Jaguar platform sharing talks revealed by Jaguar Land Rover boss

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

New Jaguar Land Rover CEO Thierry Bolloré has confirmed that Jaguar is talking to external partners about the brand’s new all-electric platform.

Bolloré recently revealed that Jaguar would be reinventing its entire line-up of cars in 2025 as part of JLR’s Reimagine plan, with the brand set to rival Tesla and Polestar by going all-electric. He also confirmed that Jaguar would not be sharing a platform with Land Rover, but would be developing its own bespoke architecture.

Now, however, talking at JLR’s investor conference, Bolloré said that Jaguar was talking with “a selection of actors” to work with on a new all-electric platform.

• SEE MORE Electric Jaguar XJ plans axed at last minute

Jaguar’s decision to find a partner to work with “was a matter of scale and speed to go to market,” according to Bolloré, but he said that “naturally there is massive appetite to work with us.

Bolloré is leaving the strategy for future Jaguars to JLR chief creative officer Gerry McGovern and the choice of platform would be dictated by the design team. “It has to respect the proportion of the designs,” Bollore said.

Speaking to investors, Gerry McGovern said, “Great design begins with volume of proportions and clearly Jaguars will have quite significant different volumes of proportion compared to Land Rovers.

“Therefore, we need to look for opportunities out there in terms of architectures that we could utilise or refine to give the stunning jaw-dropping Jaguars I’m talking about.”

• SEE MORE New Jaguar Land Rover electric car offensive: full details

However, former Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer recently told Auto Express that using a third-party platform would instantly put design constraints on McGovern and his team.

“If they buy [a platform] from someone else they’re constrained on design. There are something like 94 or 96 hard points on a platform, so the designer’s job is almost joining the dots,” said Palmer.

There is still a slim chance that Jaguar could develop its own platform, according to Bolloré. “It may be that we develop the platform internally, but it has to be design led,” he said.

“There is no point doing what we are doing with Jaguar unless these products are drop dead gorgeous."

Do you think the future looks bright for Jaguar? Join the debate in the comments...

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3su5Gny

New Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 launched

https://ift.tt/2ZRQowu

Volkswagen has launched the new Golf GTI Clubsport 45. It’s a special edition version of the brand’s hottest front-wheel-drive hatchback, which features a host of cosmetic revisions and a few interior design tweaks to commemorate the GTI’s 45th anniversary. 

The Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 is available to order in Germany now, with prices starting from €47,790 (around £41,500). It won’t go on sale in the UK until April, although Volkswagen has confirmed that it’ll be slightly cheaper here, with prices expected to start from just under £40,000.

• SEE MORE New 316bhp Volkswagen Golf R on sale from £39,270

The German brand has also said that production numbers of the Golf GTI Clubsport 45 won’t be limited, although we expect VW will pull the car from the market next year, once the GTI’s 45th anniversary has passed.

Cosmetic tweaks over the standard GTI Clubsport include new 19-inch alloy wheels, Matrix LED headlights, a larger tailgate spoiler and a contrasting black roof. Volkswagen has also fitted a louder Akrapovic sports exhaust system and a unique decal for the hatchback’s flanks, with special edition ‘45’ badges.

Inside, the upgrades continue with a fresh set of sports seats, embroidered with the GTI logo. There’s a new sports steering wheel, too, which carries the same special edition 45 badging as the car’s exterior stickers.

Like the standard Golf GTI Clubsport, this special edition hot hatch is powered by a 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine, which produces 296bhp and 400Nm of torque. That’s 54bhp and 30Nm more than the standard Mk8 Golf GTI.

The engine is only available with a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox, which sends drive to the front wheels via an electronically-controlled limited-slip differential for improved traction. Like the standard Clubsport, the 45 can sprint from 0-62mph in 5.6 seconds.

Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 - rear

Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 - interior

Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45 - headlight

Volkswagen Golf GTI Clubsport 45

However, Volkswagen has added a new ‘Race’ package to the Clubsport 45 which, along with the new exhaust, removes the standard car’s top speed limiter. This means the 45 can comfortably push past 155mph.

The first-generation Golf GTI was launched way back in 1976 and is widely regarded as the car that helped carve out the hot hatchback genre. Since then, Volkswagen has shifted more than 2.3 million examples, which the brand says makes it the world’s most successful compact sports car.

Interestingly, with this 45th anniversary model arriving so early in the current Golf’s lifecycle, we’re faced with the prospect of the Mk8 GTI remaining on sale for the car’s 50th birthday, too. By then, the 2030 ban on pure petrol and diesel cars will be looming large, meaning this Mk8 variant may well be the last Golf GTI we see - in conventional petrol-powered form, at least.

Now read our review of the Mk8 Volkswagen Golf GTI. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3snjPTA

Mercedes-AMG C 63 Estate caught testing ahead of 2022 arrival

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Hot on the heels of the recently revealed and more luxurious than ever Mercedes C-Class, the firm’s performance-focused AMG C 63 has been spotted testing in estate form ahead of its arrival in 2022.

It’s clear from our images that this is the new C 63 Estate, with the prototype sporting wider bodywork to cover the extended track, a deeper front bumper and an AMG-specific quad-exit exhaust system. 

• SEE MORE New 2021 BMW M4 on sale now priced from £76,055

We’d expect the new car to feature the AMG division’s Panamericana front grille as well, to differentiate it from lesser C-Classes, as per other AMG models and their conventional counterparts.

The most significant feature for this new C 63 is that it’s highly likely to ditch the current car’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 in favour of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine supported by an electric motor.

In the firm’s current A45 S AMG the combustion engine produces 415bhp and 500Nm of torque. There’s potentially room to squeeze even more power and torque from this unit, but it’s likely that the car would have to offer a significant boost from an electric motor to surpass the outgoing C 63 S’s 503bhp total and offset the additional weight of the hybrid system’s battery.

This added weight would also be countered by the reduction in cylinder count, the C 63 moving from a V8 to an in-line four with a lot less mass over the car’s front axle as a result. This could help boost agility, in partnership with a host of other chassis upgrades and performance-focused electronic systems.

Reports indicate that the new C 63 will feature Mercedes’ 4MATIC four-wheel-drive system - matching rivals such as the new all-wheel drive BMW M3 - but with a specific AMG calibration, as per the larger E 63 S. This means the front axle could be decoupled depending on the driving mode selected. With the added traction of four-wheel drive, a 0-62mph time below four seconds could be possible, helped by the instant torque its electric motor would add.

Of course, a super estate such as a C 63 has to offer practicality as well as performance, so expect the car to match the standard C-Class Estate’s 490 litres of boot space. We’d expect prices for the new AMG C 63 Estate to start from around £82,500 when it goes on sale next year.

Check out our review on another hot German estate - the Audi RS 6 Avant...

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3aSRrTo

Mercedes-AMG C63 Estate caught testing ahead of 2022 arrival

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Hot on the heels of the recently revealed and more luxurious than ever Mercedes C-Class, the firm’s performance-focused AMG C63 has been spotted testing in estate form ahead of its arrival in 2022.

It’s clear from our images that this is the new C63 Estate, with the prototype sporting wider bodywork to cover the extended track, a deeper front bumper and an AMG-specific quad-exit exhaust system. 

• SEE MORE New 2021 BMW M4 on sale now priced from £76,055

We’d expect the new car to feature the AMG division’s Panamericana front grille as well, to differentiate it from lesser C-Classes, as per other AMG models and their conventional counterparts.

The most significant feature for this new C63 is that it’s highly likely to ditch the current car’s 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 in favour of a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine supported by an electric motor.

In the firm’s current A45 S AMG the combustion engine produces 415bhp and 500Nm of torque. There’s potentially room to squeeze even more power and torque from this unit, but it’s likely that the car would have to offer a significant boost from an electric motor to surpass the outgoing C63 S’s 503bhp total and offset the additional weight of the hybrid system’s battery.

This added weight would also be countered by the reduction in cylinder count, the C63 moving from a V8 to an in-line four with a lot less mass over the car’s front axle as a result. This could help boost agility, in partnership with a host of other chassis upgrades and performance-focused electronic systems.

Reports indicate that the new C63 will feature Mercedes’ 4MATIC four-wheel-drive system - matching rivals such as the new all-wheel drive BMW M3 - but with a specific AMG calibration, as per the larger E63 S. This means the front axle could be decoupled depending on the driving mode selected. With the added traction of four-wheel drive, a 0-62mph time below four seconds could be possible, helped by the instant torque its electric motor would add.

Of course, a super estate such as a C63 has to offer practicality as well as performance, so expect the car to match the standard C-Class Estate’s 490 litres of boot space. We’d expect prices for the new AMG C63 Estate to start from around £82,500 when it goes on sale next year.

Check out our review on another hot German estate - the Audi RS 6 Avant...

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3svAaWa

Mercedes-AMG C63 Estate caught testing ahead of 2022 arrival - pictures

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Pictures of Mercedes-AMG C63 Estate caught testing ahead of 2022 arrival

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3aTQNVM

Volvo XC40 Recharge gets extra range in first over-the-air update

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Volvo has released its first over-the-air update for the pure-electric XC40 P8 Recharge. The new software, which can be installed at home at the touch of a button, brings a range of improvements to the SUV’s driving range, charging architecture and interior technology.

Volvo says its new software update has improved the XC40 Recharge’s driving range by tweaking the way each cell in the battery pack is managed. 

• SEE MORE Best electric cars to buy 2021

According to the manufacturer, the revisions have improved the car’s maximum driving range, although Volvo hasn’t yet released any official figures. In any case, we’re only expecting an improvement of a few miles, which should push the SUV’s maximum driving range past 260 miles. For reference, the pre-updated car had a maximum range of 257 miles

The software update has also improved the electric XC40’s charging times by increasing the rate at which the battery can accept charge. However, Volvo hasn’t yet released an official figure for the improvements in this area, either. Before the update, the EV could achieve an 80 percent charge in around 40 minutes, when connected to a 150kW DC rapid charger.

Volvo’s software update also refines certain technology features, such as the car’s Bluetooth connectivity, 360-degree camera and climate control timers. The update also loads the latest version of Google’s Android Auto operating system into the car’s infotainment system.

Now read our review of the pure-electric Volvo XC40 P8 Recharge. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/2ZPJckK

Deal of the week Kia Sportage 1.6T GDi GT-Line S - pictures

https://ift.tt/eA8V8J

Pictures of Kia Sportage 1.6T GDi GT-Line S

from Sitewide RSS feed https://ift.tt/3aSzh45