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Jag's new stunner set for lift-off
11:05, Sep 7 2011
Motoring News
by Mike Torpey, drivingforce.uk.net
IT’S a baby brother for the powerful Jaguar XK8 performance car and is sure to prove a head-turner at next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show.
Though officially a concept, the C-X16 is the smallest Jaguar created since 1954’s XK120 and a clear statement of the big cat’s future design direction. It is expected to go into production late next year.
The company says the two-seater, rear-wheel drive sports car marks a new chapter for the marque and will be the most compact and responsive Jaguar in a generation.
Lurking beneath the clamshell bonnet is a new generation supercharged V6 petrol engine producing 380PS supplemented by a Formula 1-inspired hybrid boost system with a steering-wheel mounted Push to Pass button for on-demand acceleration.
And integrated into the eight-speed gearbox is a motor generator which draws power from a battery pack mounted behind the seats for 50:50 weight distribution.
Charged via brake energy regeneration, the batteries allow the motor to provide an extra 95PS. The result is 0-62mph acceleration in 4.4 seconds, a top speed of 186 mph and acceleration from 50-75 mph of 2.1 seconds.
The C-X16 conceptcan also travel at speeds of up to 50mph under electric power alone and has CO2 emissions of 165g/km.
Jaguar’s design director Ian Callum said: “Jaguars have always been dramatically different. With the C-X16 we have moved the current award-winning design language on to the next generation, creating a car that is the very essence of future Jaguar performance.”
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