The Jaguar XK will be quietly phased out in the summer, but Jaguar is already working on its more upmarket successor, set to be pitched as a larger 2+2 grand tourer to take on the Bentley Continental GT and new Mercedes S-Class Coupe.

Our exclusive images show how the model could take design cues from the F-Type and increase its dimensions, becoming more of an XJ Coupe than an oversized F-Type.

A larger grille, chrome-ringed lower air intakes and horizontal instead of vertical headlights set it apart from its sportier brother, although the muscular rear wheelarches, flowing lines and wraparound tail-lamps tie the two cars together.

Although Jaguar sold around 54,000 XKs over its lifetime, only 4,000 found homes last year – largely because the faster F-Type has been taking sales from it. The new car will start from £100,000 to put daylight between it and the F-Type.

There’s likely to be a choice of supercharged V6 and V8 petrol engines, plus, for the first time, a six-cylinder diesel, while the platform is believed to be a stretched version of the F-Type’s aluminium architecture. Don’t expect to see the new GT for several years, though, as Jag enters one of the busiest periods in its history.

With the F-Type Coupe and Convertible now on sale, its next new car will be the XE small saloon – due in mid-2015 with an all-new iQ[Al] aluminium architecture. Then, in early 2016, comes an SUV (below) using the same structure and previewed by the C-X17 concept.

Coupe and estate versions of the XE are expected in 2016, with an all-new iQ[Al]-based XF following towards the end of that year. This means we’ll have to wait until 2017 at least before we see a new XJ and the car shown here.

Read more about the new baby Jaguar, the XE saloon.