Timing on Jaguar's XE two-seat roadster may slip past its planned 2011 Geneva show introduction thanks to lean resources resulting from the global economic crisis. However, Motor Trend has learned that whenever it first appears, the sports car will get a 21st Century, green-economy boost in the form of a Chevrolet Volt-like powerplant. An electric motor with an extended-range three-cylinder gas engine is being engineered for the new-age E-Type, in addition (we hope) to Jaguar's conventional 5.0-liter and supercharged 5.0-liter V-8s. Whether the extended-range XE will make it beyond the concept stage is uncertain.
It's also unclear whether the electric XE would be in addition to an extended-range electric XJ rumored to be scheduled for introduction in late 2011, a year after the conventional XJ's release.
Ratan Tata, whose company bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford Motor Company, is said to support the XE's development. His father once owned a Jaguar XK120, and Tata told Autocar earlier this year, "We need to emerge with something shiny and new, which is why we are reprioritizing the roadster right now."
The 5.0-liter, 385-horsepower AJ V-8 and 510-horsepower, supercharged 5.0 are obvious choices for the XE. While an extended-range electric XJ would be designed to take on the Fisker Karma, an extended-range electric XE could be a competitor for the all-electric Tesla Roadster.