Simona Alina
Filed in: Jaguar | Jaguar XF
Jaguar continues its trend of being a leader in innovative media technology as it launches the industry’s first broadband multimedia magazine specifically for Apple iPhone and iPod Touch users.
The largest Broadband 2.0 Video Network, 29HD Network, developed this unique spin on the traditional website for Jaguar. By going to www.jxfphone.com, iPhone and iPod Touch owners can experience the new Jaguar XF like never before. The broadband magazine features the XF in vibrant photos and dramatic videos, all cropped to perfectly fit the portable devices’ displays and take full advantage of their widescreen format.
With just a tap of the screen, users can flip through the dynamic photos of the broadband magazine, each of which also features an accompanying video that can be viewed with just another tap. All content is editorial based and will be updated regularly as the XF’s release date approaches.
The new 2009 Jaguar XF is the first production car that reflects the new design direction for the brand, and will go on sale in March 2008 with a starting MSRP of $49,975 (includes destination and delivery charges).
Source: Internal
Source: Jaguar launches XF iPhone Magazine
Duemotori.com reports Jeep is racking up the awards in Europe. Earlier this year, the entire Jeep lineup won the 2007 Green 4×4 Award from 4×4 & MPV Driver Magazine. Now the same magazine has named the Patriot 2.0 CRD Sport as their 4×4 of the Year. In announcing the win, the magazine's editor, Bob Murry, states "The Patriot is a cracking car to drive… It adds a welcome dash of adventure and US style to a sometimes bland SUV market. At last you can have your American pie, and eat it, too!" That's not too bad for a vehicle that started life as a Dodge Caliber and has only sold 800 units this year. Interestingly, even though it's available with a 2.4L petrol engine it's only the highly-equipped CRD (diesel) Sport version that received the 4×4 of the year award.
BusinessGreen reports that Ricardo, Land Rover, mapmaker Ordnance Survey, mobile giant Orange and the UK's Transport Research Laboratory have banded together to develop the "rCube control system." In theory, the bolt-in computer will combine the [now] familiar real time traffic data with automatic control over a hybrid's engine, batteries, throttle and brakes. Say what? "If you are approaching a junction or a traffic jam and have to stop, the control system will optimise the deceleration to limit how hard you have to brake and maximise the amount of energy that is captured and used to recharge the battery," explains Tom Robinson, senior product group manager for control and electronics at Ricardo. "It means that you get a smoother ride and lower emissions." The scarily-named "Sentience project" promises a prototype rCube-equipped Ford Escape Hybrid by the summer. So… what's hybridless lame duck Land Rover got to do with any of this? And why can't they just teach people to go easy on the gas and the brakes?
The Sun reports that most German of British brands– I mean British of German brands– is set to build cars outside The Land of Hope and Glory. The paper reckons BMW will manufactur its MINI SUV in Graz, now that the plant's X3 production is headed stateside. A spokesperson for the propeller people said the MINI brand's geographical locus will remain in Oxford, as both the fast-selling standard car and the sure-to-be-a-hit Clubman greet the world from Southeast England. In fact, the factory is maxxed-out at 260k units per annum. Hence the move to the Fatherland. In a related story, Motortrader reports that most Kuwaiti of English car brands, Aston Martin, is also looking to craft vehicles abroad, beginning with the four-door Rapide. Bidders for the work read like a who's who of outsourcing: Italy's Pininfarina, Germany's Karmann, Austria/Canada's Magna and Finland's Valmet. 
We’ve all heard the horror stories of life in middle management. In Japan, the ill appears to be especially acute. So many Japanese workers die from simply being overworked that there’s a name for it: karoshi. Wikipedia says, “The major medical causes of karōshi deaths are heart attack and stroke due to stress.” From March 2006 to March 2007, 303 people were claimed to have died of it with 147 of those cases acknowledged as accurate by the government.
