Yeah its a Moroccan Kebab house now, to cater to modern tastes. Just kidding.
The same water never flows through the river twice.

 

No that's the Buddha Bar where the wealth fathers take their daughters out for a drink.

 

Do you know what is really going on these days- we are losing all the things that made us Gents, burls, rich leather, tobacco. Displaced by androgynous and cheap tastes like carbon fiber and vinyl wrap. It seems like we subconsciously want to attract the same sex?? In whose eyes is your caliper paint having an effect on, not the gal crossing the street.
let me leave you with a visual when men had a different game.

 

In a vinyl wrapped audi?

Ever known an Audi to be collectible.

 

You are 100% right. I love that pic too. I am going to print and frame it for my office. That's what living is all about.

 

Well a slight disagreement.

I hate tobacco smoking, I dont like the smell but even more I cant stand the thought of being manipulated by tobacco companies into buying their filthy product (gave up a 10 year habit pretty much a week after reading "The Runaway Jury").

And I dont like burl in the modern XK, I think that with the amount of wood in the XK it ends up looking as though someone ate a tree then threw up in the car. I didnt mind the burl in the XF, where it was in a few feature bits and more subtle.

I am a great fan of good leather, but then I also like carbon fibre and vinyl wrap. And painted calipers. And bonnet vents - cant have too many of those IMO.

I dont think that the modern Jag is all tweed and pipe smoke. To me it is looks over practicality, comfort over utility, and fun over performance. That is why I like my missus' XE (with no wood inside) as much as my XKR.

Nice picture. I prefer the picture that appears in the banner of the site with the bare bottomed blonde and the e type. I'd have that one in a poster but my missus would be unhappy.

 

There is nothing modern about the XK150- its a total throwback to the picture in the car above, down to the hood vents and the long front-end. It would be a gross misread to think that Callum was trying to design a modern car.

I have a lot of respect for the Honda civic and audi tt guys and their carbon fiber and vinyl wraps. But there is something forceful and not quite right when a grownups car tries to incorporate it; its like a 45year old in a nightclub hoping to get noticed, with sneakers. The only thing negative about burls is that you see them on jets, speedboats, and anything else that signifies a man's luxury. Jaguar has decidedly produced cars that cater to the art of being a gent. Just like Scion does for the youth.

Believing that good tobacco comes from big tobacco companies is like believing good meat comes from Mcdonalds.

 

BTW, I mentioned the long frontend and hood vents because they have as much function as a urinal in the ladies room.

Throwback is the only explanation to their existence.

 

I would personally never own a jag without burl wood. I guess that dates me but... just an opinion.

 

Lily and I both love it too:

 

Quintessentially British! show that picture to the bush people and they will tell you thats a British car, queen's dog and owned by a refined gent.

Speaking of, Lilly would be a great dane in pygmy land.

 

Dont let a hillbilly bar tell you that wine is for girls. They sadly dont have any reference. I am here to tell you, from first hand experience with customers, the cultured and those bored with buying things, all salivate over lacquered veneers. You would not believe how big of an industry it is. Not only is it the difference between real and fake stickers, its also the difference between rare craftsmanship and not. Nothing to do with young and old. Although I will say it like it is, the gullible tend to be younger and inexperienced.

Look at the picture below, if you are an Audi buyer, they have convinced you that aluminum or carbon fiber is all you need. If you are a Buggati buyer from the same company they better give you the best effing burl in the world.

 

I think X100's could be, but the X150 is an awkward transition car from old to new. Its mix of partially digital, partially real gauges will not be endearing down the road.

The X150 also has some styling obstacles created by trying to lower cost of manufacture. A DB9 will be the far more desirable car than the XK. The DB9 can also be had with a manual transmission, which will *really* make a difference down the road. Automatics tend to get thrown away with time, Manuals tend to endure.

I just sat in my first X100 today, I'm a tad too tall to truly be comfortable in it, but I loved the softer alive looking fenders and hood, the wood dash, the classy instruments in the wood dash.

The X150 is probably a *much* better driving car, but the X100 has an awesome style all over it. I think the DB9 is really the sequel to the XK8, the XK150 is a little bit of an orphan.

 

And I thought my 2013 XJ had the best effing burl in the world! It has a more interesting pattern with more swirls and colors than the Bugatti. What do you think?

 

Its stunning. I have never seen it before. What is it called.

It has TONS of character.

Shocking they did not do London Tan leather in USA, it would have fit like a glove with that burl.

 

I was wandering around the Jaguar lot. My observation is that it seems the USA trends to like its car interiors black on black with black trim.

Glad I snagged my Caramel XK before they stopped making it. Wooden shift knob is ordered and eagerly awaited.

One of the joys of my first car to not have a black interior - I no longer get that certain feeling as if of stepping into a giant materials processing oven when I leave work, or return to my car after taking a hike, or well, any other time its left out in southern sun.

 

Aston, Rolls, and Bentley do the best wood.

 

Yes its an USA thing for sure. Ironically its the worst choice in USA climate. There is just way too much sunshine and heat in most of all the States.

I think folks are worried about lighter color's longevity. Counterproductively, black will be the first to go because its cooking itself and everything else in the car. You will also run the aircon more. In cramped quarters, like a coupe it makes even less sense.

The English way is just the opposite, enjoyment over practicality. Sure a plastic covered sofa will last a lifetime, but you would have spent a lifetime on plastic.

In fact, its considered a luxury to be able to break free from the worries of practicality. An architect friend says it best, 'sure the white marble will show the wine glass rings, but the alternative is far worse'

 

I hadn't thought about it that way, but that is one of the reasons I love my XK. It's not a practical car, but damn!, it makes me feel good.

 

Its a car that comes from a unique culture that puts being fabulous above all else. Perhaps frivolously so. And the art of being a gentleman is a further continuation of that. Germans are the opposite; its the reason they have never had a popular music band or movie, the lighter side of life is non-existent. Even humor. They take practicality too seriously- which lands you with MB Tex (vinyl that Mercedes still uses) and cars that look like bread boxes and drive like robots.

The objective of Italians and Jaguar is to take a machine and somehow make it alive. Ian says the XKR150 is the most alive thing that he has ever created. I am sadden to see that the german marketing blitzkrieg of 'ultimate driving machine' 'best nor nothing' 'truth in engineering' (lol from a company caught cheating engineering test) has hijacked the dialogue from little ole jaguar who still makes what really matters to man.

Pardon me coming across a bit defensive- there is a good reason. ..(I am trying to get a free oil change from jaguar- just joking, change my own oil.)