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| Jaguar XJ |
Will take it! I presume this is what Tata said when they first saw the sketches for the new XJ. In the 90s the feline had lost it robust impressive looks making the cat more venerable. More and more Jaguar customers moved from it lovely fur to a point where it became homeless.
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| The new front grill |
Tata took the homeless cat in, gave it some cash and the result was a transformation from an ugly duckling to a white majestic swan. The new Jag has it paws on the luxury market which over the past years has been dominated by the German saloon. The car echoes the innovative styling that made Jags great cars in the early sixties.
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| I just cant stop admiring it |
Under the bonnet is a V8 3.0 litre engine. One can choose from four different engines two supercharged, one petrol engine and a diesel. The one I would go for is the diesel which coughs out around 300 bhp. It does all this and yet uses very little fuel.
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| The rear view |
Jaguar is probably the first car to have a panoramic glass roof as standard in all its line. The roof enables a lower, more streamlined roofline. This designers hope, will enhance the feeling of light and space within the car. The roof’s opening mechanism slides the glass upwards and outwards, so that headroom is never compromised. A dark tint and reflective coating prevent the interior from overheating under strong sunlight (if you live in arid areas), while twin electric blinds provide another level of privacy and sun screening.
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| Love the steering wheel |
Occupants are treated with tapings of luxury consisting of buttons and knobs of finely polished metal and exotic materials. Close the door and you are sealed quietly from the world. There is enough room for five occupants who will enjoy the first automotive application of Dolby 2X surround. This is from a 1200 watt 20 speaker Bowers & Wilkins sound system. In simple English it makes the XJ a luxury saloon/entertainment joint/mobile cinema.
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| Rear claw like lights |
Inside the Jag things get a little bit complicated. The gear knob has been replaced by what Jaguar has called the JaguarDrive Selector™. Also instrument panel now features a 12.3-inch high-definition screen, which uses virtual instruments, that provides all of the functions performed by traditional dials. Jaguar’s designers have also taken advantage of the freedom provided by virtual instrumentation to help prioritize the most useful information. For example if the fuel runs out, the rev counter is replaced with a huge icon warning the driver to fill up.
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| Notice the panoramic roof |
I will not be worried if am late for class just to see one of my lecturers stepping out of the new XJ. It has appeals that no luxury sedan has. It available in Kenya at CMC for the price of Kshs. 15.4 million for the 3 litre version and Kshs. 16.5 million for the 5 litre version. If you have more money to spend there is a 5.0 litre supercharged version with over 500bhp!. One can also order an executive long wheel base for all the three versions.
All I can say is BMW, Audi and Mercedes watch out. A Jaguar is hunting you down