Jaguar has revealed the refreshed XJ for 2016 equipped with a new InControl Touch Pro touch-screen infotainment system. It also has a slightly revised front fascia.
Actually, the new car is so slightly revised that the above image is of the 2014 XJ and you probably didn’t know the difference. Here’s the new one:
We will give it to Jaguar: they themselves call the front fascia updates “subtle”. While the XJ does receive a wide assortment of exterior upgrades, including a “more upright grille with a new mesh pattern” and new R-Sport base model exterior look package, the changes inside are of more importance.
Sitting front and center in the Anglo-Indian dash is a new, in-house developed InControl Touch Pro infotainment system, now featuring a quad-core CPU to keep up with the increased software load. A 60GB solid-state hard drive is used for the quick retrieval of map data. The new hardware does its digital dance with a multi-touch 8-inch screen and “pinch to zoom” and “swipe” gesture capability.
The Jaguar XJ will continue to be offered in standard and long wheelbase configurations. Updated units will start arriving at dealer lots this fall.
Enough of this fastback stuff. Just give us the bloody wagon already!
Exterior styling needs work.
I’m not sure if Jaguar will survive Tata ownership. They release vehicles like the F-Type, which have an impact on the market, and they release vehicles like the new XJ, which is DOA compared to the competition.
Given the reviews that the XE has gotten, and the early good reports on the new XF, I think Jaguar is in fine shape, considering it doesn’t (yet) offer an CUV. Once their CUV launches, they’ll be away to the races. For a company who’s reliability ratings are still in the gutter (and who’s dealer network is relatively weak), Jaguar continues to have all the cachet it needs to sell well decently.
They’ll be fine.
The Jag sedans have usually gotten good/very good reviews on the handling/performance front, but Jaguar is making the same mistake that Cadillac has been doing – focusing too much on performance/handling and not enough on the other things which non-enthusiast oriented, American luxury buyers place a greater premium (such as interior space).
It does, it simply is not a harmonious collection of elements.
And I saw one in traffic today, and it had graphite wheels on it, from some hideous OEM sport package. On a flagship Jag, a sports package?! That ruffles my tweed.
Still can’t get with the circular vents either. They don’t look right in there, and some subtle slat vents which blend with trim would be superior.
I’m sure Jaguar will survive the Tata ownership, Land Rover (the other half of Jaguar/Land Rover) seem to be doing pretty darn good so as long as there is that cash flow Tata will have time to develop and bring to market revised/updated/new Jaguar models.
Still the same hideous black plastic bandaid on the C pillar. Pity.
I agree, that black plastic just looks so odd and out of place.
I remember hearing it was a frequent request at Jaguar dealers to have it painted the body color after a customer purchase.
You would think Jaguar would take the hint.
Would that work out well, trying to paint that? I guess they’d sand it rough or something, or the paint would just slide right off.
When these came out, I thought the design was ugly because the headlamps were tiny and sloping compared to the massive upright snout. Now they’ve gone and thinned the headlights even further. Eeek
Yeah, the thin headlights don’t work with that big grill. The grill’s fine, but they need to rework the headlights. And get rid of the scuttle in front of the doors. It’s cute on a MINI, but not here.
Basically the same front-end design on the XE and new XF but those look better b/c of the better shaped headlamps.
The Ford Fusion has a similar issue with too thinly shaped headlamps.
Totally boring look. I can’t think of a reason to buy this car given the competition.
Costs more money, and you lose more of it at sale time!
I like a land boat, and Jaguar appears to be delivering what I want. Now if they’d just cut that price in half, or else I’ll be waiting for the Continental or maybe Ford will throw us another Taurus. One of the doctors who rents an office the same place I do drives one of these – XJR trim; yes, we do get to meet at the stop light; yes, he does blow my doors off starting from the line.
Jaguars were special because they were beautiful but cursed by British electrics.
Now they’re meh looking and overpriced.
Ah but the depreciation is almost still as steep as when they were piles of poo.
+1. A mildly resculpted pile of poo is still a pile of poo.
That infotainment system got very good reviews on the Land Rover Discovery Sport and the upcoming Jaguar XE. I’m eager to try it out.
I just get no emotional feeling from the lines on the new XJ, it’s almost like seeing a Taurus. It’s not ugly, just very forgettable. If you’re going to drop that kind of money on a car, it better get your pulse going.
Jaguar made a big mistake not connecting to their heritage with an evolution of the XJ instead of a total reboot. I still think the classic XJ has aged really well.
I disagree. The previous-gen XJ, with the “updated classic” styling, bombed HARD.
They needed to make a break styling wise. Now, whether this look works for them is another question – I’d say it has been a hit on the XF, less so on this model – but clearly, doing updated XJ and MKII sedan designs wasn’t working for them.
Jag XJ worldwide production figures:
MY95-97 X300: 92,038
MY98-02 X308: 126,260
MY03-08 X350: 83,556
http://www.jaguarforum.com/showthread.php?t=71807
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_XJ_(X308)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_XJ_(X300)
Which bombed hard, the X350 or X351?
Exactly.
Jaguar was consistently selling FAR more XJs with the classic styling than this redesign. It’s not even close.
It was a huge mistake to completely abandon it the way they did.
The previous XJ sold about 14,000 cars a year over its 6 year run. I doubt this 6000SUX-knockoff comes anywhere close, because it is bland and awkward from some angles while being hideous from others.
Which puts X351 at an 84,000 production figure in six years, similar to what X350 did in six model years. Still half of X300 from a YoY standpoint, but of course there was no internal competition from XF in the mid 90s, not to mention other factors.
Where are you getting your X351 numbers? I said the previous generation sold 14k a year, which was the X350/358. I’ve seen two of these monstrosities, and I spend half my time in La Jolla.
I based it on your 14,000 a year figure. 14,000 * 6 = 84000. I do not know what the X351 figure as I couldn’t find a source.
Additional: According to this site worldwide sales for 2014 was near 20K units, but only 6234 units sold in Europe and the US.
“It is worth pointing out that as a model line, the XJ has been in consistent sales decline since the turn of the millennium. In truth, the XJ’s sales glory days date as far back as the 1980’s. Tracking the sales figures, there have been temporary uplifts coinciding with new model introductions, but the overall trend has been downwards, culminating last year in combined US and European sales of a paltry 6234* units. According to Autocar‘s Hilton Holloway, about 20,000 new XJ’s found homes in 2014, the bulk of them in China. How is it that Jaguar’s former best-seller could have suffered such a sales reversal?”
http://driventowrite.com/2015/05/08/twilight-of-a-champion-the-decline-of-the-jaguar-xj/
Jaguar stopped reporting sales when the X351 fell on its face. They still report Range Rover sales, which is probably not a coincidence. If they’re really selling over 12K a year in China, I don’t know why they’d hide total sales.
Here you are gents. US and CA at least.
http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2011/01/jaguar-xj-sales-figures.html
In the US, the X350 managed 40,911 over 6MY.
The X351 is at 25,289 after 6MY.
That’s a 38.2% overall decline.
This is probably a nice car. It’s just that for me it doesn’t make me think of a classic British luxury car. I’d rather find a well kept XJ Series 3. Or a tired one worth doing an LS3 swap.
I don’t mind the exterior styling that much – looks a bit sharper than the competition.
But I find the interior to be a mess – the lumpy air vents being the biggest eyesore. But then the cheesy accent lights take it over the top.
As for comparison to the rest, my understanding is that they were Panamera hunting, not S-class/7-series – going for the lightweight sporty vibe.
Finally, I didn’t see the words Sino-Swedish or similar used for Volvo, nor do Chryslers get nailed for ownership either. So let’s drop the barely concealed racism and let the cars speak for themselves?
See, I love the interior but the exterior doesn’t do a lot for me.
Nice Volvo. Err… Buick.
When I first saw the picture, Volvo was what I guessed as well.
How dare you, Volvo would never make something A) this large, or B) RWD. They’re a FWD and mid-size only company.
Doesn’t look that different, but I’m glad – I think it’s a pretty car as-is, and still has the most luxurious-feeling interior in the class. Will have one someday.
That C-pillar is still the worst. When you do a floating roof, you don’t use chrome trim around it! All that does is scream “It’s fake! The floating look is fake! There’s just black plastic here! See? Right here!”
Can someone remind me why Ian Callum is considered such a styling genius, when he’s delivered nothing but lazy Volvo knock offs for Jag? Or worse, the new XF, which has the side profile of a 2005 SUBARU LEGACY!
You’re absolutely correct. Cut the diagonal chrome off, and wrap it around the roof or something instead. Then take the black plastic down lower so its level with the windows, and you’ll have a prestigious wrap-around look.
There is a very nice looking 1963 MkII on BAT this morning. I think I’d rather have it than this.
Someone in our town had a MkII that would appear every spring. Haven’t seen it in a few years, and I do miss it. Beautiful car.
The new S-Class is just eating everything in its path and this is a bomb just like the new BMW 7 series. Who’s up next, Audi and Lexus? They just refuse to get rid of those stupid and ugly black pillars, why?