Jaguar has eschewed plans to release an SUV model as part of its new model offensive over the next three years, but is reportedly exploring the possibility of a lightweight crossover.
In a recent interview with Car Advice, Jaguar’s design director Ian Callum put pay to rumours that the company was considering a full-sized SUV as part of its new model offensive between now and 2016.
“I can categorically say that an SUV, as such, is out of the question. We have a sister company [Land Rover] that produces the best SUVs in the world.” However, he hinted there maybe “some grey areas in between we could investigate.”
This “grey area” appears to be occupied by a crossover that could be the product of Jaguar Land Rover CEO Ralph Speth’s desire to aggressively pursue breakthroughs in product development. Given the success that Jaguar’s sister firm Land Rover is enjoying with its Evoque compact SUV, tied in with Jaguar’s parent company Tata doubling its investment to the tune of R15 billion and being granted greater freedom regarding its acquisition’s model line-up, the conditions are ripe for a new addition to the fold.
It’s still early days, but it looks as though a couple of options are open to Jaguar regarding a compact crossover. One is to make it a variant based on the company’s upcoming 3 Series rival, possibly utilizing an all-aluminium body construction. Another is to share the Evoque platform and develop a stand-alone crossover – possibly with the option of utilizing a front-wheel drivetrain set-up to meet the escalating fuel and emissions tax costs. Regardless of which underpinnings the crossover adopts, it will reportedly lift its styling cues from the eye-catching C-C16 concept, being more aggressive and angular than contemporary offerings.
“We have full kit in the group to do what we want to do,” said Jaguar global brand director Adrian Hallmark. “We dominate the SUV segment [with Land Rover] and we have an iconic SUV, so we don’t need it as Jaguar Land Rover, the company. But as Jaguar, we need to do something… it’s not the top priority, and not the last either, but it would give us more geographical growth.”
Jaguar’s new model offensive will include production versions of the C-X16 sportscar and the C-X75 eco-supercar by 2014, but the company’s long-awaited 3 Series/C-Class rivalling compact executive saloon, tentatively due in 2015, is said to be the main focus at present.
The compact executive saloon will reportedly be underpinned by a shortened version of Jaguar’s new aluminium Premium Lightweight Architecture’ set to form the foundations of a number of the firms future large car models, including the next-generation Range Rover, XF and XJ. According to Hallmark, the compact executive saloon could feature extensive aluminium construction – an aspect that he claims will offer a different proposition that costs more but is worth the extra outlay”.
