The list of contenders that will rival the mighty BMW X1 just keeps on growing. Audi is already out with its Q3 model. Mercedes is planning a GLC crossover which will debut in 2014. Volkswagen is also planning a sub-Tiguan crossover. And now Land Rover has officially made an announcement that it is considering a Sub FreeLander model to extend its product portfolio.
The new product will be a ‘white space’ model which means that it will open up a whole new segment for the company. The new model will be a part of the company’s ‘Leisure’ lineup, other product lines being ‘Utility’ (Defender, Discovery) and Luxury (Evoque and Range Rover).
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Tata Motors revival of Jaguar brand is one of the epic corporate saga of the last decade. Back in 2008, when Tata Motors bought JLR, Jaguar was almost in the dumps. But with the introduction of new models like the XF, XJ and XK, the company has come out of the red.
The British marquee is welcoming the new decade (although a bit late) with a new logo and a fresh marketing campaign.
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Tata Motors has indeed proved to be the ‘Knight in Shining Armor’ for the damsel in distress Jaguar-Land Rover. Back in 2008, when Tata Motors agreed purchase the British marquee from Ford, dark clouds surrounded the future of Jaguar-Land Rover. However within 3 years, Tata Motors managed to spin it off as a profit making entity.
Tata Motors has now announced that it will double the capital expenditure and product development. In the last six years, Jaguar Land Rover has spent around 700 to 800 million pounds annually on research. This figure will be boosted to 1.5 billion pounds each year.
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Jaguar Land Rover today opened the first assembly plant in India at Pune. Assembling vehicles imported from UK, the first vehicle to come off the assembly line is the Land Rover Freelander 2 shipped from the Halewood facility in Liverpool. The facility can assemble other cars, details of which are not clear. Both Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles are expected to be assembled at this plant.
JLR is planning an onslaught of models of the next four years to reach the top be on top in the luxury car market. Currently it sells Jaguar XJ, XF,and XK, the Land Rover Freelander 2, Discovery 4, Range Rover Sport and Range Rover in India.
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JLR is planning to get extremely aggressive in India and wants dethrone the Germans. The luxury market in India has been consistently showing high growth potential but most of this growth is ruled by Mercedes, BMW and Audi.
Because the company is owned by Tatas, the management believes that it has a responsibility to overtake traditional rivals like BMW and Audi in India. JLR now views India as a second ‘home market’ after the UK where it is regarded as the top luxury brand.
The company is testing the feasibility producing the Freelander 2 at the Tata plant in Pune via the CKD route. It also plans to make India a hub for all its production requirements for the Asia region
The company plans to introduce all its range of products including the new Range Rover Evoque and the soon to be launched facelifted XF. As many as 40 new products will be introduced over the next five years, the company stated recently.
Thanks to Jeremy Clarkson, we all know how to pronounce ‘The Jag’. Actually, now that we are on the topic, let’s say it one more time – ‘The Jaaaag’. Although Jaguar-Landrover is now out of the red zone, the carmaker’s design philosophy is still questioned by a lot of people with remarks such as ‘They just borrow it from Aston Martin.’ All of these remarks have caught the eye of [ Read More ]
Looks like the cat’s moving in for the kill
Tata’s big cat is showing signs of crawling up the table as it opens its second dealer showroom in Delhi.
Jaguar-Land Rover plans to follow it up with a third in Hyderabad within the next two months. It will then open shops in Ludhiana follow it with one in Bangalore and Chennai. After Chennai, Tata will choose one more location and the option is between Cochin and Pune. The company claims all these outlets should be up and running by the next fiscal.
Rajiv Dube, president (passenger car sales) of Tata Motors -
We had a target of selling around 250 cars in nine months ending this March and we are very much on track. The fact that these vehicles are imported adds to the exclusive appeal of the JLR brand. We have seen that the moment an international luxury carmaker starts manufacturing its vehicles here, its brand exclusivity takes a dip.
Brand exclusivity can take a hit, but what a car stands for need not necessarily depend on the location where the car is being manufactured. More than the location of manufacturing, what is manufactured, and how well it is manufactured matters more.
The company will also source more components from India in the future and expects sales to rise once the new XJ is launched the country during July-September quarter this year. It also believes the smaller 3-liter diesel engine on some of the Jaguar models in the future would make it more popular.
Speculation has it that, Tata Motors is finalising its retail plans for its British marques- Jaguar and Land Rover to set base here in India. Tata officials said that plans are underway to try and sell the cars through company-owned showrooms.
The list of contenders that will rival the mighty BMW X1 just keeps on growing. Audi is already out with its Q3 model. Mercedes is planning a GLC crossover which will debut in 2014. Volkswagen is also planning a sub-Tiguan crossover. And now Land Rover has officially made an announcement that it is considering a Sub FreeLander model to extend its product portfolio.
