engineers are clear to point out that they have built a sporty saloon, with a rear-wheel-drive platform and a body that's 20 per cent stiffer then its larger sibling the XF. To combat wintry conditions, Jaguar has equipped the XE with its ASPC (all surface progress control), this optimises grip in snow and will accelerate the car automatically up to 30km/h gaining traction. The interior boasts a host of technology including Jaguar's InControl which centres around an 8" touch screen infotainment system that offers connectivity for ios and android users. The InControl remote allows you to access certain features on the car remotely, including setting the climate control and locking and unlocking the vehicle.
From talking to the engineers today, it's clear that Jaguar has future models planned for the XE to include an all-wheel-drive variant and possibly a shooting brake (estate) model too. It will require these additional models to compete with its main competitors from Audi and BMW.
