British car brand to scrap FIVE models from lineup within months ahead of shift to luxury EVs
JAGUAR are set to cut five car models from its range this year in a brutal cull, as the British brand pushes further into luxury all-electric territory.
According to a report by Automotive News Europe, Jaguar Land Rover‘s CEO Adrian Mardell has claimed the motors set for the chopping blocks all represent “close to zero profitability.”
Speaking at an investor’s day, Mardell revealed that the XE, XF, F-Type, E-Pace and I-Pace have all reached the end of the road as the manufacturer completes its transformation to a luxury all-electric brand.
Of the current line-up, only the F-Pace will remain in production with three all-new EVs to be unveiled next year – with the first said to be an all-electric grand tourer that will rival the Porsche Taycan.
In the report, Mardell said: “We are eliminating five products, all lower value.
“None of those are vehicles on which we made any money, so we are replacing them with new vehicles on newly designed architectures.”
Indeed, JLR sold 21,943 F-Pace models last year compared to just 7,897 E-Paces and 4,874 I-Paces, according to figures posted by Autocar.
That gap between the F-Pace and the rest of Jaguar‘s range has grown further in the first half of 2024, with JLR’s sales numbers dominated by the Range Rover, Range Rover Sport and Land Rover Defender.
The brand has yet to confirm an official end date for the five models.
Jaguar, which has created iconic motors since 1935, has already scaled back its production of its current range of cars within recent months.
The XE, XF and F-Type models, produced at Castle Bromwich, were halted in May, while the hybrid E-Pace and the electric I-Pace will be finished by the end of December.
Back in 2022, Jaguar Land Rover committed to achieving net zero across its entire manufacturing process by 2039.
To this end, the company is heavily investing in EVs in a bid to cut carbon emissions on its products.
Jag will then transition to an all-electric lineup in 2025, ditching petrol and diesel power altogether.
As reported by Sun Motors in March, a spokesperson for Jaguar Land Rover said: “As JLR transitions to its electric future, current Jaguar production at our Castle Bromwich site will come to an end in June 2024.
“Our UK production facilities are being reconfigured to produce JLR’s next-generation electric models, this includes the stampings operation at Castle Bromwich which will be expanded to manufacture body panels for all our brands.
“Jaguar will begin an exciting new era as a pure-electric modern luxury brand with production commencing at our Solihull facility from 2025.”
Little is known about Jag’s upcoming electric car, with its design yet to be unveiled.
Speaking at the investor day, JLR’s chief creative officer Gerry McGovern teased fans, with: “Imagine something that you’ve never seen before that looks like it’s dropped from the sky.
“That’s how different these Jaguars are going to be.”
First deliveries are expected in 2025, with the price reportedly set to start at £100,000.
Meanwhile, fans of sporty Jaguars will be fascinated by the revived XJS model with an eye-watering £225,000 price tag.
And the soon-to-be-scraped XE model has a big fan in the form of Top Gear legend Jeremy Clarkson – who once described the motor as feeling “like a £100,000 car.”