Jaguar Going All Electric By 2025, Cancels Electric XJ Sedan

by Matt Posky

Published: February 16th, 2021

jaguar going all electric by 2025 cancels electric xj sedan

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced that it plans to have transitioned the Jaguar side of the business entirely to electric vehicles by 2025. Meanwhile, the more profitable Land Rover brand will be receiving its very first EV sometime in 2024. The plan is backed by a £2.5 billion (roughly $3.5 billion USD) investment.

As usual, take these promises with a grain of salt. Practically every manufacturer has underdelivered when it comes to electrification and features existing under the catch-all mobility tag. Jaguar’s current battery-electric vehicle, the I-Pace, hasn’t exactly been a smash hit and its construction is actually contracted out to Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria. Jag also recently abandoned the new XJ model, which has been in development for years. Ironically, the car was supposed to become the brand’s first all-electric sedan.

That is definitely at odds with its plan of providing an electric-only future. But the company explained that the model designation probably won’t be scrapped and may even reappear under a new platform (dedicated entirely to EVs) that’s likely to underpin all future Jaguars.

While JLR leadership absolutely wants to frame it as though Land Rover will likewise be moving toward ditching the internal combustion engine, its entire business is devoted to maintaining its luxury appeal and rugged past. Frankly, EVs might not be a good fit for the brand until they’re capable of enduring the kind of severe abuse and off-road shenanigans modern Land Rover owners assume their car can. JLR may also be hedging its bets. If world governments are successful in their banning of liquid-fueled automobiles, Jaguar will suddenly become the hotter property. If not, Land Rover will be there to pick up the slack for the foreseeable future.

That’s assuming JLR stays in relatively good health, which has not been the case. But parent company Tata Motors announced that a better than anticipated sales recovery in China helped it turn a modest profit. Despite hemorrhaging cash and jobs at a rate that made it look as though the automaker was doomed, Tata announced JLR had turned a £439-million (pre-tax) profit in the final quarter of 2020. If it can maintain that momentum through what’s already shaping up to be another difficult year, then its restructuring has definitely been working. Otherwise, it will have to be placed on deathwatch.

Though don’t think everything hinges on electrification vs combustion. Much of the current dialogue automakers are sharing with the public involves bolstering services and connectivity. Often masked by bold promises about carbon reductions and pivoting powertrains, there’s usually some mention of leveraging connected services, data acquisition, and software development for future profits. Jaguar Land Rover said it would be cooperating with Tata on all fronts.

“Our vision is clear… to become the creator of the world’s most desirable luxury vehicles and services for the most discerning of customer,” JLR CEO Thierry Bolloré noted in the release.

[Image: JLR]

#ElectricVehicles #Electrification #EVs #I-Pace #Jaguar #JaguarLandRover #JaguarXJ #JLR #LandRover #Platforms #Tata #Restructuring #ProductPlanning #ThierryBolloré

Matt Posky

A staunch consumer advocate tracking industry trends and regulation. Before joining TTAC, Matt spent a decade working for marketing and research firms based in NYC. Clients included several of the world’s largest automakers, global tire brands, and aftermarket part suppliers. Dissatisfied with the corporate world and resentful of having to wear suits everyday, he pivoted to writing about cars. Since then, that man has become an ardent supporter of the right-to-repair movement, been interviewed on the auto industry by national radio broadcasts, driven more rental cars than anyone ever should, participated in amateur rallying events, and received the requisite minimum training as sanctioned by the SCCA. Handy with a wrench, Matt grew up surrounded by Detroit auto workers and managed to get a pizza delivery job before he was legally eligible. He later found himself driving box trucks through Manhattan, guaranteeing future sympathy for actual truckers. He continues to conduct research pertaining to the automotive sector as an independent contractor and has since moved back to his native Michigan, closer to where the cars are born. A contrarian, Matt claims to prefer understeer — stating that front and all-wheel drive vehicles cater best to his driving style.

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FreedMike on Feb 17, 2021

My first temptation is to say it's time for a Jaguar deathwatch, but I'll hold off. What if Jaguar can build electrics that look and feel like actual Jaguars? Load them up with a burled-wood interior and lots of leather, and sexy styling - i.e., all the stuff that's missing from the current lineup - and resist the temptation to do the silly Tesla-style Ipad dash, and maybe they have something. I mean, it can't be worse than what they're trying to sell these days. (Willing to give them the benefit of the doubt, but there's a LONG way to go here.)

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- Kendahl on Feb 17, 2021
  
  The centrally mounted laptop screen, instead of a proper instrument panel straight in front of the driver, kills the Model 3 for me.
  
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Tstag on Feb 20, 2021

There is a logic to going all electric for Jaguar by 2025. Firstly they will climb the reliability charts. Electric cars have few moving parts. That means Jaguar can get one over the German brands. Secondly by dropping cars like the XE they will increase margins. Thirdly for Jaguar the I pace is becoming a success. Unlike normal cars sales are getting stronger as the model ages, new models will let them double down. Basically the logic is there but it’s brave stuff

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FreedMike Not surprisingly, I have some ideas. What Cadillac needs, I think, is a statement. They don’t really have an identity. They’re trying a statement car with the Celestiq, and while that’s the right idea, it has the wrong styling and a really wrong price tag. So, here’s a first step: instead of a sedan, do a huge, fast, capable and ridiculously smooth and quiet electric touring coupe. If you want an example of what I’m thinking of, check out the magnificent Rolls-Royce Spectre. But this Cadillac coupe would be uniquely American, it’d be named “Eldorado,” and it’d be a lot cheaper than the $450,000 Spectre – call it a buck twenty-five, with a range of bespoke options for prospective buyers that would make each one somewhat unique. Make it 220 inches long, on the same platform as the Celestiq, give it retro ‘60s styling (or you could do a ‘50s or ‘70s throwback, I suppose), and at least 700 horsepower, standard. Why electric? It’s the ultimate throwback to ‘60s powertrains: effortlessly fast, smooth, and quiet, but with a ton more horsepower. It’s the perfect drivetrain for a dignified touring coupe. In fact, I’d skip any mention of environmental responsibility in this car’s marketing – sell it on how it drives, period.  How many would they sell? Not many. But the point of the exercise is to do something that will turn heads and show people what this brand can do.  Second step: give the lineup a mix of electric and gas models, and make Cadillac gas engines bespoke to the brand. If they need to use generic GM engine designs, fine – take those engines and massage them thoroughly into something special to Cadillac, with specific tuning and output. No Cadillac should leave the factory with an engine straight out of a Malibu or a four-banger Silverado. Third step: a complete line-wide interior redo. Stop the cheapness that’s all over the current sedans and crossovers. Just stop it. Use the Lyriq as a blueprint – it’s a big improvement over the current crop and a good first step. I’d also say Cadillac has a good blend of screen-controlled and switch-controlled user interfaces; don’t give into the haptic-touch and wall-to-wall screen thing. (On the subject of Caddy interiors – as much as I bag on the Celestiq, check out the interior on that thing. Wow.)Fourth step: Blackwing All The Things – some gas, others electric. And keep the electric/gas mix so buyers have a choice.Fifth step: be patient. That’s not easy, but if they’re doing a brand reset, it’ll take time. 
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Ajla Remember when Cadillac introduced an entirely new V8 and proceeded to install it in only 800 cars before cancelling everything?
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