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U.S. issues new tariff threat, this time against British-built cars

WASHINGTON — Britain is the United States' closest ally but their long friendship may be sorely tested as the two countries try to forge a new trade agreement after Britain's exit from the European Union. U.S. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Saturday in London that he was optimistic that a bilateral deal with Britain could be reached as soon as this year. But Mnuchin gave up no ground after a second meeting with his UK counterpart, Sajid Javid. Javid has insisted that Britain will proceed with a unilateral digital services tax, despite a U.S. threat to levy retaliatory tariffs on British-made autos. Mnuchin told reporters after Saturday's meeting that such taxes would discriminate against big U.S. tech companies like Alphabet Inc's Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon. The UK Treasury declined to comment on the private meeting. The divide highlights the challenges ahead as the Trump administration seeks a new bilateral agreement with Britain, part of a broader push to rebalance relations with nearly all its major trading partners. The stakes are high — British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pegged the trade deal with United States as a way to ease the pain of breaking with Europe, Britain's largest trade partner. U.S. President Donald Trump, has promised a "massive" trade deal to support Brexit, the product of a populist movement similar to his "America First" agenda. The goodwill and special relationship the two countries have enjoyed for decades may not count for much, experts say. "Trump is not going to be doing Johnson any favors," said Amanda Sloat, a senior fellow with the Brookings Institution in Washington. "He's not going to give him a trade deal without major concessions." Even before the digital tax issue arose, the Trump administration threatened to tax foreign car imports, which could hit British-made Jaguar, Land Rover, Mini, and Honda Civic hatchback cars. Stiff U.S. trade demands include increased access for U.S. farm goods, concessions that will be difficult for Britain's entrenched natural food culture to swallow. The United States also wants Britain to change the way its National Health Service prices drugs and allow in more U.S. pharmaceuticals, which could prove politically unpopular for Johnson's government. Washington's demand that London block Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies Co Ltd for national security reasons could also cloud talks.

Jaguar sets a lap record at a near-forgotten French race track

If asked to name any race track in France, most racing and car enthusiasts would probably answer the Circuit de la Sarthe, known for the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Then there's the famous Magny-Cours or Circuit Paul Ricard, but not everyone remembers the Circuit de Charade near Clermont-Ferrand. This challenging track has been called a "twistier and faster" version of the Nurburgring, and in its original five-mile form, it barely had any straights. Formula 1 races were held there in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but safety concerns saw the French Grand Prix moved to Paul Ricard for most of the 1970s and 1980s, alternating with Dijon-Prenois. Later on, the track was essentially halved during modernization work, and it's now largely used for track days. The full length circuit was last used in 1988. This history lesson about a seemingly forgotten French race track is due to one good reason: Jaguar has returned to the venue to set a lap time with a new, all-wheel drive XE. The flying lap of the full five-mile track was the first one in 30 years, and the 4-minute, 9-second lap time set by Belgian racing driver Vincent Radermecker now stands as a record. Due to changes and the fact that the track originally utilized parts of public roads, the lap now included two gateways and a roundabout. Unshockingly, those weren't around in its racing days. The comparisons with the Nurburgring are apt, as Radermecker's comment confirms. "I set the production (sedan) record at the Nurburgring in the XE SV Project 8 last year and this lap was every bit as demanding. The longest straight is barely 600 metres, so I can see why drivers used to call this the French Nurburgring." The Jaguar used for the record lap is an XE 300 Sport, which is powered by Jaguar's 300-horsepower 2.0-liter four-cylinder turbo engine. It hits 60 mph in 5.4 seconds, and the average speed on the Charade lap was 72 mph. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery Jaguar XE record lap View 9 Photos Image Credit: Jaguar Jaguar Automotive History jaguar xe

Jaguar F-Pace vs. Porsche Macan | Performance luxury crossover comparison

TRANSCRIPT: The luxury performance crossover. 10 years ago, the list of examples was only a few vehicles deep but today it seems like every luxury car company makes at least one of these. This specific example is a 2018 Jaguar F-Pace S and it happens to be Autoblog 's newest long-term test vehicle. And here's the thing: It's really great to drive. Welcome to the Jaguar F-Pace S. Under the hood we have a supercharged 3.0-liter V6 that makes 380 horsepower and 332 pound feet of torque, which pulls the F-Pace from 0 to 60 in just 5.1 seconds. That's a pretty sizable upgrade from the base model's 247 horsepower and 269 pound-feet of torque. The engine is paired to an eight speed automatic transmission that responds pretty quickly to the paddles when in sport mode. There are three driving modes to choose from: You have dynamic, normal and eco. Even though the F-Pace name sounds like the F-Type, aside from the powertrain, they really aren't related. It's named that because it's based on the rear-wheel-drive Jag XF, just like the E-Pace is on the XE and the J-Pace will end up being based off of the XJ. Even though the F-Pace is all-wheel drive compared to the rear-wheel XF, it is a rear-bias system, which means it belongs exactly where we are right now, on twisty, turny back roads. This is a Jaguar, which means it sounds good but it looks even better. In my opinion, this is the best looking SUV on the market today. The Caesium Blue is a new color in the U.S. for this model year and we opted to get the black package, which includes black side vents, a black grill and roof rails. This is a $70,000 luxury crossover and the materials, they're okay. The plastics, I don't know, they kind of feel cheap even with the luxury interior upgrade package. The 10-inch touch screen is pretty big, in a good way. And while the surround sound isn't the best that I've heard, it's perfectly serviceable, especially since all I want to hear is this engine. For $70,000, this is what you get: A beautiful SUV that performs incredibly on the road. But what if you want more? This Macan costs over $96,000, which is almost $30,000 more than the F-Pace S. If you wanted to, you could buy a base Cayenne and a base F-Pace for that kind of money. But with that price comes more power, thanks to this Macan Turbo's performance pack. 60 more horsepower and 90 more pound-feet of torque than the F-Pace S bringing the total to 440 horsepower and 442 pound-feet of torque.