It’s been more than three years since Jaguar Land Rover outlined its “Reimagine” strategy about embracing electrification. The most controversial bullet point of the plan was about Jaguar becoming EV-only by 2025. That brings us to a new announcement made by a JLR spokesperson in an interview with Automotive News Europe. Before the end of this year, the axe will fall on six cars.
The XE, XF sedan, XF wagon, F-Type, E-Pace, and I-Pace are all going to be discontinued. Initially, Jaguar had said the electric SUV would soldier on alongside the new wave of EVs. However, the company changed its mind and revealed last year the I-Pace would also be killed off together with the gas cars.
Why the rush? Jaguar CEO Adrian Mardell told investors these six models are barely making the company any money, generating “close to zero profitability.” He went as far as to call them “lower value” products. The top brass was brutally honest while speaking with investors, saying that “none of those are vehicles on which we made any money.” To that end, the final F-Type has already been built.
By killing no fewer than six models, Jaguar’s lineup will be simplified to just one vehicle. Only the F-Pace is sticking around but its days are numbered as well given the all-electric strategy that’s about to unfold. A concept car arrives later this year to preview the EV era with a gran tourer that’ll cost over £100,000 (about $130,000 at current exchange rates). A big SUV is also reportedly in the works as well.
JLR is pushing Jaguar upmarket by choosing to focus on lower-volume, higher-profit cars in a bid to go after Bentley. However, the major difference between the two British automakers is that the VW Group brand will continue to sell ICE cars into the next decade. The original plan was to go purely electric by 2030 but the goal was recently delayed by three years.
Tata Motors-owned JLR wants the overhauled Jaguar marque to sell fewer than 50,000 cars annually. All future models will be underpinned by the long-wheelbase JEA electric vehicle platform developed specifically for the troubled brand. The new EVs are expected to have rear-wheel steering, all-wheel drive, and fast-charging capabilities.
A fresh design language with a focus on minimalism is said to make the new models look almost nothing like the outgoing ICE cars. According to Autocar magazine, the iconic leaping cat emblem is reportedly going away, making room for the “Jaguar” name to be spelled out like so many other automakers are doing these days.
Jaguar is making a huge bet by going all-in on EVs while others are having second thoughts about this type of strategy. In addition to dropping combustion engines, the struggling brand is deliberately risking selling fewer cars by substantially increasing prices as it rebrands itself as a Bentley competitor.
Time will tell whether the strategy is going to work given the radical changes at Jaguar to enter an increasingly more competitive EV high-end segment.