2011 Jaguar XJ - First Drive Review - Car and Driver
Above all things, Jaguar desires to be different. That’s why the new 2011 XJ flagship has the flamboyant lines of an Italian torpedo and the driving manners of a German autobahn cruiser and is tuned for Buckingham Palace fleet duty. The XJ is a cab-rearward design and is incredibly riveting to stare at as it sits back on its haunches with as much cool as James Bond lighting a Chesterfield. Jaguar Cars managing director Mike O’Driscoll, who’s peddled more than his share of schlock over a 35-year career with the company, is smiling more lately. He says the mission was to recapture the uniqueness of the original 1968 XJ but in a modern form. If you focus on those front three-quarter shots, you’ll wrongly dismiss the 2011 XJ as just an XF with a pituitary run amok. Skip down to the side and rear profiles to capture the XJ’s more exotic stance. Styling head Ian Callum—who gave us all of our current Jaguars and a few Aston Martins—demanded it and got his way. You don’t hear odes to the Jensen Interceptor very often, but Callum is fascinated with the way that car’s rear glass wrapped around the body sides to isolate the roof. Source: www.caranddriver.com
