2016 Jaguar XE – Caught in the Wild during Official Debut [Gallery]

2016, jaguar, xe, sports, sedan, small, 2017Jaguar is jumping in with both feet and goes against tough competition with an all-new 2016 Jaguar XE. The smallest of the feline sports sedans was officially unveiled earlier this week in London. TFLcar happened to spy an XE test prototype the same day testing high in the Rocky Mountains.

2016-jaguar-xe-s-side-doors-wheelsXE will go up against the likes of the BMW 3-series, Mercedes-Benz C-Class, and Audi A4. The Jaguar brings an extra helping of style with a long hood and short trunk lid. The car appears bigger than it is and seems to be moving while standing still.

The XE S model you see in manufacturer provided photographs will be the foreseeable range topper and will be powered by a 3.0L supercharged V6 packed with 340 horses. It will use an updated 8-speed automatic transmission by ZF, and the company claims a 0-60 mph sprint of 4.9 seconds. That matches the quickness of the Audi S4.

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The XE will start out as a rear-wheel driven sports sedan, but the architecture allows for all-wheel-drive. The new XE launches in the UK next year as the 2016 model. However, North America will have to wait until the calendar year 2016 to see it as the 2017 model.

Check out this classic TFLcar matchup/mashup that features the bigger Jaguar XF.

Andre Smirnov
Andre Smirnov

Andre Smirnov is a life-long automotive enthusiast, software engineer, writer, and reporter. He has been writing and reporting at TFLcar since 2011.