Jaguar to Take Straight Approach to New Engines?

Jaguar Cars Ltd. may drop its lineup of 3.0-liter V-6 engines in favor of straight-six designs for both gasoline and diesel mills.

The new inline 6-cylnders will essentially be larger versions of JLR’s modular Ingenium family of 4-cylinder engines, Autocar notes. The U.K. enthusiast magazine, which doesn’t cite its sources, says switching to an inline architecture will cut development and manufacturing costs by allowing 2.0- and 3.0-liter inline engines to share parts and be built together at Jaguar Land Rover’s plant in Wolverhampton, England. JLR previously said it plans to double the size of that facility.

Inline engines can provide weight and fuel economy benefits over V-6s. They also have fewer moving parts, thus are easier to produce. While their extended length can make them more difficult to package, Autocar says the new inline-six engines are designed to fit into the engine compartment of vehicles built on JLR’s D7 chassis, such as the current F-Pace, XE and XF models.

The new Ingenium 6-cylinder engines can be used in transverse or longitudinal configurations with front-, rear- or all-wheel-drive systems, according to the report. The engines also can be paired with electric motors in a hybrid system.

Autocar’s report follows others from last year that suggested Jaguar was on the verge of returning to its straight-six roots. In addition to production models, many of the carmaker’s race cars have been powered by inline engines.

If true, JLR’s move to straight sixes would mirror BMW and Mercedes-Benz’s engine strategies. Like its competitors, JLR is expected to continue to offer V-8 engines in future vehicles. JLR currently sources V-8 engines from former owner Ford Motor Co. But media reports speculate JLR could switch to BMW- or Mercedes-built V-8s after the Ford deal ends.