2007 Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged on 2040-cars

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Jaguar Land Rover releases a vintage-looking infotainment system for classics

Jaguar and Land Rover have a new option for owners of its older vehicles: a touchscreen infotainment system. Much like the Porsche classic infotainment head unit released a few years ago, this one tries to blend in with its interior surroundings. Five distinct designs of these "Classic Infotainment Systems" are offered in an effort to have an option that fits well with the interior of any particular car offered by Jag or Land Rover over the past few decades. Chrome and black options are available for Jaguars, while brushed aluminum and black are the choices for Land Rovers. The infotainment system has navigation with 2D or 3D maps and Bluetooth audio. Sure, you don't need to stream Spotify in a 1970s Land Rover, but now you can. Jaguar says it'll offer much higher quality sound with a 4 x 45 watt output from the single DIN head unit, but you might need to upgrade those ancient speakers to actually take advantage of it. There's no mention of satellite radio like Porsche's unit offers, unfortunately. It is a radio though, so we get both AM and FM functionality. Jaguar says it's "compatible with negative earth vehicles" (newer vehicles use negative grounding systems) and retails for $1,796 before taxes in the U.S. You can buy and have it professionally fitted at an "authorized" Jaguar or Land Rover dealer if you'd like as well. It's easy to shake your fist at such a device for classic cars, but this head unit tried hard to be an elegant piece — we're still not sure about slotting it into an old E-Type though... Here are U.S. specific model fitments: Jaguar XJ40; XJS; XJ Series 3 Sedan Land Rover Defender 90, 110; Range Rover Classic (93-96); Discovery 1 (94-98); Freelander (97-04) Related Video: Featured Gallery Jaguar Land Rover Classic Infotainment System News Source: Jaguar Jaguar Land Rover Technology Infotainment

Range Rover versus Mercedes-Benz: Which makes a more appealing SUV?

From time to time — truth be told, all the time — the Autoblog staff enjoys a good debate on the merits and demerits of the cars and trucks we drive each week. This week, we spent some time in a brand-new Land Rover Range Rover Supercharged SUV, a model some of us think sits at the pinnacle of the luxury utility vehicle segment. Others disagree. The following is a real-life online debate that took place over the course of a few hours. Have a read, and feel free to take sides. There's a poll at the end so you can make your voice heard. Consumer Editor Jeremy Korzeniewski: Strange as it may sound, Jeremy Clarkson and I have a few things in common, most obvious of which is that we share a given name. But we also both love cars so much that we decided to turn our automotive passion into a career — with varying degrees of success, of course — and we both have come to realize over time that there's no point in trying to topple the Land Rover Range Rover as the world's best luxury off-road utility vehicle. Thing is, this universal truth isn't quite as universally shared as I think it should be. In fact, my esteemed colleague Alex Kierstein believes that Mercedes-Benz makes the most desirable four-wheel-drive off-road vehicles. He's clearly wrong, but I feel obligated to let him explain his choice, though it won't go without a rebuttal. Senior Editor Alex Kierstein: That's correct, and so am I in this regard. I'm sorry, Jeremy, but it's an irrefutable fact that Mercedes-Benz is doing the best interiors in the business now. And the interior is where you're going to spend most of your time, at least when the thing's running. The Range Rover's interior simply isn't as special, and frankly it'll be in the shop enough that you won't enjoy it. Now, stepping into pretty much any contemporary Mercedes sedan interior is a "wow" moment. They seem special — posh, exclusive, luxurious. The SUVs, all older vehicles coming due for total redesigns at some point in the future, are lagging a bit, but it's still a premium and upscale experience. Especially since performance is almost academic at this point. Anything in this class is going to be powerful, almost absurdly so. So why not go for the one that makes you feel like royalty, rather than your mechanic? JK: I just want to point out that it was you who brought reliability into this discussion.

Jaguar Land Rover develops 'transparent' A-pillar and ghost car [w/video]

Jaguar and Land Rover are known for making highly covetable luxury, performance and off-road vehicles, but the British automakers are on a bit of a technology bent lately. Keen to show that it can not only keep up but lead the way when it comes to safety and convenience features, JLR has come out with two more systems to show the way forward. JLR's new 360 Virtual Urban Windscreen system, showcased on an XJ sedan, adopts two novel approaches to getting around town. First up is the Transparent Pillar system, which uses a combination of cameras and display screens embedded in the A, B and C-pillars to make them virtually disappear. Instead of acting as blind spots limiting the driver's visibility, the system uses the roof pillars to display what's going on around the car. If there's an obstacle hidden by the A-pillars, the system shows you the potential hazard as if the pillars weren't there, and brings the obstacle to the driver's attention. If the driver turns his or her head to see a vehicle passing alongside, it projects the vehicle on the inside of the B- or C-pillar. The second technology integrated in the next-generation head-up display is the Follow-Me Ghost Car Navigation system, which takes a page out of the video-game playbook by projecting a "ghost car" on the windscreen that the driver can then "follow" instead of listening to turn-by-turn directions or looking at a map in the dashboard display. The system is similar to what Jaguar recently showcased on an F-Type for track use, but applied for more practical use on city streets and highways. The release of these systems also follows the integrated smart navigation and infotainment system displayed on the Range Rover Sport and the Transparent Bonnet showcased on the Discovery Vision concept. Though these new technologies might not be quite ready for production applications, their impressive sum total goes to show that Jaguar Land Rover is ahead of the curve when it comes to reducing driver distraction and increasing the driver's visibility. Scope out the latest systems in the press release and video below for a closer look of what the future holds for British-style luxury motoring. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.