- Jaguar is developing an SUV that should hit showrooms in four years.
- Before the SUV, Jaguar will launch a model to compete against the BMW 3 Series, effectively replacing the discontinued X-Type and slotting below the XF.
- Expect all-wheel-drive versions of the XJ in two years, although the XF may not get the system until the next-generation version arrives mid-decade.
COVENTRY, England — Jaguar is developing an SUV that should hit showrooms in four years. Pitched at the upper end of the market, it will likely compete with the Porsche Cayenne, BMW X5, Mercedes ML and sister company Land Rover's Range Rover and Range Rover Sport.
The all-new model is at the full-size clay-model stage, although design freeze is still some way off.
The Jaguar SUV will feature a lightweight aluminum structure and share some hardware with high-end Range Rovers, although Jaguar will be anxious to ensure that the car has its own distinctive character and road behavior. So expect an SUV very much oriented toward highway rather than off-road use, and a dynamic character to challenge the more sporting X5 and Cayenne.
Before the SUV, Jaguar will launch a model to compete at the upper end of the segment occupied by the BMW 3 Series. Effectively replacing the discontinued X-Type and slotting below the XF, it will likely feature a fifth door and coupelike styling, while providing decent room for four adults.
However, Jaguar may yet offer it with four doors and a conventional trunk. According to some insiders, the arrival of two high-end five-door Sportback Audis, in the shape of the A5 and A7, has diminished the novelty of offering a five-door Jag hatch. So there may be a last-minute switch to a standard trunk arrangement, although the company does not have long to decide before the tooling is ordered.
The addition of this model should improve Jaguar's share of the premium-car market. While it holds a 16 percent slice in the U.K., the share is just 5 percent in the U.S., which is why it also wants to launch an SUV.
Filling smaller but important niches is what introducing a four-wheel-drive XJ sedan is about. Although 75 percent of models sold in this class in the U.S. are two-wheel drive, some 70 percent of Jaguar's sales are made in the snow-belt states, where all-weather capability is vital.
Expect all-wheel-drive versions of the XJ in two years, although the XF may not get the system until the next-generation version arrives mid-decade.
Before that will come the much-anticipated Jaguar sports car, which many believe will be a spiritual successor to the legendary 1961 XKE. Out in 2012, insiders say that this car has no direct rivals, being positioned outside of the Porsche Boxster/BMW Z4/Mercedes SLK segment, and apart from Jaguar's own XK coupe and convertible.
These programs and many others, including new hybrid derivatives, are making this the busiest period Jaguar has ever seen in terms of new product development, say insiders, with Indian owner Tata Motors keen to broaden the scope of the British marque's offering.
As marketing boss Adrian Hallmark puts it, Jaguar needs to "unlock the potential of the brand. We are playing catch-up."
Inside Line says: Jaguar could have used an SUV years ago, and a more focused sports car would have done no harm either. But the good news is that under Tata, the company is at last beginning to fill in the substantial gaps in its range. — Richard Bremner, Correspondent
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mb2009 says:
12:36 PM, 04/08/2011
Every car manufacturer has their bad egg car and jag does too. I would rather prefer jag sticks to luxury sports saloons and sports coupes than attempt the thought of an SUV, that's why we have range rover and it does not make sense for them to compete with each other in the same segment but act as one business entity and use their expertise to compete in their expert field
mercedesfan says:
08:18 AM, 04/08/2011
It's good to see Jaguar expanding. I really love the way they look and think they are fantastic cars to drive. Nevertheless, I'm still afraid of Jaguars. Every automotive publication that has tested the XJ has had some type of a reliability failure while the car was in their position. That is a terrible track record.
@vantagemen,
Probably because MB's are now consistently ranked amongst the most reliable luxury vehicles on the market. The S-Class has fewer problems on average than a Lexus LS, the E-Class sedan is neck and neck with the Infiniti M for fewest problems in its class, and the C-Class has been lauded as having some of the fewest problems of any car in the industry. Yeah the M, GL, and R still have a bevy of electrical issues, but they are all pre-2007 turnaround designs that still use the crappy designs and engineering that came out of late '90's and early-2000's Daimler.
Also, MB has the second fewest (behind Lexus) instances of powertrain issues across the board for luxury cars. That hardly makes their engines "shoddy". And even if they were, the new turbocharged mills are a completely different architecture than the current engines. How can you call a totally new design shoddy when it has no history?
kiiwii says:
11:03 PM, 04/07/2011
the topic here is on Jag. why would we discuss the reliability of BMW or BENZ, smart? yes, Jag may have improved, but, sorry, still much more work need to be done.
bmw__m5 says:
09:24 PM, 04/07/2011
I rented an X- type 3.0 from Hertz when my previous car was in the shop for repairs from a rear- end collision. They where so unreliable, I went through three of them in three weeks. The first one got a blowout on a railroad track. I don't what that car's problem was but I haven't gotten a blowout there when I took it in my Odyssey or M5 at twice the seed (I was stuck behind a Prius). The second car they actually took me down to the Jag dealer and let me pick my car off the lot! (Seriously) How often do you get to do that with a rental. It was a Silver on Black with tan piping, beautiful! About five miles later all of the electronics froze; back to Hertz. So they let me pick out a second car (from the Jag dealer's lot). I picked a Green on tan example and that lasted me the remainder of my two and a half week rental period. However, they 12V gave out with two days to go. But the car had made me so miserable with both its dynamics, interior and reliability this was to minor an offence to warrant a visit to the Jag dealer. It rendered my radar detector useless but because the Jag was so floaty I really didn't need it anyway.
vantageman says:
07:16 PM, 04/07/2011
Jaguars biggest problem is perception and its history of poor reliability. To people like the people below that no little to nothing about cars, the fact that Jaguar has better interior quality and overall build quality than alot of cars doesnt matter it still makes them junk. While on the flipside of that you see little mention of how terrible the reliability is on a Benz but everyone is praising them addign turbos to their shotty engines, same goes for Audi who has had a LONG running history of producing bad cars, any junk comments about those???? Yet the A6 supercharged has been one of the most unreliable cars of recent times according to tests. The bottom line is Jaguar has the product already but working on reliability should be a bigger focus, sitting in an XJ, XK, or XF and actually driving one proves Jag can make a competitive car now its time to sell to the people that are driven by what they read and not much else..........
kiiwii says:
04:40 PM, 04/07/2011
should invest $ to improve quality before popping out more junks.
garrym says:
03:54 PM, 04/07/2011
As the article points out Jaguar is late for the game. Does the world need yet another high luxury SUV? Sure, some people will buy it but really a Jag SUV? We'll find out down the road (so to speak) if this vehicle will attract many buyers. I doubt it will.
The company should focus on better cars and a 3 series sized model should have been the priority, as there are more buyers for that sized vehicle in my opinion.