Jaguar Goes Full Speed Ahead with Ingenium Engines

Jaguar is continuing to make bold moves as it fights for relevance after years of stagnation under Ford. One huge area where the brand has been woefully lagging is powertrain technology, but that looks like it is about to change. Whether or not you think it will be for the better likely depends on your preferences.

Like other European automakers, Jaguar is investing in a modular engine family, which is called Ingenium. The engines will use turbocharging and direct injection to improve efficiency and add lightness. That setup also means the engines can all use the same architecture, and as we all learned in kindergarten, sharing is good.

The bottom line is that Jaguar needs to expand its lineup of vehicles while also slimming down costs so it can stay competitive in the market. The new engines help keep costs down since they all have the same stroke, bore and capacity for each cylinder (500cc each). Before you panic and think that the company is going to start using the same size engine in each model, it won’t. There will still be different engine sizes, but exactly how that will be accomplished isn’t entirely clear.

There are other technologies in the Ingenium engines that help with efficiency and cost. The oil and water pumps are variable and controlled by computer, saving up energy when extra flow is unnecessary. The first of the engines will be 2.0-liter four-cylinder configurations and will be powered by either gasoline or diesel, but don’t hold your breath for the latter variant in the United States. The Ingenium line should be appearing in 2016 models like the XE first, with the technology spreading through the lineup from there.