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Jaguar Land Rover creates new Special Operations division for halo vehicles, bespoke commissions

Jaguar Land Rover has announced that a new division of the British manufacturer will be dedicated to "bespoke commissions," as well as heritage products and apparel. Oh, and the new Special Operations division will also be behind JLR's halo cars from now on.
It's that last one that is the most tantalizing, as the last real halo product to see production from Jaguar was the XJ220. The Range Rover, meanwhile, has always had its own kind of halo reputation, although the Land Rover brand itself has never really gotten into the game with a dedicated model.
According to JLR, the new halo models will focus on ultra-high performance and luxury with a limited run of vehicles. The bespoke models, meanwhile, will give the wealthiest customers full sway over how vehicles are outfitted, with unique paints, trims and other accessories. The new SpecOps division will be run by John Edwards.

Jaguar-Land Rover rules out downsizing into new segments

Jaguar-Land Rover (JLR) will continue expanding its portfolio of models during the 2020s, but the group confirmed it won't chase volume by branching out into smaller segments like its German rivals. The two brands will instead seek partnerships to generate economies of scale. "We should not and will not drive down into segments just to get economies of scale," said Felix Brautigam, Jaguar-Land Rover's chief commercial officer, in an interview with Autocar. He added the second-generation Range Rover Evoque (pictured) released in 2018 is already a relatively small car. It stretches 172 inches from bumper to bumper and 75 inches from side to side, so it's approximately 4 inches longer and 5 inches wider than the eighth-generation Volkswagen Golf. It's about 8 inches taller than the German hatchback, however. While that's small by luxury car standards, Mercedes-Benz and BMW respectively went smaller with their Smart and Mini brands. Audi doesn't have an entry-level sub-brand, but it doesn't need to because it's part of the gigantic Volkswagen Group. Japanese luxury firms like Lexus and Infiniti are also part of bigger companies. Brautigam's comments bury numerous rumors. They confirm Jaguar won't take on the Mercedes-Benz A-Class, the Audi A3, and the BMW 1 Series with a model positioned below the XE, which competes against the C-Class, the A4, and the 3 Series, respectively. They also douse cold water on the born-again Freelander (which ultimately morphed into the LR2 in America), which Land Rover was allegedly developing to slot directly below the aforementioned Evoque. Ironically, JLR might soon have access to platforms capable of underpinning smaller vehicles. Parent company Tata Motors is actively looking for an outside company to link arms with the British brands, according to a separate report. Officials reportedly approached BMW -- which used to own Land Rover, and announced a joint-venture with the group in 2019 -- and Geely, the Chinese giant whose portfolio of brands includes Volvo, Polestar, Lotus, Proton, London Taxi Company, Terrafugia, and half of Smart, plus a sizeable, nearly-10% stake in Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler. Geely told Bloomberg it hasn't heard from Tata or JLR. BMW and Tata remained silent. While a partnership with someone looks likely considering the significant hurdles faced by JLR, its parent company has categorically ruled out selling the duo it purchased from Ford for $2.3 billion in 2008.

Strong JLR sales in China boost Tata Motors' quarterly profit

BENGALURU, India — Tata Motors Ltd on Friday posted a 67.2% surge in quarterly profit. Sales at its luxury car unit, Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), improved in key market China as the country led a recovery in the global automobile industry from the pandemic. The Indian carmaker had logged losses for three straight quarters as the COVID-19 pandemic dented business in several of its key markets even as it was already dealing with uncertainties around Brexit, weak demand and rising costs. The Brexit trade deal agreed upon in December has avoided the risk of tariffs on automotive parts and finished vehicles, Tata Motors said, adding that JLR remains encouraged by the Brexit trade deal. JLR sales in China jumped 20.2% on-quarter and were 19.1% higher from the year-ago period. Retail sales at the unit, which accounts for most of the company's revenue, were up 13.1% from a quarter ago, but still 9% lower than pre-pandemic levels. The company said it had saved 400 million pounds ($548.96 million) during the December quarter at JLR under Project Charge, taking the total savings to 2.2 billion pounds so far. Tata Motors has set a full-year target of saving 2.5 billion pounds. Consolidated net profit came in at 29.06 billion rupees ($398.52 million) for the third quarter, compared with a profit of 17.38 billion rupees a year earlier. It had reported a loss of 3.14 billion rupees in the previous quarter. The festive season in mid-November, during which Indians typically make big-ticket purchases, also helped overall sales. "Due to a strong festive season and a clear preference for personal mobility, the PV business posted its highest sales in last 33 quarters," Tata Motors Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director Guenter Butschek said. Total revenue from operations rose 5.5% to 756.54 billion rupees.