Next year’s new XF saloon is the car to bring Jaguar screaming into the 21st century, according to company officials.

And this snatched spyshot of the S-type replacement would seem to confirm that Jag is finally shedding its pipe ’n’ slippers image.

The new XF will finally kick Jag’s historic look into touch. Old is out; a bolder, hi-tech new design is in.

Out goes the oval grille, replaced by a wider, rectangular intake with a large growler (Jag’s cat badge) slapped in the middle. Shapely, thin new lamps swell around the wings, nearly reaching back to the front wheelarch, while the whole car takes on a curvaceous, fastback-inspired profile, similar to Merc’s CLS.

The C-XF (C for concept) show car at January’s Detroit Motor Show previewed the new S-type, and company officials say it was an accurate pointer to the production XF. ‘It was the car, plus 25% show sparkle,’ said one source. The swooping, coupé-like roofline is visibly higher on our scoop photo.

We’ll see the production XF at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September, and UK sales kick off in early 2008. It will be available in saloon bodystyle only, with a choice of petrol and diesel engines.

Design
Production XF will follow look of C-XF concept, but with higher roofline.

Under the bonnet
3.0 V6 and 4.2 V8 petrol engines, 2.7 V6 turbodiesel.

On sale
Spring 2008, priced from £33,000 (est)