When 300 Means 2.0: Jaguar's Smallest Sedan Lands New Trim

by Steph Willems

Published: April 19th, 2018

when 300 means 2 0 jaguar s smallest sedan lands new trim

In today’s automotive naming culture, “300 Sport” cannot possible mean there’s a 3.0-liter engine under the hood. Too obvious. No, much like the Mercedes-Benz C300, the 2019 Jaguar XE 300 Sport will not budge above two liters of displacement.

It will, however, budge well above the priciest 2.0-liter XE’s MSRP. Luckily, you’ll probably never need to know about this, as the XE’s lacklustre U.S. sales suggest this introduced-in-Europe trim will remain on the east side of the Atlantic.

The XE 300 Sport is an all-wheel-drive variant powered by the top-tier four-banger in Jag’s engine stable: a 296-horsepower Ingenium mill that generates 295 lb-ft of torque, tamed by an eight-speed automatic.

The 300 Sport revels in a unique shade of dark gray that shows up everywhere — the mirror caps, rear spoiler, grille surround, and 19-inch wheels (20-inchers are available). Inside, sporty contrast stitching makes it known this Jag is not merely a 296-hp, AWD R-Sport. In case you don’t get the message, exterior badging hamners the point home. A 10-inch touchscreen spans the center stack, offering ample distraction for both driver and passenger.

Yes, it’s mainly an appearance package, one that garners a significant price premium across the pond. British customers can expect to fork over the equivalent of nearly $10k extra for this model. In the U.S., an R-Sport retails for $53,620 after delivery.

Why all the cynicism? Jaguar sales fell 34 percent, year over year, in the U.S. last month, with sales of the XE down 54.4 percent. Over the first quarter of 2018, sales of the XE, introduced in mid-2016, declined 45.9 percent. Jaguar’s domestic sales aren’t driven by sedans, regardless of available power — it’s the F-Pace crossover that dominates the sales charts.

The XF also gets the 300 Sport treatment in Europe, with a turbodiesel V6 available in some markets, but it’s unlikely Jag will expend any new energy on the XE and XF over here. So far, there’s been no announcement of a 300 Sport trim for these shores. As much as Jaguar Land Rover would like it, it’s hard to see buyers springing for an extra expensive four-cylinder Jaguar.

[Images: Jaguar Land Rover]

#Jaguar #JaguarLandRover #JaguarXe #JLR #NewCars #ProductPlanning #Sales

Steph Willems

More by Steph Willems

Comments

Join the conversation

2 of 18 comments

Conundrum on Apr 20, 2018

Due to changing emission standards outside North America, which perversely in Europe means fuel economy by grams of CO2 per kilometer, the V6 is being dropped from the Jag XE over there. It guzzleth too much motor spirit. Really, all that's happening is that they are canning the old NEDC cycle which made the original EPA mileage ratings look pessimistic, they are moving to WLTP standards, which are only merely a big lie instead of a whopper. So now your 1.0 litre diesel will officially only get 65 mpg instead of 82, or some other number plucked out of thin air and bureaucratic nonsense https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/industry/jaguar-axes-range-topping-xe-s-and-xf-s-models

Like Reply
GenesisCoupe380GT on Apr 07, 2020

I want to like this car but only having a bottom-feeding 4-banger turbo to choose from somehow makes spending even more money for the XJ worth it. Buying this car is like dating the pretty chick at the prom and finding out that her breath stinks of hot garbage and sewage

Like Reply

Recent Comments

Tassos Yeah, right, that's the ticket.a 22 year old worthless piece of crap painted in Fire Engine Red (Or is it Clown red) , with at least 153,000 miles on it, masquerading as a "used car".Some moron here will soon repeat that this is a good car to get for his teen daughter, just because the stupid girl likes the styling and the "image" of a POS Golf better than the COROLLA or CIVIC she should get instead. I would not get this EVEN if it was a LEXUS of same age, miles and price.Remember the "separation theorem"?"A FOOL AND HIS MONEY ARE SOON PARTED".And it is not as if Tim never proposed some POS VW, almost one in every two of his worthless finds are that DAMNED automaker. AND those who call it damned are ITS OWNERS. Like "My Damned GTI broke down again"...Hey, maybe that loser the PHONY Tassos (yoiu know the loser, the clown who likes Kias and Idiot Joe Biden) will buy it for his 'most likely to conceive" daughter.
Jeffrey Apple music and Podcasts if not listening to NPR.
Theflyersfan Amazon Music HD through Android Auto. It builds a bunch of playlists and I pick one and drive. Found a bunch of new music that way. I can't listen to terrestrial radio any longer. Ever since (mainly) ClearChannel/iHeartMedia gobbled up thousands of stations, it all sounds the same. And there's a Sirius/XM subscription that I pay $18/month for but barely use because actually being successful in canceling it is an accomplishment that deserves a medal.
MRF 95 T-Bird Whenever I travel and I’m in my rental car I first peruse the FM radio to look for interesting programming. It used to be before the past few decades of media consolidation that if you traveled to an area the local radio stations had a distinct sound and flavor. Now it’s the homogenized stuff from the corporate behemoths. Classic rock, modern “bro dude” country, pop hits of today, oldies etc. Much of it tolerable but pedestrian. The college radio stations and NPR affiliates are comfortable standbys. But what struck me recently is how much more religious programming there was on the FM stations, stuff that used to be relegated to the AM band. You have the fire and brimstone preachers, obviously with a far right political bend. Others geared towards the Latin community. Then there is the happy talk “family radio” “Jesus loves you” as well as the ones featuring the insipid contemporary Christian music. Artists such as Michael W. Smith who is one of the most influential artists in the genre. I find myself yelling at the dashboard “Where’s the freakin Staple singers? The Edwin Hawkins singers? Gospel Aretha? Gospel Elvis? Early Sam Cooke? Jesus era Dylan?” When I’m in my own vehicle I stick with the local college radio station that plays a diverse mix of music from Americana to rock and folk. I’ll also listen to Sirius/XM: Deep tracks, Little Steven’s underground as well as Willie’s Roadhouse and Outlaw country.
The Comedian I owned an assembled-in-Brazil ‘03 Golf GTI from new until ‘09 (traded in on a C30 R-Design).First few years were relatively trouble free, but the last few years are what drove me to buy a scan tool (back when they were expensive) and carry tools and spare parts at all times.Constant electrical problems (sensors & coil packs), ugly shedding “soft” plastic trim, glovebox door fell off, fuel filters oddly lasted only about a year at a time, one-then-the-other window detached from the lift mechanism and crashed inside the door, and the final reason I traded it was the transmission went south.20 years on? This thing should only be owned by someone with good shoes, lots of tools, a lift and a masochistic streak.