Jaguar-Land Rover has been in the midst of a massive series of brand expansions over the past decade, and the process seems to be far from over.
Per Autocar, the subsidiary of Indian-owned conglomerate Tata Group plans to totally revamp all of its existing models, while adding three entirely new products to the marketplace, as well.
Arguably two of England’s most famous manufacturers, Jaguar and Land Rover by the late 1990s developed a reputation for building unreliable iterations of the same products with little to differentiate new offerings from the luxurious sedans, boxy off-roaders, and increasingly opulent SUVs of the previous few decades. The new millennium represented a period of major changes, with Jaguar returning to both a sports car focus and futuristic exterior design — as the F-Type coupe was joined by the addition of the successful F-Pace and E-Pace SUV models.
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Land Rover, meanwhile, updated both the Land Rover Discovery and the Range Rover in an attempt to further corner the high-end luxury SUV market. With the addition of the Evoque and Velar models, the brand’s lineup expanded with more appearing to be on the way.
The latest news out of Jaguar-Land Rover has focused on the adoption of electric motors, which Jaguar has pioneered in Formula E competition, and the forthcoming I-Pace should take a spot as one of the world’s premier all-electric SUVs in direct competition with Tesla’s Model X. Meanwhile, the nature of shared platforms across the two brands suggests that Land Rover may soon follow suit.
In the meantime, Land Rover may be soon unveiling its first sedan or station wagon. The outright design hasn’t been confirmed, but either way the newly minted trademark Road Rover sounds likely to represent a tectonic shift in Land Rover’s goals. A revamped Evoque, as well as further model year changes to the tried and true Land Rover and Range Rover models, should hit streets for the 2020 model year.
Technological advances will play a key role as Jaguar-Land Rover moves into the future, with the use of all-electric, hybrid plug-in, and turbocharged power-plants all likely to replace the inefficient V8 engines that are disappearing from the market at such a rapid clip. Expect to hear more from the English group later this fall at the Los Angeles Auto Show.