It's what Jaguar models would have looked like today if the automaker continued on the retro-styling path.
Lamm and courtesy of Jaguar". View Gallery 29 Photos. 1 of image. "John Lamm and courtesy of Jaguar". Bertone Jaguar B99 Concept.
Put the two together and you get an explosive new concept car called the Jaguar B99 which Bertone will present in its world premiere at the.
The B99 was reported to be well received at the Geneva Motor Show unveiling and that the B99 might form the basis of a replacement for the previous Jaguar X-Type but Jaguar confirmed that they would not be asking Bertone to develop the concept. Put the two together and you get an explosive new concept car called the Jaguar B99 which Bertone will present in its world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show. The result is a compact, four-door sedan 4. In other projects Wikimedia Commons.
When Jaguar unveiled the XF executive sedan in , it signaled the start of a new era for the British brand. For the first time in many years, Jaguar's design department led by Ian Callum would not look back for inspiration, trying to give a fresh, modern look to their cars instead. That was only the beginning, as all the redesigned Jaguar models that followed continued on the path carved by the first-generation XF. But there was a moment when Jaguar seemed to hesitate and contemplate a return to the retro-style era — that happened in when Bertone unveiled the Jaguar B99 Concept at the Geneva Motor Show.
The design study had almost nothing to do with Jaguar, however, as it was funded exclusively with Bertone money and designed by Bertone people. Since Jaguar lacked a BMW 3 Series rival at the time after the demise of the X-Type, the Italians were hoping their concept would persuade the automaker to bring it into production.
Named to remind people of Bertone's 99 years of existence in , the B99 Concept was designed to fit in the premium D-segment: The numbers translated into dramatic proportions, with the low-slung B99 Concept making quite an impression in Geneva. It was a design study, so Bertone designers deemed it fit to get suicide doors and video cameras instead of side mirrors, even though automakers never approve solutions like that on mass-market cars. The fact that Bertone's Michael Robinson and Adrian Griffiths took inspiration from traditional Jaguars of the Geoff Lawson era was obvious inside too.
The Ebony Macasar African wood trim was generously used throughout the cabin, as was the two-tone leather. The dashboard had a clean look, with the central infotainment screen hidden behind the wood panel, and four aluminum cylinders housing the instrument panel.
Overall, the Jaguar B99 Concept managed to combine past and future in quite an intriguing way, and that was clear as far as the powertrain was concerned too. There was no old-school straight-six engine in it, as Bertone fitted the design study with a modular Extended Range Hybrid system that combined twin kW hp electric motors with a hp 1. As a result, the B99 had an impressive combined power output of hp.
The internal combustion engine charged the lithium-ion batteries which were said to allow a theoretical driving range of km miles on the highway. So why didn't Jaguar accept Bertone's proposal for a 3 Series rival? To put it simply, bad timing. By the time the Italians presented the B99 Concept, Jaguar's design reinvention was already in full swing. It's not that we are offended by it, or against it - it is just not for us. That said, are you happy with the way the Jaguar XE looks?
Home Car News Concept Cars. That time Jaguar refused Bertone's B99 Concept as an X-Type replacement It's what Jaguar models would have looked like today if the automaker continued on the retro-styling path. Tags Jaguar concepts Geneva Motor Show jaguar xe bertone.