Jaguar’s 3 Series buster is on track; 9-speed gearbox also under development

Jaguar has confirmed that the compact sedan which is set to rival the likes of BMW 3 Series in still in the making.

The compact sedan will be the gateway into the British marque and will be positioned below the Jaguar XF. The pet cat will be high on style and luxury like the current Jaguars.

The new Jaguar is expected to play the light weight card with aluminum construction which is becoming a norm for new generation JLR vehicles. Jaguar may likely use a 2.2 litre diesel and a 2.0 litre turbo petrol for the new sedan along with new four cylinder powerplants that are being developed jointly by JLR and Tata Motors.

Jaguar is also developing a new 9-speed transmission which will be offering high fuel efficiency and calmer high speed cruising. The company confirmed that they won’t consider adding more than 9 gears to the gearbox in the future.

The small sedan will also spawn other body styles like the Sportbrake (estate) and even a crossover SUV softroader! A long wheelbase version of the sedan for markets like China is also a possibility.

JLR is proving to be a cash cow for the owners Tata Motors and the new entry level sedan will pump the volumes up significantly and let Jaguar close the gap to the Germans.