[RG59061]

JAGUAR TO BE SPUN OFF BY TATA IMMEDIATELY AFTER ACQUISITION

Jaguar's future may not be quite so certain after all. According to insider reports, as soon as Tata Motors of India acquires Jaguar from Ford, it will spin it off in order to just retain the true gem of the deal...Land Rover. So where does this leave Jaguar? Only time will tell. For the full details, please see the article below courtesy of Left Lane News.com.

Tata planning to sell Jaguar soon after acquisition?
February 19th, 2008​

India's Tata Motors emerged as the preferred bidder for Ford's Jaguar and Land Rover brands, but it looks as though Tata prefers one luxury marque over the other. A new report finds that Tata will likely sell off the Jaguar brand as soon as it acquires it from Ford.

"Jaguar will be spun off almost immediately," a source familiar with the situation told Inside Line. The news will likely catch Britain's labor unions off guard as they supported the sale of the brands to Tata in order to keep jobs in the UK.

The Land Rover brand has far more support from Tata, but that doesn't necessarily mean that Land Rover's production will stay entirely — if at all — in the UK. The same source also told Inside Line that company head Ratan Tata has purchased a 450-acre plot of land outside New Delhi where he plans to build a Land Rover production facility.

While Tata or Ford has yet to comment on the report, it appears as though the future of Jaguar will remain in question — even after its exchanges owners.

As Always...Stay Fabulous!
RG59061

 

[MERCURYSABLE08]

Poor kitty nobody wants it.

I don't understand why Jaguar doesn't sell good I certainly think they have a very nice lineup of cars.

 

[ndwariga]

If I were GM I would buy this Brand and tie it up with Cadillac. But my interest would only be its aluminum technology, and I would use it to increase volume, and use the XJ to actually build my own S Class.
The goal would be Move Jaguar above 100K and have caddy move up to around 120K... then together we could make some money.
Jaguar will be had for less than a billion if Tata gets rid of it. Making it very attractive.

 

[B.R.]

Wonder why Tata won't give Jag a chance after seeing the 10 000 pre orders for the XF. It seems though if Jag can somehow manage to make every car in their line up look XK/XF-ish (but not too close) they might be on their way back.

 

[ndwariga]

Wonder why Tata won't give Jag a chance after seeing the 10 000 pre orders for the XF. It seems though if Jag can somehow manage to make every car in their line up look XK/XF-ish (but not too close) they might be on their way back.

Jaguar in my opinion can only succeed if its paired with someone else to build volume. So, a Jaguar, Cadillac, Saab Buick idea makes sense..
Each might move only 150,0000 units around the world, but with underpinnings and systems sharing, at a healthy amount of units.

 

[B.R.]

Jaguar in my opinion can only succeed if its paired with someone else to build volume. So, a Jaguar, Cadillac, Saab Buick idea makes sense..
Each might move only 150,0000 units around the world, but with underpinnings and systems sharing, at a healthy amount of units.

Isn't this exactly what GM is trying to get away from? They already have overlapping brands and to have Jag and Caddy doesn't really make sense. To have Jag and Cadillac together means two brands that are targeting the same audience and competition (BMW, Audi, Merc etc...) so why would GM want to do that when Cadillac is well on it's way to compete head to head with the Germans already? Although it's just what I think, anything is possible at this point.

 

[1931Chevy]

It looks like the union will get screwed and thats why they want Ford to keep a piece of Jag and LR , I know that LR and Jag will need money for investment for future products but **** why they didnt make a platform that could be used between the Expy,Nav and LR3 or a platform that could be shared between the Explorer and RR and dont tell me it couldnt be done or that doing that could hurt LR or cheapen the brand because if Porsche can do it with the Cayenne and the VW mate it could be possible to do it

 

[RG59061]

I really think that Ford should just pull Jaguar out of the deal and keep it.

With the new XF already securing 10,000 pre-orders and the future redesign of the XJ...along with the strong sales of the XK...well need I say more. Jaguar is on the verge of a product renaissance.

Jaguar is about to become far more lucrative and far more valuable. Ford could easily merge its dealers in with Lincoln and Mercury, or with Volvo.

But for the love of all that is holy, keep Ian Callum in charge of Jaguar Design.

Stay Fabulous!
RG59061

 

[1931Chevy]

If I was Ford I would take LR back and merge LR platform with Ford trucks but let the british design them

 

[megeebee]

I really think that Ford should just pull Jaguar out of the deal and keep it.

With the new XF already securing 10,000 pre-orders and the future redesign of the XJ...along with the strong sales of the XK...well need I say more. Jaguar is on the verge of a product renaissance.

Jaguar is about to become far more lucrative and far more valuable. Ford could easily merge its dealers in with Lincoln and Mercury, or with Volvo.

But for the love of all that is holy, keep Ian Callum in charge of Jaguar Design.

Stay Fabulous!
RG59061

Jaguar is a bottomless money pit compared to LR. 10,0000 XF's are a great start, but it's not THAT many. Certainly not enough to pay for its own development and the re designing of all the other product. No. It's hopeless as far as Ford is concerned. Someone will buy the name and some of the assests of Jaguar. It will be "parted out" so to speak. Some company, somewhere will build something called a Jaguar. But Ford cannot afford the investment necessary to re make Jag again. Ford has already sunk tens of billions in Jag and lost most of it.


HOW is it about to become more lucrative or valuable? One new sedan? Nope.


And the current crop of Jag dealers aren't simply going to give up their franchises just because the factory tells them to. That's just niaeve. Franchises are protected by state laws written to protect the dealers (Ask GM about their Olds dealers). And to expect a Jaguar customer to spend $50-70K for a car in a cubicle next to someone else paying $25K for a Milan is simply bad business. This is the chief reason VW failed to sell their Phaeton here. Merging would be niether easy or smart.

Ian Callum has designed, what, 3 cars for Jag? The XJ, XK and the XF. The XK is doing only about what its predecessor did, maybe less. The XJ is selling decidedly poorer than the car it replaced. The XF has a lot of deposits, and that's great. But what about next year, and the next. Niether of his other designs have passed that test. Design is the problem at Jaguar. We know it's not performance or quality.

 

[RG59061]

Jaguar is a bottomless money pit compared to LR. 10,0000 XF's are a great start, but it's not THAT many. Certainly not enough to pay for its own development and the re designing of all the other product. No. It's hopeless as far as Ford is concerned. Someone will buy the name and some of the assests of Jaguar. It will be "parted out" so to speak. Some company, somewhere will build something called a Jaguar. But Ford cannot afford the investment necessary to re make Jag again. Ford has already sunk tens of billions in Jag and lost most of it.


HOW is it about to become more lucrative or valuable? One new sedan? Nope.


And the current crop of Jag dealers aren't simply going to give up their franchises just because the factory tells them to. That's just niaeve. Franchises are protected by state laws written to protect the dealers (Ask GM about their Olds dealers). And to expect a Jaguar customer to spend $50-70K for a car in a cubicle next to someone else paying $25K for a Milan is simply bad business. This is the chief reason VW failed to sell their Phaeton here. Merging would be niether easy or smart.

Ian Callum has designed, what, 3 cars for Jag? The XJ, XK and the XF. The XK is doing only about what its predecessor did, maybe less. The XJ is selling decidedly poorer than the car it replaced. The XF has a lot of deposits, and that's great. But what about next year, and the next. Niether of his other designs have passed that test. Design is the problem at Jaguar. We know it's not performance or quality.

The fact that the Volkswagen Phaeton was being sold in a dealership next to a $25,000 Passat is irrelevant! The Phaeton is from Volkswagen and the fact that it cost between $75,000 to over $100,000 is the primary reason that American Consumers never caught on. There were other concerns and technical issues that VW did not address fast enough, and therefore the reputation was ruined. But for $75,000 to $100,000...most would look next door at Audi at an A8 for the same money and the Audi cache. Or they would see a Mercedes S-Class or a BMW 7-Series or the Jaguar XJ and save some green while getting a car that has the luxury panache.

Besides, VW is seriously trying to re-launch the Phaeton in the US and bring it in at a more respectable price. So it will be back and will still compete with the big dogs.

But, as for merging Jaguar Dealerships, if you were to combine some of the slower selling Jaguar and Volvo dealerships, that has the potential to boost their volume and their combined sales while helping to keep them from collapsing individually. Also, and I have seen this happen in Los Angeles and here in Scottsdale where we have the Penske Auto Groups North Scottsdale complex. Customers come in and go to the Acura Dealership or the Volvo Dealership yet just next door in the same building is Jaguar and they have the new XF sitting out front and they walk next door to get hands on with it. You would be amazed at how busy North Scottsdale Jaguar is right now with the new XF.

****, I had to stop by the Volvo Dealership the other day and was told they will be closing in a few months. This is the prefect example, combine them in with a complimentary luxury marque to bolster the bottom line and to help spread out the costs involved in selling lower volume luxury cars. Jaguar would be a great combination. Volvo is more of an understated entry-lux marque...while Jaguar is the consummate British luxury car brand that is on the path to re-birth. But it is also a low volume car line, and that is what Ian Callum is hoping the XF can change for Jaguar, were the underwhelming X-Type just failed. Few other Jaguars have ever had 10,000 pre-orders before the car was debuted...but the XF has created a buzz about it and that will be a benefit to Jaguar dealers...they will get more foot traffic. Will it be at Toyota volume...no, but more business for Jaguar is a good thing and with the XF, Jaguar can finally take on the big boys like Audi, BMW, and Mercedes.

Thanks for your input and your views. I always love this kind of conversation and debate.

Stay Fabulous!
RG59061