2008 U.S. Specification XJ - Less Traditionally Jag?

What's a Jag without the leaping Jaguar on the hood? Is this some kind of cost reduction thing like when Mercedes took the wreath and laurel badge off the top of their grilles and put it around the hood stars on the sedans?

What's Jag w/o British Racing Green?!

I believe that the removal of the hood ornament has something to do with government safety nazis in some jurisdictions who are worried about pedestrians getting gored by the ornament when a car hits a pedestrian (like it's easier for someone to win a lottery than for that to happen). These safety idiots forget that a hood ornament is very useful in judging the distance of the vehicle to the edge of a curb and in keeping the car properly centered on a highway lane. I think it is unsafe not to have a hood ornament.

Please note that the Rolls Royce hood ornament retracts below the hood when the vehicle is parked. This deters lo-life juvenile delinquents from stealing it.

I was thinking that as well...Will the Rolls Royce "Spirit of Ecstasy" symbol be required to be removed? If not then the solution is rather simple: make on that retracts when bumped. Something which is not necessarily exceptionally complicated- although not exactly simple either.

I am about to do something that I rarely do. I genuinely hope that someone from Jaguar will read this. As someone who is young and own a Jaguar XJ, this vehicle in many ways should be appealing to me although I don’t fool myself that I am the target demographic.

I am going to allow myself to do this once:

PUT THE F%&#*ING HOOD ORNAMENT BACK ON THE CAR!

..Or at least make it an option.

Generally on here I am not fully forthright with my opinions simply because a) I don’t want to insult anyone as I don’t expect others to have the same taste that I do and b) my opinion about other’s cars does not matter- they have no need to know.

I don’t have these qualms about Jaguar since I drive one so I am going to be honest. You, Jaguar, are delusional if you think that people cannot instantly tell that the rear-view mirrors are from Volvo. In addition, I have noticed that you have chosen to get rid of the cool badges in favor of the chromed letters- like every other car company on the planet. Something which looks nothing less than cheap on every car I have ever seen it on. Of course, we all know that the front bumper is simply hideous- there is nothing sophisticated or classy about it.

I WANT to like this car, truly I do. It requires SO much work to find something I like because I am so picky. My Jaguar is my daily driver and I really don’t want to go to Maserati or way up market to find one to replace it if you don’t produce something that I like. I wish could like this car, but it looks cheap and tawdry...completely tasteless.

I feel bad for you.

You do like the all-alluminum, don't you? You've gotta like that.

M35MT,

You know I was at one of the Jaguar dealership about a month ago and they had a 2007 (still pretty) Vanden Plas that I took for a test drive and I was so thouroughly impressed with it and its chassis. So the aluminium is so wonderful in it. I was surprised I liked it as it had chome wheels but the body was front blue and the interior ivory so it really looked very nice.

I was there with a friend and It took all of my will power not to start writing checks. It wasn't because I liked it so much necessarily, it was because I was afraid that it would be the last Jag that I actually liked- I remember telling my friend that like it was yesterday.

cdoke, I share your opinion totally. You are absolutely bang on.

cdoke, I'm sure you do like the beautiful XK. I know it's not the same- your XJ is the last classic Jaguar with the traditional elegance. However, I feel that Callum's design for the XK is a truly spectacular bridge into the twenty-first century, and it still retains the elegance that instantly says "Jaguar."

I hope he doesn't fu@k up the new XF.

S4,

You are quite right. I do like the XK- I really didn't when it came out, but it is truly one car that you have to actually see. That same visit as the Frost Blue Vanden Plas that I liked they had an unbelievably beautiful XK coupe in black. I did think the wheels were just too big, but they were the immense Senta ones so that could have easily been dealt with.

The hood ornament IS A DEALER OPTION

Jags are beautiful they need to evolve their classic styles not change them.

I agree that the XJ is beautiful but it has inadequate rear leg room. Aluminum is better than steel because aluminum does not rust; however, the Audi A8 is also all-aluminum. There is no excuse for The XJ Super V8 to be priced in Mercedes S-Class territory -- it should be priced below the Audi A8 becasue the A8 includes a superior AWD system as standard equipment.

you should have showed him the price on a used 06 im sure that would have stopped him....jags are nice but the residuals values are awful they have to be among the worst. and this whole trying to change jag into something its not thing if it doesnt work will hurt jag tremendously they tried to do the ultra modern thing years ago and that was a failure, i dont understand why jags cant be both classic and modern

We haven't been able to get a hood ornament on Jags in Europe for years...:(
Pedestrian regs and stuff...

Without the hood ornament it doesn't look like a jag.

Rupert- I feel really sorry for you man! And I personally think that this is stupid. If the car is going so fast that the ornament hits you, won't you be more injured by the car itself? And if the car isn't going that fast, the hood ornament can't be much of a threat to you anyway!

But then again, it might be because of Jag's hood deployment system that pushes up the hood in a pedestrian impact, so they don;t get branded with a jaguar on their forehead.

It is rather funny....the Design Breifings show the new XJ with a hood ornament....