Jaguar has taken a bullish approach to announcing the newly revised, 2016-model-year XJ. The car that overturned the British marque’s fusty old-boy image is at it again, not so much with its updated looks – which appear elegantly judged at first glance, considering the radical nature of the existing version – but thanks to the far-reaching technology changes under the skin.

New InControl Touch Pro infotainment includes door-to-door navigation via the InControl Apps’ smartphone integration system; the reconfigurable 12.3-inch TFT instrument cluster now has a full-screen navigation mode; traction-enhancing All-Surface Progress Control aims to prove more useful than rivals’ four-wheel drive in snow and ice; and Jaguar has ditched hydraulic power steering in favour of a new electrically assisted set-up that it says offers 'greater feel'.

Meanwhile the 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel now generates 296bhp and 516lb ft, while producing 6% lower emissions. And as if in an effort to benefit from a clearer public synergy between Jaguar and Land Rover, the XJ also gains a new top-spec Autobiography trim level. Autobiography has previously been the reserve of posh Range Rovers.