LONDON: Jaguar has won its first major car award since being taken over by Tata Motors, beating a string of fancied rivals.

The Jaguar XF was Tuesday named Car of the Year by Auto Express, Britains largest-selling weekly motoring magazine.

Jaguars multi-award winning sports saloon claimed its crown following another victory in the Best Executive Car category ahead of the BMW 5 Series, the Mercedes CLS and E-Class, the Audi A6 and the Lexus GS.

"The Jaguar is back," declared Jaguar design director Ian Callum, who collected the trophy at a dinner attended by major figures from the British motor industry on Tuesday night.

"Jaguar is very, very proud to receive this wonderful award. It is the proof that Jaguar is back and the XF is just the beginning of our new story for the future. Just wait until you see the new XJ and beyond," he said.

Tata Motors bought Jaguar and Land Rover from Ford in March for $2.3 billion, breathing life into the financially troubled British carmakers.

The XF, which costs between 35,000 pounds and 50,000 pounds, was launched in March and has helped boost Jaguar sales by nearly 30 percent.

Auto Express editor Dan Strong said: "Jaguars XF is a machine that has proved the doubters wrong. It's a car that impresses on every level, from design to drivability, practicality to price."

"But thats not the only reason why our judges chose this car. Our winner has raised the standards in a class where excellence is considered the norm. Its a home-grown package, designed and developed in the UK and built by a highly skilled workforce."

Geoff Cousins, UK managing director of Jaguar Cars, said: "This has been a fantastic year for Jaguar with the XF leading the success of our revitalisation plan."

"In July, total Jaguar sales were up 29.2 percent versus the same month last year and we now have over 7,000 orders for XF in the UK and more than 22,000 worldwide - we couldn't be more pleased with the reaction it has received."

Source : MMD English