2002 Jaguar X-type on 2040-cars

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Jaguar I-Pace is the first electric Google Street View car

Google has built a data gathering vehicle for its Maps Street View app out of a Jaguar I-Pace. It's billed as the first electric Street View car and is currently on the prowl and mapping the city of Dublin, Ireland. The one-off vehicle will not only photograph the roads of Ireland's capital, but measure street-to-street air cleanliness and greenhouse gases as well. It's equipped with air quality sensors by Aclima that measure carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, nitric oxide, ozone, particulate matter and black carbon — all compounds that contribute to climate change when present in excess amounts. The partnership with Aclima is nothing new. Google has been equipping its more common Subaru Impreza Street View cars with the sensors since 2015. However, the Jaguar I-Pace will not contribute any emissions as it goes about its mission. The all-wheel-drive electric crossover can drive up to 246 miles (after a late 2019 software update) before a charge, and we'd wager Google won't be executing too many of Jaguar's claimed 4.5-second 0-60 sprints to cut down on that figure. Most of the Jag's 394 maximum horsepower and 512 pound-feet of torque will probably go unused. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Google & Dublin City Council Launch Innovative Partnership to Capture DublinÂ’s Air Pollution So why the I-Pace? Though the company has not said, Google's autonomous vehicle spinoff, Waymo, has used Jaguars in self-driving car research. However, Waymo was split off from the Mountain View mothership in 2016, so perhaps it's just a coincidence. For its part, Jaguar Land Rover has pledged to go carbon neutral by 2039. "We are delighted to support this project as it aligns with our own journey to becoming an electric-first business and achieving net zero carbon by 2039. Partnerships like this are one of the ways we can achieve our sustainability goals and make a positive impact on society," said Elena Allen, Project Manager for Business Development at JLR. Google and Aclima have collected over 100 million air quality data points since the project, called Google Project Air View, launched six years ago. Last year, Google made this data freely available to the scientific community. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. We answered your questions about the 2019 Jaguar I-Pace

Say goodbye to Jaguar's vestigial oval grille

Jaguar has been on a campaign to replace any and all retro cues with modern ones. Just look at the current XJ and the one it replaced, or the XF and the S-Type that came before it and you'll know what we mean. The one remnant is the XK and its oval grille, in and of itself a throwback to Jags of old (which started to look more like a certain Star Wars alien in above-pictured XKR-S form). But don't expect it to hang around.
Newer Jaguars have been ditching the oval aperture for a more squared-off one, and the next XK will have to fall in line. But don't expect that to be the only change in store for the next-generation Jaguar coupe and convertible.
With the new F-Type now holding the more enthusiast-oriented ground, the next XK is expected to grow bigger, softer and more luxurious. That will likely mean a more commodious back seat as well, though that shouldn't be hard to do considering the lack of space in the back of the current model...

Recharge Wrap-up: Jaguar Land Rover talks EVs, Batteries should be modular

A new study out of Germany suggests adopting a modular approach to battery offerings in plug-in hybrid and extended range electric vehicles. Automakers could offer the same car with different battery sizes (and different costs, accordingly) to drivers depending on their driving ranges. This would optimize the total cost of ownership for various drivers better than the current approach. Developing a modular battery design and offering appropriate batteries for different customers "is the key for electric powertrains to meet customer expectations and become cost competitive against conventional technologies," according to the report from the Institute of Vehicle Concepts, German Aerospace Center. Learn more at Green Car Congress. Jaguar and Land Rover are looking to offer more electric driving from their vehicles. Wolfgang Ziebart, head of product development for Jaguar Land Rover, said in an interview that its hybrid system is being tweaked for more electric power and "downsized" combustion. He also said the likely target market for EVs would be second and third vehicles, rather than primary vehicles for urban driving. Within that market, Europeans look for something smaller, while American drivers lean toward larger luxury vehicles for their second car. Ziebart uses the Tesla Model S as an example of American tastes, and compares its size to that of the Jaguar XJ. Read more at Automotive News Europe. Thailand will likely approve a Volkswagen factory as early as next week. A German newspaper suggests that Thailand's Board of Investment is set to greenlight the plant, which is planned for a site near the Port of Bangkok. Thailand is a relatively large and growing auto manufacturing country, which seeks to be a major producer of eco-friendly vehicles. The country's "Eco2" program would provide incentives to Volkswagen if it builds clean cars and meets certain production targets. Read more at Reuters. Formula E has chosen Sky Deutschland for broadcasting rights in the German market. The deal includes television rights, as well as online broadcasting. Sky Deutschland has 3.8 million subscribers in Germany and Austria. Showing the races on Germany's largest pay television provider should help generate interest for the series, particularly the Berlin ePrix - the inaugural season's penultimate race - scheduled for May 30, 2015. Read more at the Formula E website.