One of the celebrated marques at this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance is luxurious British automaker Jaguar. With 75 years of history, Jag decided to celebrate the occasion with the limited edition XKR175. As the name suggests, just 175 versions of the luxury coupe will be built for the U.S. market – with an additional 15 being produced for Canada.

Based on the European Speed Pack model, the XKR175 makes 510-hp and 461 ft-lbs of torque from a supercharged 5.0-liter V8 engine. It also gets a special aero kit, larger 20-inch wheels and tires, not to mention some plus-sized brakes.

All models will come in Ultimate Black paint with a Warm Charcoal interior with Cranberry stitching and Piano Black wood accents. Plus, there are the obligatory “XKR175 – x of 175″ door sill plates.

Pricing for this collectors item is set at $104,500 (including destination charge).

GALLERY: Jaguar XKR175

To celebrate 60 years of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, Rolls-Royce has unveiled a special Concours Edition version of its Phantom Drophead Coupé. It goes without saying that the debut locale was none other than the world famous concours.

With custom trim items, Pebble Beach logos on the seats and door sills this bespoke Rolls even gets its own color. Named Stillwater Blue, the deep shade is named after Pebble Beach’s famous Stillwater Cove. Adding to the unique qualities of the luxurious drop-top is a special picnic set – perfect for a very opulent mid-day snack.

Named after the concours, this car is destined to become a prized classic.

GALLERY: Rolls-Royce Concours Edition Drophead Coupé

What better venue for classic British automaker Morgan to debut a new concept than at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Keeping the same general body shape as the Aero, the EvaGT does away with the VW Beetle headlights in favor of some angry LED units. The large Morgan grille remains, however, and grows in size to add more oomph to the retro coupe.

Continuing to rely on BMW for the powertrain, the EvaGT comes with the German automaker’s twin-turbo inline-six making just over 300-hp and a solid 300 ft-lbs of torque. Using a light weight chassis, aluminum body panels and light weight Rays wheels, the EvaGT tips the scales at just 2,755 lbs, allowing for an impressive 0-62 mph sprint of just 4.5 seconds. Top speed is rated at 170-mph.

Technically speaking the EvaGT is still a concept, but a small automaker like Morgan isn’t about to do through all the trouble of building this prototype to then store it away in a museum. Expect a production model to debut as early as the Geneva Auto Show this coming March.

GALLERY: Morgan EvaGT

On display for the first time even, Ferrari chose the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance to display the one-off P540 Superfast Aperta. One of the first vehicles to come from Ferrari’s Special Projects program (others including the Enzo-based P4/5 and the F430-based SP1), underneath this gold beauty is a Ferrari 599 chassis.

The P540 Superfast was built for Edward Walson, the son of John Walson, who invented cable TV. Walson commissioned the vehicle with inspiration coming from the Fantuzzi-designed Ferrari which appeared in the 1968 film Toby Dammit. It was designed by Pininfarina and built in-house in Maranello, with Walson taking part in the entire design process. While added bracing was required to maintain the chassis’ rigidity, plenty of carbon fiber panels were used to reduce the impact of the weight gain. In total, engineers managed to limit the added weight to just 44 lbs.

Like previous projects, the luxurious Ferrari’s engine remains untouched, with the factory 6.0-liter V12 producing a tremendous 612-hp.

GALLERY: Ferrari P540 Superfast Aperta

It may be on the Concept Lawn at Pebble Beach, but the McLaren MP4-12C is not a hypothetical model – even if it’s named like one. One of very few carbon chassis vehicles in the world (a list which also includes the Lexus LFA, displayed directly next to the MP4-12C at Pebble Beach), this new McLaren model was not designed to be the supercar performer that the McLaren F1 was, but rather a usable exotic that will rival, and possible beat, the Ferrari 458 Italia in all categories.

Seeing it in person for the first time, with the Pebble Beach venue being its first North American showing, we’re still not sold on its looks, with an overall shape that doesn’t make us want to put up a poster of the car on our wall.

Power for the MP4-12C comes from a twin-turbo 3.8-liter V8 that makes 600-hp and 433 ft-lbs of torque and makes it to the ground through a 7-speed dual-clutch transmission. McLaren estimates a 0-60 mph time of less than 3.0 seconds. The elapsed time to 124-mph (200 km/h) is set at under 10 seconds.

Exact pricing for the MP4-12C has yet to be set, but will be between $225,000 and $250,000. So far, six dealers have been announced in North America, including Auto Gallery in Beverly Hills, CA; Park Place in Dallas, TX; Miller Motorcars in Greenwich, CT; Price Family Dealerships in San Francisco, CA; Lake Forest Sportscars of Chicago, IL and Dew Luxury Motor Cars in Tampa Bay, FL. McLaren is expected to announce their representatives in Philadelphia, Orange County, Toronto and Miami shortly.

GALLERY: McLaren MP4-12C

Several weeks ago we brought you a few pictures of a yellow Lexus LFA; now that car has been officially unveiled on the Concept Lawn at Pebble Beach, during the annual Concours d’Elegance. Those early pictures were misleading about the exact shade of yellow, however. Seeing the car in person it is definitely more of a soft yellow than the eye searing color previous photos had lead us to believe.

Nothing else is new about the model, with a 552-hp V10 engine and 354 ft-lbs of torque. With a six-speed sequential transmission and a curb weight of just 3,263 lbs, the LFA has a power to weight ratio of 5.8 lbs/hp and can hit 62 mph in 3.7 seconds and top at at 202 mph!

Priced at $375,000 just 500 LFA models will be produced. Lexus also recently announced that along with its complex leasing program, the LFA is also available to purchase outright, but customers must agree not to flip the car.

GALLERY: Yellow Lexus LFA

There’s no doubt that with the new XJ, Jaguar decided to leave behind its decades old approach of building the same old vehicle in order to take on the luxury saloons of Germany with something fresh and new that would appeal to less traditional Jag customers. Taking that approach to the next level is the XJ75 Concept, presented today on the Concept Lawn at Pebble Beach during the annual Concours d’Elegance.

With an aggressive aero kit, blacked out grille, tailpipes, wheels and even Jag emblems, the exterior still isn’t as surprising as the interior. Much like the outward appearance, the cabin takes a black and white approach with seriously high-grade materials and quilted black Alcantara seats that look straight out of a Lamborghini. This youthful approach really meshes well with the Jag’s high-tech features.

Jag is using this concept to test the waters and see if the new group of customers would be interested in something a bit more wild and a bit more expensive. A Jag representative on hand told us that so far the new Jag approach is working with first month sales of the new XJ in the U.S. exceeding those of the past XJ for the previous 12 months! Better yet for Jag, 80 percent of those customers are new to the brand.

Are you a current or prospective Jag customer? Would you buy this car? Tell us what you think by leaving a comment.

GALLERY: Jaguar XJ75 Concept

At this year’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Jaguar is celebrating its 75th anniversary as an automaker and what better way to blow out the candles than with the exhaust gases from a 510-hp XKR. Based on the European Speed Pack model, the XKR175 makes the 510-hp (as well as 461 ft-lbs of torque) from a supercharged 5.0-liter V8 engine. It also gets a special aero kit, larger 20-inch wheels and tires and some plus-sized brakes.

All models will come in Ultimate Black paint with a Warm Charcoal interior with Cranberry stitching and Piano Black wood accents. Plus, there are the obligatory “XKR175 – x of 175″ door sill plates.

Pricing for this collectors item is set at $104,500 (including destination charge) and as you might expect, just 175 models will be built. Jag has also announced an additional 15 models for Canada.

We’ll be sure to bring you more photos of the car from the Pebble Beach Concours this weekend.

Official release after the jump:

Continue Reading…

Fifteen years old is a rough age for a car. Most cars are just about bottomed out in terms of value around this age, even such “normal” supercars as the Ferrari F50, First-gen Zonda, and Lamborghini Diablo, all of which can be had for around half of their original asking prices. But what about the McLaren F1? The former record-holder for the fastest production car in the world doesn’t go down in value without a fight. In fact, it doesn’t go down in value at all. This particular example, #62, was purchased new in California by Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, for the paltry sum of $1.4 million. Fifteen years later, when Gooding and Co. puts the F1 on the auction block at Pebble Beach (that’s 2 weeks, people), this F1 is expected to draw between $2.5 and $3.5 Million.

This doesn’t surprise us at all, since the F1 is pretty much right at the top of every car guy’s list of dream cars. But with only 74 roadgoing examples ever produced, the odds of seeing one in person, let along driving or owning one, are hovering between “snowball’s chance in hell” and “peace in the middle east.” Demand will forever outweigh supply for a car like this, and they change hands so rarely, it almost always makes news when an F1 finds a new home. Hit the jump to check out the official press release and some high-resolution images of Larry Ellison’s McLaren F1.

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As the collector car world gears up for the annual Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance on August 15, Alfa Romeo fans are looking forward to their favorite marque taking center stage. This year marks Alfa’s centennial and the event will include a display of some of the most rare and significant Alfa Romeo automobiles produced in the last 100 years; including seven that will make the trip all the way from  the Museo Storico Alfa Romeo in Arese, Italy.

Shown above is one of them, a 1938 8C 2900 B Lungo, which was the fastest and one of the most revered Grand Touring cars built prior to the outbreak of World War II. Also on display from the Museo Storico collection will be a 1938 Gran Premio Tipo 158 ‘Alfetta,’ an earlier version of the car that helped Giuseppe Farina and Juan Manuel Fangio, with the first and second ever Formula 1 world championships in 1950 and 1951 respectively.

Other privately owned Alfas on display will include a 1942 6C 2500 coupe by Bertone (one of 40 such cars ever built); a 1936 2900 Carrozzeria Spider – the only one left that still sports its original coachwork and a 1948 6C 2500 SS Competizione, the only survivor of three factory race cars built by Alfa. This particular SS, competed in the grueling Mille Miglia four times in a row, winning three races and finishing runner up five times during it’s competition career.

With Alfa set to return to these shores after an absence of almost two decades, perhaps there are few locations more fitting for celebrating the marque’s centennial that at Pebble Beach in 2010.

[Source: Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance]

The Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance is possibly the world’s most exclusive collector car show, attracting celebrities like Jay Leno, Jerry Seinfeld and Ralph Lauren. The venue is the perfect place for Porsche to show off its upcoming 918 Spyder, which has been all-but-confirmed for production.

Porsche is looking to find 1000 people to express interest in the 918 Spyder, and so far have garnered 900 on that list. Pebble Beach’s ultra-high-net worth patrons can surely yield that number, allowing Porsche to put their hybrid supercar flagship into a very limited production run. The 718 horsepower roadster will also be shown close to Silicon Valley, home of the Tesla roadster and many wealthy folks with environmentally conscious views.

[Source: Autocar]

You can be as baller as you want with a Bugatti Veyron, but there’s always someone else out there who will outdo you. In this case, it’s the Mullin Automotive Museum, who just purchased a Bugatti Atlantic Type 57SC for an enormous sum, between $30-$40 million. This easily bests the previous record holder, a 1961 Ferrari 250GT California Spyder, formerly owned by Hollywood actor James Coburn, which sold for roughly $12 million.

Of the four Atlantics built, only two have survived, with the other belonging to the car collection of fashion designer Ralph Lauren. In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Leslie Kendall, the curator of the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles said that the sale is a milestone for the collector car market.

“People will start paying attention,” she said. “It’s should be obvious that there are connoisseurs out there who appreciate cars just as much as they do art, fine wine, furniture and sculpture.”

[Source: The Wall Street Journal]

A Ferrari 400 Superamerica set a new auction price record this past weekend, selling for an astonishing $3.5 million at the RM Auctions in Monaco.

Vintage Ferraris are always considered a solid investment, but this particular example, one of 400 short-wheelbase cabriolets in the entire world, has a Bonneville Salt Flat run under its belt, with the car hitting 145 mph on the famed straight line run.  The car was fully restored in 2005, and went on to enter into the Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance. Paying $3.5 million for any car is a little outrageous, but you can be sure that the new owner is ecstatic with his new purchase, and that’s all that matters in the end.

GALLERY: Ferrari 400 Superamerica Cabriolet

[Source: Jalopnik]

James Glickenhaus, the man behind the coachbuilt Pininfarina Ferrari P4/5, has commented that he is looking into building a race version of the car to compete in endurance racing.

The P4/5, which debuted at the 2006 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, is a one-off rebodied Ferrari Enzo, built by the Pininfarina design house to look like the famous 1967 Ferrari P4 race car. It is reported to have cost Glickenhaus $4 million.

Now it appears as though Glickenhaus is planning a sibling for his custom creation. Posting under the the screen name Napoli on FerrariChat, the prolific poster writes “There may be an act 2 here. I am seriously investigating a proposal to make P4/5 Competizione and enter her in a major 24 hour race. There are a LOT of stars that would have to align for this to happen but it’s not impossible…”

If the project does go ahead, the Nürburgring 24 hour race is the most likely venue at which the car would race.

GALLERY: Ferrari P4/5 Competizione Renderings

[Source: FerrariChat]

AutoGuide was one of the few media outlets that posted live coverage of the Bentley Mulsanne’s unofficial debut at the Pebble Beach Concour d’Elegance, but the regal British automaker wasn’t willing to cough up any details. Now that the car has been officially unveiled, we have some info - but not all of it.

Bentley has hidden all the tasty tid-bits of info about the Mulsanne deep in its press release, preferring to boast about how there are 114 different paint colors to choose from and how it takes nine weeks to complete a car.

But we know you want the hard numbers, so here goes. The Mulsanne, like the Arnage it replaces, uses a 6.75 liter V8 engine. The new engine has, however, been completely reworked with light weight pistons, con-rods and a forged crankshaft. Power is an expected 505hp, while torque rises impressively to 752 ft-lbs – which is available from just 1800 rpm.

Bentley has made big promises in the fuel economy department (even if its customers don’t care), and has equipped the Mulsanne with a new 8-speed automatic transmission. Fuel-consumption is down by 15 percent – in part due to the engine’s ability to run on just four cylinders while cruising.

Actual fuel consumption numbers have not yet been provided. Nor has the flagship Bentley’s curb weight.

Additional highlights include an air suspension with variable dampers four settings: Bentley, Sport, Comfort and Custom.

As for wheels, the Mulsanne comes with 20-inchers but we’re certain most owners will opt for the 21-inch set.

We’ll be sure to update you when more info is available, but in the mean time take a gander at the second Mulsanne to roll our of the Crewe factory. Not only are we liking the car more each time we see it, sitting amongst pedestrian vehicles from VW, Skoda and Seat, we really had a chance to appreciate just how enormous this new model is.

GALLERY: 2010 Bentley Mulsanne

Official release after the jump:

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Technically speaking, Bentley already unveiled its Arnage successor at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, but the regal British automaker was tight-lipped about any specifics.

Details of the new Mulsanne will be unveiled tomorrow (September 15th) at the Frankfurt Auto Show, where we expect to learn about the impressive fuel-economy improvements Bentley has made with this new model. About all we do know is that the Mulsanne, much like the Arnage, is powered by a 6.75-liter V8. The engine has been reworked almost entirely, however, and we expect this model to be able to run on ethanol as well as gasoline. And of course, the engine’s power output will increase as well.

The design is certainly impressive with a massive front grille with huge circle headlights and lots of chrome.

As for the car’s name, it comes from the same place as the Arnage – France’s famous 24 Hours of Le Mans, Circuit de la Sarthe race track. On that track the Mulsanne straight is actually two straights, which have been divided up with a chicane so as to limit the overall speed that race cars can achieve. Modern racers have to slow from over 200 mph to 65 mph to run the chicane, before taking to the second-half of the straight.

GALLERY: 2010 Bentley Mulsanne

When Bentley unveiled its new Mulsanne flagship at the Pebble Beach Cncours d’Elegance, CEO Franz-Josef Paefgen announced that the very same car (chassis #1) would then be auctioned off to the highest bidder at the Gooding & Co. auction.

No doubt valued at a quarter of a million dollars, the newest Bentley went for just double that number, somewhat lower than we might have expected. It almost went for less, however, as the starting price of $500,000 didn’t find any offers at first. The starting value was then placed at $300,000, which finally found its way back up to the half a million dollar mark thanks a a phone bidder.

Perhaps the “low” value had to do with the fact that Bentley is keeping tight-lipped about all the details regarding the Mulsanne until its official debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September.

All the proceedes of the auction went to the official charitable organization of the Concours, the Phil Hill Foundation.

GALLERY: 2010 Bentley Mulsanne

[Source: Autoblog]

While the real stars of the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance are the vintage autos, the Concept Lawn is a special place where future show-stoppers are put on display. While some of the models are actually concepts, many are rare coachbuilt models and a few are full-production cars.

In the concept category there was the luxury convertible plug-in hybrid, the Fisker Sunset, as well as the absolutely stunning Infiniti Essence Concept - a hybrid in it’s own right, making 600hp thanks to a 440hp twin-turbo direct-injection 3.7-liter V6 and a 160hp electric motor.

Included in the list of Coachbuilt creations was the edgy Corvette ZR1-based Stile Bertone Mantide. This is no kit car, however, as the vehicle was designed by Jason Castriota, the man who also penned the Pininfarina P4/5. Plus, it weights 220 lbs less than the ZR1 for even more performance.

Also on display was the Devon GTX (pictured above), arguably the arch-nemesis of the Mantide, as it is based on the Dodge Viper. With a more shapely body than the Mantide, the 650hp GTX is scheduled to attempt to set a new fastest lap time at the Nürburgring. No doubt there’s some ego involved in this announcement as Devon attempted to buy Viper from Chrysler but the deal was never completed.

In the production category cars ranged from the reasonably well priced (Lotus Evora) to the ridiculous (Bugatti Sang Bleu). The four-seater Lotus is scheduled to be released early next year, while the ultra-limited edition Bugatti is based on the convertible Grand Sport model. Other production or near production models included the Spyker C8 Aileron Spyder, V-10 powered Audi R8, the 750hp carbon-chassis Aston Martin One-77, a Morgan, the all-new 510hp 2010 Jaguar XJL Supersport, the Mercedes-McLaren SLR Stirling Moss and the Rolls-Royce EX200, aka, the Ghost. And who could forget the misplaced SMS 570X Dodge Challenger.

GALLERY: Pebble Beach Concept Lawn

The prestigious Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance Best of Show award went to the 1937 Horch 853 Voll & Ruhrbeck Sport Cabriolet. The car belongs to Bob Lee, who won the award in 2006 with a 1931 Daimler Double Six Corsica Drophead Coupe.

The Horch company was started in Germany in 1899 by August Horch, although Horch the auto manufacturer didn’t start until 1909. 

Horch was later unified with three other auto makers (Audi, DKW and Wanderer) to form Auto Union, or what is today known as Audi. In fact, Horch is the Latin translation of Horch.

GALLERY: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance 2009 Best of Show, 1937 Horch 853 Voll & Ruhrbeck Sport Cabriolet

There’s just no way to truly experience the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance without attending the show. But for those who can’t be there and feel the breeze blow in off the Pacific Ocean while sipping Champagne and admiring some of the most beautiful and expensive cars ever made, we have assembled this photo gallery. 

Below is a selection of just a small portion of the amazing automotive masterpieces on display at the 2009 concours, including classic Bentleys, Ferrari motorsports legends, Bugattis and some of our favorites, the Duesenbergs.

Among the Ferraris in attendance included 10 1949 166 MM Touring Barchettas and all four remaining TR 59 race cars. Some of the more prestigious Bentleys included the early 3 Litre car, the Birkin Blower race cars and three record setting Speed Sixes.

GALLERY: Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance 2009

There couldn’t be a more perfect venue to debut the latest Bentley product and successor to the fabulously-regal Arnage than the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. Accompanied by bagpipers, the “Grand Bentley”, now officially named the Mulsanne, drove up on to the awards show platform – a stage many Bentleys have graced before.

Many past Bentleys have taken their names from the famous Circuit de la Sarthe, Le Mans race track and this Bentley is no different. Whereas the previous Bentley flagship, the Arnage, was named for a tight corner, this car is named after both a corner and a straight. On the long Mulsanne straight race cars have to slow from over 200mph to 65mph, then run through the a tight chicane and down the second half of the straight.

Bentley is keeping tight-lipped about much of the rest of the details of its new flagship until its auto show debut at the Frankfurt Auto Show this September.

What we do know is that it will continue to use a twin-turbocharged 6.75-liter V8 engine that has almost been completely redesigned to no doubt make even more horsepower and torque while using less fuel.

As for the design of the car, it’s as familiar as the engine, with a massive flat nose, huge circle headlights and plenty of chrome.

GALLERY: 2010 Bentley Mulsanne

Battered and bruised, Lexus had on display one of the two LF-A race cars that competed at this year’s Nürburgring 24 Hour race. We’re left to assume this isn’t the model that caught fire during the grueling endurance car race.

The showing of the car is surprising considering Lexus didn’t exactly hang with the best. Still, it did manage an impressive 7:13 lap time in the ‘almost stock’ class, meaning we should expect the production model to deliver impressive performance.

When it does finally make its way to the street, the LF-A will be powered by a 550hp V10, capable of a top speed of 218 mph. The production model is expected to debut at the Tokyo Auto Show this Fall.

The LF-A marks a new direction for Lexus, moving outside its luxury comfort zone and into the territory of exotics. Importantly, one of the two LF-A racers at the Nürburgring was piloted by Toyota’s newly appointed CEO Akio Toyoda.

GALLERY: Lexus LF-A Race Car

After its world debut at the Geneva Auto Show last March, Aston Martin has kept its One-77 supercar under wraps, until now. Making its U.S. debut at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, we had a chance to get more familiar with the car at a private event the night before.

When Aston first announced that this flagship supercar would have  carbon chassis and an aluminum body we thought perhaps the PR folks had reversed the order of what they meant to say. But they didn’t.

Feeling like a pure-bred track car, the carbon chassis is exposed as soon as you open the door with carbon side sills and carbon floors. In fact, the driver sits surrounded by the light-weight material. The carbon fiber monocoque, as it’s called, is the same sort of carbon frame used in a Formula 1 car. Aston Martin has combined this high-technology chassis with traditional coachbuilding practices including hand-rolling the aluminum body panels. All this light weight material helped to keep the supercar’s weight down to just 3,300 lbs.

Significant attention was paid to the vehicle’s aerodynamics, and one of Aston’s product experts let us in on an interesting bit of technology found just behind the front fender. Air ducts found there will actually close mechanically at high speeds (around 150 mph) to help reduce lift. Along with a subtle front splitter and massive rear diffuser, the One-77 will gets hidden rear spoiler that pops up at speeds above 100mph.

The motorsorts technology continues elsewhere in the One-77 with a suspension setup similar to a true race car, with horizontal shocks, as opposed to vertical ones. Aston even designed the rear of the car so this setup is visible through the rear glass.

Amazingly, while the One-77 doesn’t look excessively large, it is actually 2 meters wide (5.56 feet). That is wider than a Lamborghini Murciélago! 

Additional racing technology can be found under the hood, where a 7.3-liter V12 engine, topped off with carbon fiber intake manifolds, makes an incredible 750hp.

As the name suggests, just 77 versions of the One-77 will be hand built at a cost of $1.8 million.

GALLERY: Aston Martin One-77

Jaguar’s new XJ flagship made its U.S. debut today during the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, with pricing announced for the first time. Introductory XJ models will start at $72,500 with the high-powered XJL Supersport listing at a substantial $115,00.

All XJ models are powered by a version of Jaguar’s new 5.0-liter direct-injection V8 engine, with the standard XJ putting out 385hp and 380 ft-lbs of torque. Opting for an extended wheelbase model (XJL) will up the base price to $79,500.

XJ Supercharged models, which make 470hp and 424 ft-lbs of torque, will retail for $87,500, with extended wheelbase models just $3,000 more.

As for the top-level XJ Supersport, it starts at $112,000 and adds $3,000 for the extended wheelbase model. Impressively, this model makes 510hp and 461 ft-lbs of torque from a more potent supercharged 5.0 V8, helping it to hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds.

Acceleration for all models is up significantly over the outgoing model with Supercharged models making 18 percent more power and the base engine making the largest improvement with 28 percent more power. Also helping acceleration is a sophisticated all-aluminum chassis, ensuring that the XJ is at least 300 lbs lighter than competitors from BMW and Mercedes.

And make no mistake, the 2010 Jaguar, currently reserved for the straw-hat type, is now aimed squarely at a wider (and younger) market, a part of a new move by its Indian owner Tata Motors to increase market share and product volumes.

GALLERY: 2010 Jaguar XJ