2012 Jaguar Xkr S Coupe White 5.0l Supercharged Over 25k In Upgrades! Incredible on 2040-cars

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Here's today's round of auto plant closures in response to coronavirus

More automakers have shuttered factories, as businesses everywhere work to slow the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus — and as the pandemic slows sales and disrupts parts supply chains. On Friday, the following closures were announced: • Volvo will close its factories in Sweden and the United States from March 26 to April 14. Volvo's U.S. facility, in Charleston, South Carolina, makes the S60 sedan. Its assembly plant in Torslanda, Sweden, turns out the XC90, SC60, and V90. Other Swedish facilities make engines and component parts. A Volvo factory in Ghent, Belgium, that builds the XC40 and V60 closed earlier this week and is expected to remain offline until April 6. Volvo's four factories in China have been reopened after a shutdown earlier this year. • Jaguar Land Rover announced that it will suspend production at its assembly plants in the UK over the coming week. The shutdown is expected to last until April 20. Elsewhere, production continues at the company's factories in India and Brazil, and JLR's joint-venture plant in China reopened at the end of February. • Bentley is closing its factory in Crewe, England, for four weeks, effective today. • Bugatti has put its atelier in Molsheim, France, on hiatus. No date was given for when assembly of its supercars might resume. • Mercedes-Benz on Monday will shut down its SUV factory in Alabama and its van assembly plant in South Carolina. Both will remain closed for a minimum of two weeks. Tesla yesterday revealed that it will suspend operations at its Fremont, California, vehicle assembly plant next week, on order from local officials there. Yesterday's factory closure announcements also included the U.S. assembly plants for Toyota (until April 6), Volkswagen (through March 29), Subaru (through March 29), and Hyundai (no time period specified). They join GM, Ford, Chrysler, Honda, Nissan, and Harley-Davidson, which earlier this week announced the suspension of production at their facilities. Plants/Manufacturing Bentley Bugatti Jaguar Land Rover Mercedes-Benz Volvo coronavirus

David Brown Automotive launches old-is-new-again Speedback [w/video]

Back in January, we reported on a new British coachbuilder called David Brown Automotive. In February, the startup released the first details and images of its inaugural project, and now it has revealed the finished product.
It's called Speedback, and it's based on the Jaguar XKR. But while it's built on a modern chassis (relatively, anyway - the XK arrived in 2006 and is soon to be discontinued), it's been rebodied to look like a classic British GT. That means that, while it may look like a classic Aston Martin, it's got a thoroughly modern 5.0-liter supercharged V8 under the hood with over 500 horsepower on tap.
Otherwise, little in the way of details have been disclosed - including what you can bet will be an astronomic price that tends to come with these sorts of coachbuilt customs. But the important parts are what you can see, and that means the finest British craftsmanship inside and out. Whether you like the particular style or not, of course, is entirely a matter of taste.

Jaguar XF Sportbrake headed for the door? Maybe not [UPDATE]

Update: A Jaguar spokesperson reached out to put the brakes on the XF wagon's demise, writing, "Jaguar Land Rover North America President and CEO Joe Eberhardt did not discuss the status of the current Jaguar XF Sportbrake, which is currently in the Jaguar lineup — making up 20 percent of XF sales. The remark was that in the long term, features and types of vehicles that are less popular would likely not make it into the United States. The current Jaguar XF Sportbrake remains in the lineup and is available at retailers and for ordering, including for the upcoming 2020 Model Year which should be announced soon. This should be good news for wagon enthusiasts." Indeed. Previous story appears below: The Jaguar XF Sportbrake only just got here, hauling its first load of mettwurst and Coca-Cola to a junior varsity soccer tailgate party in 2017. According to a report in The Detroit Bureau, the comely wagon could be on the way out later this year thanks to two massive turnaround campaigns. The outlet interviewed Jaguar USA CEO Joe Eberhardt, who conveyed the message that only the strongest products will live. That means no more manual transmissions after this year, simplified trims, and easing up on diesels. It also means, in TDB's words, "you'll no longer see wagons ... in the U.S." If this ends up true, it would be a shame. Wagon sales were up 29 percent in the U.S. last year. We just included the XF Sportbrake as one of the potential reasons Audi teased its Twitter fans about the return of Avants. And if there's anyone who doesn't like the XF Sportbrake, we haven't met them. Our review said the slinky wagon "Puts SUV appeal on ice." Jalopnik called it " The best-kept sleeper wagon secret you can buy." Road & Track labeled it " A high five to America." High fives and good secrets don't pay the rent, though. The push for global sustainability after last year's shocking Q4 loss at Jaguar Land Rover has compelled two turnaround campaigns called "Charge" and "Accelerate." One focuses on immediate cost matters, the other takes the long strategic view. Both need to incorporate the fact that Jaguar's crossovers, the F-Pace and E-Pace, represent 70 percent of Jaguar sales. On that matter, Eberhardt said, "I don't want to say the speed of change took us by surprise, but they were too quick for us to react to immediately.