A new sports car, a fourth Range Rover, a BMW 3-Series rival and an
executive estate, plus new factories in China, exciting engines and a
return of focus to innovation... Under Tata control, Jaguar Land Rover
will be more ambitious, says top boss Carl-Peter Forster. The man in
charge of making it happen is Ralf Speth, and he told us it’s time to
put the pedal to the metal!
TO READ THE FULL STORY ON JAGUAR'S NEW F-TYPE, DON"T MISS ISSUE 1,117 OF AUTO EXPRESS, ON SALE WEDNESDAY 2nd JUNE
The F-Type was first seen in the form of the XK180 concept back in 1998,
but the project has been constantly delayed as the company struggled
with its finances. But now, thanks to the promise of £1bn of investment
every year for the next five years by new Indian owner Tata, a
driver-focused sports car is imminent.
Despite the good news about Jaguar Land Rover’s investment in new
product and advanced technology, Tata boss Carl-Peter Forster believes
the firm remains committed to closing one of its UK factories.
Put
simply, Forster says “It is much better for a car company to have one
large factory, than two small ones.”
Currently, Jaguar Land Rover
is reviewing the future of its two West Midlands plants in Solihull and
Castle Bromwich. An announcement about the future of the locations is
due this summer.
Meanwhile, JLR has confirmed it will open a new
plant in China within the next two years. With a production target of
around 30,000 units per year, the factory is set to build Defender,
Discovery and Freelander models from UK-supplied kits. A similar set-up
is also planned for India.
“This move isn’t about taking volume
out of the UK,” said Forster. “It’s about strengthening business in
emerging markets.”
Disqus - noscript
In 1989 the developed the car but never made in production it got cancelled. But surly I hope they get their promise this time. I've heard of the F-type word so many times.
When Ford bought Jaguar they took the F-type and turned it into the DB7. Sure the XK180 etc were partially developed but they have all been smaller, cut down versions of the XK8, rather than a purpose built car. What Jaguar need to do is build an SLK - something small, stylish and cheap! £30K mark would be ideal!