Small Jaguar sedan to fight BMW 3 Series rumored anew

13 years, 2 months ago - 17 October 2011, Autoblog

It's hard not to be skeptical when we read a report in Automotive News like this one: "Work also is under way on a compact sedan, but that car is a few years away from production, Jaguar officials said."

It's been over six months since we last reported on Jaguar's 'XS' sport sedan, the would-be rival to the BMW 3-Series, Mercedes C-Class and Audi A4. Unlike, say, the Cadillac ATS, we still have relatively little actual information about this new competitor in one of the most hotly contested luxury segments.

How Jaguar might be planning on plugging such a gaping hole in its product lineup remains to be seen, but the hope is that the new sedan might share components with the forthcoming sports car based on the Jaguar C-X16 concept from the Frankfurt Motor Show. The concept was fitted with a supercharged 3.0-liter V6 making 376 horsepower, along with a hybrid battery pack to allow for an additional 94-hp boost.

However Jaguar plans to go at its competition, it will be an uphill battle, as the brand hasn't fared well in the segment in recent years. Its X-Type sedan was poorly received when it was launched under Ford ownership a decade ago. Since then, the entry luxury market has seen plenty of excellent sport sedans attempt to dethrone BMW, including models like the Infiniti G37.