British car

McLaren to Open Showroom in London's Luxe One Hyde Park

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, Real Estate Developments, Architecture & Design

Famed British race-bred auto marque McLaren has announced plans for a luxurious new London showroom at the base of the posh One Hyde Park development, currently under construction between Harrods and Harvey Nichols in the swanky Knightsbridge neighborhood. The premises (rendering above) will serve as the flagship for the company to flog its wicked new $250,000 MP4-12C supercar, a carbon fiber rocket with a 600 hp twin-turbo V8 engine. One Hyde Park, designed by Rogers Stirk Harbour and Partners, is due to open in late October with the McLaren showroom slated to follow early next year. As well as its supercar, the showroom will display a selection of McLaren's Formula 1 race cars.

[via Auto Express]

Tags: British car, Formula 1, Harrods, Knightsbridge, London, McLaren, One Hyde Park, retail, showroom, supercar, UK

The Classicist: Cruising in the New 2010 Jaguar XK Convertible

by Jared Paul Stern (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Luxury Cars & Autos, The Classicist

A few years back we went on one of the best road trips ever at the wheel of a Jaguar XK convertible. So we literally leapt at the chance to take the brand new one for a spin. Jaguar roadsters have always held a place of honor in the pantheon of stylish sports cars, dating back to the legendary XK120, forerunner of the current model - although stylistically the new XK owes more to the XK-E (E-Type) with its oval mouth. The XK120 referred to the car's top speed; when introduced in 1948 it was the world's fastest standard production car, with killer looks to match. It acquired an instant aura of glamor and cemented Jaguar's reputation forever when Gary Cooper, Clark Gable and Humphrey Bogart cruised Hollywood in their XK120s like stylish gods. (We'll develop on this theme further in a later installment).

The XK120 evolved into the famous race-winning XK120-C, or C-Type, that in turn led to the wicked D-Type, made famous by Steve McQueen, and eventually the iconic E-Type, which as noted the current model most closely resembles. First unveiled at the Geneva Motor Show in 1961, the E-Type's legendary power to attract the opposite sex was phrased best by American motoring writer Henry Manney III, who dubbed it "The greatest crumpet-catcher known to man." Not a bad precedent for its more recent relation. While we didn't actually catch any crumpets with the new XK, it wasn't the car's fault as we were more interested in zooming down the road than cozying up to the local flora and fauna. Also there are a lot more outlandish-looking autos on the road these days; compared to these the XK exudes an elegant aura of restrained power that behooves its feline namesake; very British in a sense.

For 2010 the aluminum-bodied XK available as of this August is kitted out with an AJ-V8 Gen III 5.0-liter engine capable of delivering 385 hp and 515 Nm of torque (a supercharged version produces 510 hp and 625 Nm of torque). With these numbers the naturally aspirated version hits 60 mph in 5.2 seconds, while top speed is electronically limited to 155 mph. Some subtle, sporty updates over previous models have been made to the exterior without detracting from the car's stylistic heritage, including a new front end, new rear lights fitted with LED technology, a new rear body valance, body-colored side power vents, chrome-detailed inserts, and sleek alloy wheels.

Gallery: 2010 Jaguar XK Convertible