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Jaguar releases Desire short film starring F-Type and Damian Lewis

After stoking the hype with a theatrical-style trailer, Jaguar has finally released the full-length version of its mini-movie, Desire, to help kick off the new 2014 Jaguar F-Type. Starring Homeland actor Damian Lewis across from the lovely Shannyn Sossamon, the film has been turned loose on YouTube after an initial debut at the Sundance London film and music festival.
Shot in Chile's rather breathtaking Atacama Desert, Desire is described by the producers as being "A story of betrayal, retribution, passion and greed." Lewis plays the lead role of Clark, a high-end car delivery guy (great work if you can get it), who runs into an unexpected, sexy mystery when shuttling the lovely F-Type to the middle of nowhere. Who could have guessed?
We won't spoil any of the not-exactly-serious 13-minute plot for you; scroll down below to see for yourself if the theatrical pomp and circumstance is worthy of Jag's newest roadster.

2018 Jaguar XF S Sportbrake Review | Who needs a crossover with a wagon this sexy?

PORTO, Portugal — SUV and truck mania is real — just ask the 63 percent of American buyers who opted for the high-riding vehicles last year. But there has been a recent groundswell of alternative options in the burgeoning wagon segment. Sure, there are lower-end wagons such as the tried-and-true Subaru Outback ($25,895) and the new-kid-on-the-block Volkswagen Golf SportWagen ($21,580). But the 2018 Jaguar XF S Sportbrake competes more closely with the stalwart Mercedes-Benz E400 ($64,045) and the stylish Volvo V90 Cross Country ($52,300). This begs the nagging question: Could wagons become a serious thing in the States? We spent a day bombing through Portuguese backroads to find out how the Sportbrake fares among its niche competitive set. The 2018 Sportbrake is a wagonized version of the second-gen XF sedan that arrived in 2016. While the first-gen model only offered a wagon variant for the European market, the new Sportbrake is a global vehicle that brings a more streamlined, aluminum-intensive architecture to the table and finally gives American wagon lovers the Jag they've been craving. First off, the essential reason we're here: the cargo area. Activate the power tailgate (which uses a one-piece composite tailgate, just like the F-Pace), and the opening reveals a flat surface on all sides with 31.7 cubic feet of storage. Fold the rear seats down, and volume expands to a considerable 69.7 — an increase of 12.6 and 38.4 cubic feet, respectively. For comparison, the Volvo V90 Cross Country offers 19.8/53.9 cubic feet, and the Mercedes-Benz E400 Wagon has 35.0/64.0 cubic feet. Folding the Sportbrake's rear seats down produces a nice, flat expanse for cargo, with no obtrusive humps or bumps on the side. Standard rear air suspension keeps things level when loaded up. Onward to the front seats, where the cabin brings the XF's familiar design with the dashboard rimmed in a curved ribbon of wood veneer — a pleasant touch that offsets the otherwise blase textured aluminum bits on the dash and shifter surround. Of course, there's the love-it-or-leave-it cylindrical shifter that rises from the center console, a confounding bit of design that leaves most PRNDL traditionalists cold. So, too, does the plastic starter button on the dash, one of the few unsatisfying puzzle pieces in the otherwise agreeably finished interior. But fire up the engine, and it's easy to forget these quibbles.

Why this could be the perfect time for Apple to make a car play

While the automotive and technology worlds have been pouring billions into autonomous vehicles (AVs) and preparing to bring them to market soon as shared robo-taxis, Apple has mostly sat on the sidelines. Of course, Apple is the last company to ever make its intentions known, and the super-secret tech cult giant hasn't been totally out of the AV game based on the clues that have slipped out of its Cupertino, Calif., citadel over the past few years. Related: Apple self-driving cars are real — one was just in an accident News first broke in 2015 that it had assembled an automotive development team, in part by poaching high-profile talent from car companies, to work on a top-secret self-driving vehicle project code-named Titan. (Thank you very much, Nissan.) Apple also subsequently broke cover by making inquiries into using a Northern California AV testing facility and receiving a permit to test AVs on public roads in California. But then as the AV race started to heat up in the last few years, Apple reportedly began scaling back its car activities by downsizing team Titan. More recently, Apple's car project has shown signs of life with the hiring a high-level engineer away from Waymo and luring one Tesla's top engineers and a former employee back to Apple. It also inked a deal with Volkswagen to provide a technology platform and software to convert the automaker's new T6 Transporter vans into autonomous shuttles for employees at tech company's new campus. That is a far cry from giving rides to Wal-Mart shoppers, like Waymo is doing as part of its AV testing in Phoenix. But this could be the perfect time for Apple to enter the AV market now that ride-sharing is reaching critical mass and automakers and others are planning to deploy fleets of robo-taxis. Apple could easily establish a niche as a high-end ride-sharing service – and charge a premium – given its cult-like brand loyalty and design savvy. The growth of car subscription models could also play in Apple's favor since is already has many people hooked on paying for phones in monthly installments – and eager to upgrade when a new and better model becomes available. To achieve this, some believe Apple will fulfill co-founder and CEO Steve Job's dream of building a car. And as the world's first and only $1 trillion company it's sitting on a mountain of cash that certainly gives it the means. But other tech darlings like Tesla and Google have discovered how difficult it can be to build cars at scale.