Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), the Tata-owned luxury car brand, is planning to introduce four new models in the Indian auto market. Industry experts believe that the new models from JLR can also be the refreshed versions of its existing line up. With four new car launches, the product portfolio of JLR will extend to nine models, which will increase the number of options for the brand lovers. Coming to the global arena, the British auto maker is expected to introduce 14 new models, which will further consolidate the position of JLR globally.
The line up of new models is expected to include the much hyped Jaguar F-Type, which happens to be an all new sports car. It will be then followed by the reworked models of XF and XJ. Reportedly, the luxury car maker has been investing a massive amount of 2.75 billion pounds in the development of its new products.
On the new launches, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of JLR, Ralf Speth said that the auto maker reported a growth of 32 per cent from the Indian auto market during 2012. However, it is quite difficult to predict any growth figures for 2013 as the increase in import and excise duty on luxury car models to 100 per cent from 75 per cent will surely hurt the sentiments of domestic buyers. “We expect a huge growth in India and it is soon becoming very interesting and unlike China which is more or less flat,” he added later.
Speth also said that the JLR is planning to share its engineering and technology of new powertrain with the parent company, Tata Motors, which it is currently developing. According to sources, the auto maker has invested more than 500 million pounds in the development of its new engine production plant, which is anticipated to get ready for the manufacturing by the end of 2015. This new facility will support JLR’s long term strategic growth plans and will also help it in developing new generation technology for light weight petrol and diesel engines.
Besides, the auto maker is also heavily investing in the development of all-aluminium cars, which can witness some boost with the sound presence of Tata Motors. Speaking on this, Speth was quoted as saying, “Without the Tata Group, JLR would not have survived. They not only helped us when we needed, they also pumped in money when nobody was giving us, so we owe a lot to them.”
