Jaguar Adds All-Wheel Drive for 2013

Tata Motors Ltd.'s Jaguar Cars unit is introducing a new all-wheel-drive system in its left-hand-drive XF and XJ sedans this autumn.

Jaguar, which last offered AWD in 2009, says there are no plans to develop a right-hand-drive version for the U.K., its home market. The company expects about 75% of vehicles equipped with the technology already offered by virtually all its competitors to be sold in North America.

The AWD drivetrain will be available only with the Jaguar's 3.0-liter Rootes supercharged V-6, which produces 335 hp and 332 lb-ft of torque. The engine, equipped with the company's automatic stop-start system, will deliver power to the four wheels through a modified version of Jaguar's eight-speed automatic transmission.

The company says its engineers were keen to maintain Jaguar's traditional rear-drive dynamics under optimal driving conditions. Thus the AWD system can deliver as much as 100% of the engine's output to the rear wheels on dry roads or as much as 50% power to the front wheels on snow or other slippery surfaces.

XF and XJ models equipped with the new system can accelerate from zero to 60 mph in 6.1 seconds and achieve an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph, according to the company.