Jaguar Xjs on 2040-cars

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40+ cars that barely avoid the gas guzzler tax

The Gas Guzzler schedule, with mpg ratings and charges that haven't changed since 1991, lays out which fuel-swillers owe what to Uncle Sam.
I started thinking about the "Gas Guzzler Tax" - considerably less well known as The Energy Tax Act of 1978 - when I was driving Dodge's new Challenger SRT Hellcat last week. Unsurprisingly for a car that can burn 1.5 gallons of gas per minute at max tilt, theoretically able to empty a full tank of premium in about 13 minutes, the Hellcat will be subject to the Gas Guzzler Tax schedule when it goes on sale.

Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations could build standalone models

Jaguar Land Rover may be set to turn its Special Vehicle Operations division into something much bigger than a mere in-house tuner. Bloomberg spoke to the head of JLR's high-performance, customization outfit, John Edwards, who hinted that his team may move beyond simply modifying F-Types, Range Rovers and the like. "We're certainly looking at that, and we've got the capability to do that," Edwards told AN. "Is there an opportunity for us to do a completely standalone car? Maybe." Such a move into full-scale, standalone models would be a big step, particularly for a division that's still kind of in its infancy. Bloomberg references the success of Mercedes-AMG, but the German division has had the benefit of decades of growth. AMG spent years and years building high-performance versions of all manner of mainstream Mercedes vehicles, before moving onto cars like the SLS AMG and AMG GT, which have no mainstream analog. In other words, AMG had a long time to develop a reputation building high-performance vehicles that people know and recognize before it moved into building vehicles of its own. We aren't entirely convinced that SpecOps wouldn't benefit from taking a similar approach, delivering additional SVR vehicles, like the rumored XE SVR, before striking out on its own. We'd like to know what you think, though. Is it already time for Special Vehicle Operations to build standalone models, or should it learn to walk before it runs by modifying more of Jaguar Land Rover's existing product. Have your say in Comments. Related Video:

Next-gen Jaguar XJ spotted in mule form during winter testing

Of course Jaguar Land Rover is using a Range Rover to yank around an electrified Jaguar sedan mule. At least, we think the car sitting on the trailer is a test mule for the recently announced XJ successor. Jaguar has said it’s going to make an all-electric version of the car, but itÂ’s going to use the new MLA platform that will also support a gas engine and hybrid versions. The body itself most resembles that of the XF, but there are a couple tell-tale signs that this car is destined for a battery-electric powertrain. The clearest sign comes in the form of the abnormally high side sills. This taller floor is a typical EV tipoff for mules in testing, as the body work itÂ’s mated to isnÂ’t necessarily designed to mesh with the requirements of an EV powertrain. There are no “Electric Vehicle” stickers stuck to the car to make this extra easy for us, but plenty of other strange elements let us know that this mule is no normal XF. We canÂ’t see through it, but the “grille” is covered up by a large piece of camouflage. Some areas on the bottom and top appear to be mesh, allowing air through, but itÂ’s still rather restricting. The hoodÂ’s fitment and shape are about as funky as can be. ThereÂ’s even a hump in the center of the hood, making it look like some kind of high performance muscle car.  Lending even more credence to this being a next-gen XJ mule is what appears to be a longer wheelbase and wider track. Jaguar extended the fenders outward to accommodate this, but itÂ’s especially apparent in back with the squared-off rear fenders. Since itÂ’s a mule, itÂ’s tough to be certain which powertrain this particular car is hiding. The fuel cap remains on the right rear side of the car, but it appears to be in a different position than the fuel cap on the current XF. Maybe it isnÂ’t a fuel cap, and itÂ’s a covering for the plug outlet instead? There are no other obvious outlets on the car to plug in to, but thatÂ’s nothing out of the ordinary for a mule. One suspicious element we spotted in the rear is the side of a chrome tailpipe protruding from the rear bumper. ThereÂ’s no way to know if itÂ’s a real or a fake tailpipe to throw us off the hunt, but weÂ’ll note its presence nonetheless. Jaguar has already released a teaser image of the rear taillights on the electric XJ successor, but of course this test mule isnÂ’t supporting production lights.