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Tata to shed 1,100 Jaguar Land Rover jobs after coronavirus hits earnings

BENGALURU — India's Tata Motors Ltd expects to shed about 1,100 temporary jobs at Jaguar Land Rover after it raised the cost-cutting target at its luxury unit by 1 billion pounds ($1.26 billion) to ride out the disruptions caused by the coronavirus outbreak. Tata Motors expects to save 5 billion pounds in costs by March 2021 at its Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) unit, the Indian automaker's Chief Financial Officer PB Balaji said on Monday, adding 3.5 billion pounds of the savings had already been achieved. It will also reduce capital expenditure at JLR to 2.5 billion pounds for the current fiscal year, from the more than 3 billion pounds it has spent annually in previous years. "Conserving cash and prioritizing capital expenditure, and targeting investment spending to the right areas is our focus," Balaji told reporters, after the company posted a fourth quarter loss. We anticipate that up to 1,100 agency employees will be affected, a JLR spokeswoman said in a separate statement. Tata Motors is reviewing all its businesses and would consider exiting those that do not add strategic value, as part of a broader effort to save 60 billion rupees ($789 million) in its domestic business in the fiscal year to 2021. The automaker on Monday posted a consolidated fourth quarter net loss of 98.94 billion rupees, as coronavirus lockdowns across its markets ravaged sales, including at JLR. Total revenue from operations fell 27.7% to 624.93 billion rupees in the quarter, which ended March 31. JLR, which contributes the bulk of Tata Motors' revenues, reported a pre-tax loss of 501 million pounds for the period after it took a hit of 800 million pounds because of the novel coronavirus, Balaji said. He said there were signs sales were recovering in China, one of JLR's biggest markets, as well as in the United States and in Europe, with strong orders for Land Rover's sport-utility vehicle Defender and Range Rover's Evoque. JLR's boss Ralf Speth, who has led the company since 2010, will step down from his role at the end of his contract term in September. ($1 = 76.0446 Indian rupees) ($1 = 0.7954 pounds) (Reporting by Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru and Aditi Shah in New Delhi; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Sriraj Kalluvila)

2019 BMW X7 vs luxury SUV rivals: Comparing specs and photos

Today we get our first-ever look at the first-ever 2019 BMW X7 crossover. We've actually already had our first-ever drive in an X7 Prototype. And so, we thought it appropriate to follow that up today with the first-ever X7 comparison of specs between BMW's first-ever three-row crossover with legitimate room for seven and its many high-dollar competitors. On paper, the 2019 X7 definitely seems to most closely align with the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class. Their similar dimensions, interior space, engine choices and price would certainly imply where BMW placed the target when developing X7. We used those same elements to determine three-row vehicles likely to be cross-shopped or that should be cross-shopped. These include the Audi Q7, Land Rover Discovery, Volvo XC90 and Lincoln Navigator. Yes, the latter is a truck-based SUV as opposed to a crossover, but tell that to all the people lining out the door at the local Lincoln emporium. They do not care, and neither shall we. We also included the 2019 BMW X5, which was completely redesigned for this year and therefore not the first-ever. That makes it less appealing? Either way, lining the new X5 up with the SUV that leapfrogs it atop BMW's SUV hierarchy should provide a good idea of just how much more you get by going up a model number. Engines and model lineup Again, the X7 aligns closest with the GLS, offering a base six-cylinder in its xDrive40i model and an upgrade turbo V8 in the xDrive50i. The Mercedes engines have greater output, but the GLS still accelerates slower than the BMW. As the 2019 X5 offers the exact same engines, we would also expect the X7's fuel economy to be superior to the GLS once its estimates are announced. It should be noted, though, that the GLS offers a high-powered AMG model whereas we anticipate the X7 to offer a plug-in hybrid model comparable to the X5 upcoming xDrive45e model. The other luxury SUVs diverge in their engine choices and model lineup. The Audi Q7 offers a base turbocharged four-cylinder, as does the Volvo XC90 in its T5 model, which we left out of the above chart entirely for space reasons. That the Q7 3.0 TFSI supercharged V6 gets the same fuel economy estimates as the four-cylinder is proof positive that engine is purely around for its lower base price.

European automakers gear up for Brazilian production

Brazil is the place to be, apparently. Toyota has been investing in the South American country, as has BMW, which announced a $261 million investment in October 2012, on the heels of an Audi factory announcement in San José Chiapa. The high-end immigration is only set to continue, as Mercedes-Benz and Jaguar-Land Rover have both announced plans to set up manufacturing operations there.
Mercedes is the big news here, as its new facility will see the German manufacturer invest 170-million euros for production of its next-generation C-Class and upcoming GLA-Class. "Brazil is an important future market. With our local production we accept the challenge and take on the competition," noted Andreas Renschler, Management Board member for Production and Procurement at Mercedes-Benz Cars and Mercedes-Benz Vans. Production is expected to begin by 2016.
Jaguar-Land Rover, meanwhile, isn't so concrete in its plans. The news of its investment in South America comes from a job posting for a plant quality manager in Brazil that was picked up by the UK's AutoCar. "Portuguese language skills will be definite advantage" for interested candidates, according to the job listing. The want ad follows on the heels of remarks by Jaguar Land Rover's Dr. Ralph Speth, who said there are "very intensive discussions" with Brazil's government. Unlike Mercedes, there's no mention of which vehicles will be produced in South America, although AutoCar thinks the Freelander, sold in the US as the LR2, is a leading contender.