Jaguar celebrates centenary of founder's birth

Jaguar is to limit UK sales to 160 special editions to celebrate the 100th anniversary of founder Sir William Lyons. The black XJR 100 saloon and XKR 100 coupe/cabriolet specials have leather interiors and 19-inch alloys. The XKR also gets the R Performance handling kit. Prices: saloon £58,935, coupe £69,950, cabriolet £74,950.

More modestly priced is the £7,850 Fiat Punto Go special edition based on the 1.2-litre 8v 3dr which is £328 cheaper. Extras include body-coloured bumpers, special wheel trims, sports seats and uprated stereo. Zero per cent finance is on all Puntos, with a 30% deposit – only Vauxhall offers a similar deal on the Corsa SXi, but it is dearer at £9,960.

Renault's Megane Fidji special, based on the Dynamique, adds a CD player and aircon. Even so, it costs £670 less, with the range opening at £10,995 for the 1.4 16v. Engine options include 80bhp and 105bhp 1.9-litre turbodiesels.

Heading the Rover 25 range is the new 1.6 iXL, with leather trim, aircon, ABS with EBD, twin airbags and metallic or pearlescent paint. Rover places a value of £4,500 on these: at £13,980, it is £2,600 dearer than the iL. The new model falls bang into Alfa 147 territory.

Lexus has a more powerful IS300. The 211bhp, 3-litre version adds full leather trim and automatic gearbox to the existing IS200 spec, for £26,700. The IS300 SportCross estate costs £28,450. The IS200 has been boosted by 16-inch alloys, and modifications to the grille and rear light clusters, adding £235 to the base price, now £18,615. Competitors include the £19,485 Alfa Romeo 156 2.5 V6 Turismo, £22,370 BMW 320i SE and £24,540 Mercedes C240 V6 Classic.

The Skoda Fabia saloon has one trim level, including electric windows, central locking, driver airbag and power steering. Prices: from £9,100 (SDI), £9,400 (100bhp 1.4-litre) and £9,900 (75bhp 1.4-litre auto). VW's Polo saloon, its only real rival, starts at £10,700 for the 75bhp 1.4 E.

Vauxhall's Omega Sport combines MV6 looks with the efficient 144bhp 2.2-litre petrol engine. Uprated, lowered suspension, 17-inch alloys and front and rear spoilers are all standard. Sports seats and alloy facia trim feature, along with ABS, climate control and front fog lights. Prices: £19,995 (saloon), £20,995 (estate). Revisions to the Astra range see more standard equipment and the option of climate control. Prices for the majority of the range remain unchanged.

Suzuki's seven-seat 4x4, the XL7, costs £19,995 and is based on a stretched Grand Vitara platform. It uses a larger capacity 170bhp 2.7-litre V6 engine and has ABS, front and rear aircon, alloy wheels and a CD stereo as standard. Its main rival is the £22,595 Land Rover Freelander 2.5 V6 GS, but this has less equipment and only five seats. The seven-seat Land Rover Discovery V8 GS costs £27,295, and Mitsubishi's Shogun 3.5 V6 Equippe retails at £25,995.