Jaguar XF (2015) spy pics

THE next generation of Jaguar XF has been caught testing by out spy photographers, ahead of its late 2015 release.

Sitting above the forthcoming Jaguar XE range, which will enter the fierce premium-compact battle – dominated by the BMW 3 Series, Mercedes C-Class and Audi A4 – the XF, codenamed X260, will be similar in size to the current car, but with better packaging, new engines and Jaguar’s aluminium architecture.

These images show that it will keep the pinched-headlamp look, but with a lower and sleeker overall profile, including a lower, pedestrian-friendly nose, with the same curvaceous lines leading down its flanks.

There are shorter front and rear overhangs, while the XF’s body will also benefit from Jaguar’s expertise in aluminium.

The current XF, which led Ian Callum’s design renaissance for the company, was introduced in 2007 and is based on Ford’s archaic DEW98 steel chassis.

The next XF will change that, sitting on an entirely new aluminium-intensive chassis.

The XF will also benefit from Jaguar-Land Rover’s new Wolverhampton, UK, engine plant, where its lighter, high-tech and super-frugal Ingenium four-cylinder engine range will be produced for use in the XE, XF and other models, potentially hooked up to a ZF nine-speed automatic transmission.

Of course, the XF will also be offered with potent R and RS models, which are currently powered by a 404kW 5.0-litre supercharged V8.