It is of course now confirmed that the Indian conglomerate Tata is the proud owner of two traditionally British marques, Land Rover and Jaguar. Apparently this all came to conclusion over months of painstaking negotiations, along with several new cars from the various marques such as Tata’s Nano (shown, the ultra small, ultra cheap new Indian transport) and the Jaguar XF.
Ford (the owner of Land Rover and Jaguar previously) hadn’t commented on the financial performance of the two companies, but it’s probably fair to say that Jaguar was losing money whilst Land Rover was on the making money side of things after clocking up record sales in the last three years.
For those interested in the finance side of things, the overall cost came to a staggering £1.15 billion. Quite, quite incredible money. More of a pressing concern is the fact that both Jaguar and Land Rover employ staff to the tune of about 16,000 at UK plants in the West Midlands and Merseyside. What will become of their jobs? Of course, it will be cheaper to manufacture abroad. Will Jaguar, as a luxury marque, survive this sort of change?
As is the current relationship, Ford will continue to supply Jaguar and Land Rover with engines, stampings and car components along with various technologies. This is important for continuity as well as of course reliability – do you want a Tata engine? Probably not.
So what should Tata be doing with their new IP’s then? Well, a few things. First, we’ve seen the F-Type appearing here and there as an interesting concept. Porsche is currently selling the Boxster on the original 50’s styling. Tata should capitalise on this and take advantage of the ‘new/retro’ vibe that’s going on.
Diesel power is a requirement these days – whether we like it or not. Tata’s range of Land Rover and Jaguar needs to encompass mid and top range diesels in order to appeal to the modern day market. I’m not going to ask for an electric Jaguar XJ mind you, but some versatility is required in what they supply.
So, what has Tata bought, and should they be pleased with it? Well, I’m not about to say it’s a bargain purchase, but I will say that they are two of the best-known marques in the automotive industry. Okay, so Jaguar might have a bit of an ‘old man’ reputation and Land Rover must, and I mean MUST shrug off the ‘it’ll break down on you all the time’ reputation. I mean that’s gone beyond a joke; some have said they’re worse than Alfa Romeo.
Nonetheless, you have two British car brands that are arguably the best known in the world with an amazing heritage. We know Tata is flexible and the Nano is sure to bring in significant revenue. Will they be able to handle these new car ranges though? Well, that remains to be seen. What I will say though is they’re a strange fit. Odd bedfellows if you will. I also have reservations on how the Nano will impact our global environment.
Regardless, for Land Rover and Jaguar the future’s bright. The future is Indian.
Leave a Reply