I wasn't aware that it was. Upon looking into it, it seems that it had come to that phase of its model life cycle where it needed a complete revamp (hard to imagine, but it happens) and the going-forward vision was go make it an electric model. This approach apparently soured during the development process, so the concept was abandoned. (I'm not surprised. The required battery would increase vehicle weight by about a ton or so, and that would be poison to the performance and handling desired.) And, with it, the XJ per se was abandoned, as Jaguar thought it didn't comport with their vision. Quite a downfall. I've driven one, once, and it was great. I think you honestly get most of the way there with the XF. The XF station wagon was a dream machine, but apparently no one buys station wagons any more.
Jaguar may be great, but maybe short of genius. I had thought they could have captured a lot of BMW customers with a convertible version of the XE. That would have made up for the discontinuation of the XK8, which was a grand tourer. The supposed replacement was the F-Type, but it was a Corvette-beater, not a touring car. Seats and suspension far too hard for cruising comfort. I drove one, too, and was disappointed by the discomfort.
In a way, I'm not too surprised. There are people who buy Jag XKs and people who buy Corvettes. They do not overlap. They cut off the people who wanted an XK, and someone who wants a Corvette does not want a Jaguar. If they bring back an XK counterpart, that may be a good thing.
Why was the XJ discontinued?
I wasn't aware that it was. Upon looking into it, it seems that it had come to that phase of its model life cycle where it needed a complete revamp (hard to imagine, but it happens) and the going-forward vision was go make it an electric model. This approach apparently soured during the development process, so the concept was abandoned. (I'm not surprised. The required battery would increase vehicle weight by about a ton or so, and that would be poison to the performance and handling desired.) And, with it, the XJ per se was abandoned, as Jaguar thought it didn't comport with their vision. Quite a downfall. I've driven one, once, and it was great. I think you honestly get most of the way there with the XF. The XF station wagon was a dream machine, but apparently no one buys station wagons any more.
Jaguar may be great, but maybe short of genius. I had thought they could have captured a lot of BMW customers with a convertible version of the XE. That would have made up for the discontinuation of the XK8, which was a grand tourer. The supposed replacement was the F-Type, but it was a Corvette-beater, not a touring car. Seats and suspension far too hard for cruising comfort. I drove one, too, and was disappointed by the discomfort.
Looks like the F Type is being retired
In a way, I'm not too surprised. There are people who buy Jag XKs and people who buy Corvettes. They do not overlap. They cut off the people who wanted an XK, and someone who wants a Corvette does not want a Jaguar. If they bring back an XK counterpart, that may be a good thing.