Cat of the future The C-XF concept represents a beginning of Jaguar’s new direction in design and engineering.

Editor

AFTER receiving a deluge of accolades following its eagerly anticipated unveiling, Jaguar’s C-XF concept car received the nod for Best in Show during the 2007 North American International Motor Show (NAIAS) recently held in Detroit, Michigan.

According to Dutch Mandel, editor and associate publisher of AutoWeek, which bestowed the Editors’ Choice Award for Best in Show 2007, “The Jaguar C-XF is the sexiest four-door we’ve seen from Jaguar in years.” Mandel added, “This car draws a line from Jaguar sedans of the past to Jaguar sedans of the future.”

For the past 10 years, AutoWeek has been giving the Editors’ Choice Awards for Best in Show, Most Significant, Best Concept and Most Fun at the world’s most prestigious motor shows. For the Best in Show award, the publication looks for the most significant, influential car—the one to remember ten years down the road.

Ian Callum, Jaguar Cars design director said, “With the C-XF, we wanted to create something with strength and a distinctive modern style that will carry Jaguar into the future—something with longevity. Ultimately, AutoWeek’s recognition of this tells us we’ve accomplished our goal.”

The all-new Jaguar C-XF concept car, which was jointly unveiled by Callum and Jaguar Cars managing director Bibiana Boerio, is a four-door sedan that blends dynamic, modern features with classic heritage cues and is powered by a 4.2-liter supercharged V8 engine.

“I am truly delighted for Ian and his team that all their hard work and creativity has been honored,” said Boerio. “While the C-XF is not a production vehicle, it is a true representation of our future design direction. This is just the beginning.”

Callum says that “great Jaguars turn heads in the street. They make people stop and pay attention. They evoke instant desire. That’s what the C-XF does and that’s what the next generation of Jaguars will do.”

The C-XF concept car signals the onset of a new era for Jaguar. As a striking interpretation of the design values that are the bedrock of every great Jaguar, the C-XF is wholly contemporary yet succeeds in paying homage to its renowned predecessors.

Set into the front of the C-XF is a bold and aggressive grille finished in black chrome. The headlamps which evolve the twin-lamp motif seen on previous Jaguars into a single slim wedge are narrow and angular, while between the lamps a blue streak of light reveals an almost cat-like iris when illuminated. Subtly etched below the lenses is a unique ‘tattoo’ design showing an abstract Jaguar leaper logo—a tattoo that is repeated in the tread plates of the door sills and in the tread of the bespoke Pirelli tires that surround the 21-inch machined, polished aluminum wheels.

Running backwards from the nose of the C-XF is the main feature line of the car—an unbroken shoulder that flows beneath the cabin glass line and into the haunch over the rear wheel.  Above the shoulder line sits a low and sporting cabin with aluminum bright work highlighting the coupe feel of the car.

At the rear of the C-XF a very sculptured shoulder flows from the C-pillar into a tight, aggressively tapered tail that clearly displays traditional Jaguar design cues yet succeeds in striking an incredibly modern feel.

The C-XF’s color palette is deliberately monochromatic, mixing a one-off exterior paint—Metashine silver—with areas of bright work in either chrome or aluminum finishes.

Callum describes the cabin of the C-XF concept car as “one of the most exciting interiors Jaguar has ever done.”

The emphasis is on tailored performance rather than pampered luxury and nowhere is that better demonstrated than in the lightweight, sculpted bucket-style front seats. Twin individual bucket seats house the rear-seat passengers.

Between the seats runs a tall central transmission tunnel that gives the occupants a sense of sitting deep within a futuristic cockpit.

The ‘tone on tone’ theme that has been applied to the exterior of the C-XF has been carried through to its interior, with a sensational blend of materials, graphic elements and innovative technologies.

The focal point of the interior is a sweeping brushed aluminum fascia that wraps around the cabin in a dynamic linear graphic that instills a sense of velocity. The counterpoint to the aluminum is a combination of leather and wood that takes detail of finish to a new level.

“These unusual finishes allow us to explore new ideas and themes,” says Alister Whelan, one of the designers responsible for the C-XF’s interior. “Jaguar is recognized for tailoring cars in wood and leather, but we have turned that on its head by treating these traditional materials in an unusual and contemporary fashion, obtaining beautiful textures and grains.”

“C-XF is a showcase for innovative technology, some of which will feature in one way or another on the next generation of Jaguar cars,” says Callum. “Every Jaguar interior should have a sense of fun, but we also recognize that technology should only be there when you want to use it. Yes, there is a sense of theatre about the innovations we have chosen to highlight on the C-XF, but there is also an organized simplicity that brings order and structure to every system.”

Perhaps the most theatrical of the features Callum references is the starting sequence. Sink into the C-XF driver’s seat and a jewel-like Power button pulses on the centre console—its rhythm representing the ‘heartbeat’ of the car. Press the button and beneath your hand concentric aluminum rings spiral downwards to allow the new circular JaguarDrive Selector to nestle directly in your palm. Then, as the engine starts, a beam of blue light radiates from the centre of the instrument panel, chases its way around the cabin and finally envelopes the rear seats. Overhead, an electro-luminescent panel spanning the entire roof lining bathes the interior in a muted blue light to give a feeling of ambience and space. Outside, a burst of blue light from the front grille marks the moment the car’s engine fires into life. 

The introduction of a new prototype technology, called JaguarSense, sees four sensors hidden within the doors react to the sweep of your hand as it passes over them. Once activated, the inner door handles—previously hidden—motor outwards ready to be used.

A fifth sensor, located in the fascia, responds to the proximity of your hand to reveal an infotainment screen that lies flush within the aluminum front panel. The sequence continues with the centre section of the dashboard rotating 90 degrees to display an advanced Dual View screen, which is capable of projecting two different images to the driver and passenger simultaneously. For example, the driver can view satellite-navigation instructions while the passenger watches a DVD-based movie.

Behind the single-spoke steering wheel with ‘floating’ gear-selector paddles sits a dial cluster that has been inspired by the cockpit of an airplane. The rev counter has graphics reminiscent of an artificial horizon instrument from an aircraft. The dials also respond to the way C-XF is being driven. If the driver puts the transmission into sporting Dynamic mode, the rev counter motors outwards (in the way a long lens on an SLR camera operates), ensuring its increased prominence. 

Driving C-XF in a more relaxed manner would allow occupants to enjoy an audio experience of the highest quality. Visually stunning honeycomb speaker panels are set into the rear parcel shelf and front fascia top. Designed by Jaguar and created by leading British loudspeaker manufacturer Bowers & Wilkins, the beautiful cat’s eye-shaped designs are aesthetic yet functional works of art.

The car is powered by an enhanced version of Jaguar’s renowned 4.2-liter supercharged V8 engine. Tuned to produce in excess of 420 bhp and 500 Nm of torque—the latter produced from very low revs—this proven motor and its six-speed automatic transmission with Jaguar Sequential Shift manual gear change capability.

The C-XF is the first car ever to use Beru F1 System’s unique Wire in Composite (WIC) technology. WIC completely encloses all wiring in a bespoke carbon-fiber sleeve, protecting it from damage and also improving durability, packaging, weight and aesthetics. As the first vehicle to use the technology, the C-XF leaps ahead of upcoming debuts in both Formula 1 motor racing and the aerospace industry—and allows Jaguar to further investigate production car potential for the system. 

Wellington Soong, chairman and president of Jaguar Philippines—exclusive importer of Jaguar cars in the Philippines says that there are whispers inside the Jaguar organization that although CX-F is just a concept car, the actual production model will closely resemble the existing prototype. “Chances are very likely that the production version, which will serve as the progenitor of what could be a new ‘breed’ of Jaguars, will be much closer to CX-F than most people think,” Soong said.

Jaguar Philippines executive director Marc Soong, meanwhile, says, “The unveiling of the CX-F along with its more than warm reception in Detroit serves as an exciting start to the year for Jaguar, which is set to roll out more exciting products and developments in 2007.”

WE are receiving a lot of complaints lately regarding the lack of traffic enforcers manning that stretch from Edsa Central in Pasig up to Robinson’s Department Stores in Ortigas from five to eight in the evening. Traffic enforcers from the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) are usually present in the area during rush hours but they are seldom seen these days resulting in monstrous traffic jams.

FIVEFOLD comebacks have been in vogue for the past four months. For example, in order to finally leapfrog over Nike in basketball shoe sales, adidas launched its “It Takes Five” basketball campaign using five NBA players—Tracy McGrady, Gilbert Arenas, Kevin Garnett, Chauncey Billups and Tim Duncan. Although only the shoe lines of McGrady, Arenas and Garnett were publicly available (as of today), they were sales hits. 

THE existing record was not broken but nevertheless all participating cars managed to finish the Petron Xtra Miles Challenge Media Edition that ended on Sunday.

AFTER receiving a deluge of accolades following its eagerly anticipated unveiling, Jaguar’s C-XF concept car received the nod for Best in Show during the 2007 North American International Motor Show (NAIAS) recently held in Detroit, Michigan.