Jag's stillborn supercharged savior
Autoweek wrote up a compelling exposé on an internal movement at Jaguar that might have boosted profits and added some sporting credentials to the troubled marque.
The entire report is well worth the read, but the quick-and-dirty version involved slapping superchargers onto every model in the Jag lineup and pushing these high performance models as the new face of Jaguar. The rationale for this plan was simple: Jaguar's R-badged offerings made more money per unit, for both the automaker and the dealers, than any of their other models and if they could make Jag the "supercharged" brand, there might have been a light at the end of the financially troubled tunnel.
During the exploratory phase, Jag's engineers worked up a few supercharged X-type prototypes while the marketing crew was hard at work trying to gear advertising towards their new mission statement.
In the end, the X-types were either crushed or thrown into storage, numbers didn't crunch as intended, executives began getting squeamish -- especially at the prospect of the inevitable comparos between Jaguar and other high- performance luxury brands (ahem, BMW), and eventually, the entire plan was shelved. Considering that the goal was to make Jaguar a niche player, selling a small amount of unique vehicles at a profit, it's disappointing to see that the brand is now just selling a small amount of vehicles.
[Source: Autoweek]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Justin 8:55AM (2/07/2007)
Jag just needs better vehicles. Upgrading them with superchargers is lazy and not the way to go.
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Richard 8:59AM (2/07/2007)
A make that I have always wanted, not too high on my dream cars list but superchargers under each hood would help that. It would take some time, but supercharge each car, let the old ones die out, and soon you will be in Aston Martin territory. Expensive enough to keep volume low, but still profitable. And the rarity of the vehicles would make them more desirable. Should have done it, now you will just die off like most of the other British makes...
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JayP 9:42AM (2/07/2007)
Maybe the XTypeR prototypes will pop up in 5-10 years. Old British prototypes are always interesting and a cobbled up X/R/M3wannabe/SuperMondeo has got to look like a beast.
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Doug R 10:22AM (2/07/2007)
The car market is a tough nut to crack. The best economy in history and so many of them are having trouble. Spare me the "Honda and Toyota is so much better". There is a substantial amount of quality in most of the brands that are having trouble.
Wasn't there a buying frenzy a few years ago? Could it be folks aren't buying new cars every few years as in the past? More of a general understanding of depreciation? What's the used car market like these days? I don't know, but it sucks for the auto industry.
I know the economy cars are doing better thanks to the enivronmental wackos convincing everyone we're destroying the world. SUVs and bigger vehicles won't die off though. Many folks (in particular families) are beginning to figure out that they can't carry the kids and do all their errands in the same trip. The econo-boxes require multiple ventures to accomplish what the old Suburban could do. This means absolutely no saving of fuel and wasting huge chunks of time.
I certainly hope things change for the better before any more historic names go by the way side. If I was obscenely wealthy I'd be buying vehicles, just to try to help out (especially american).
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tikirob 9:35AM (2/07/2007)
I would love to able to buy a car in this price range and jag is a nice car but there are better and if I were to pay this much I would make sure I would get the best option. They need to address some other problems, I hate reading review on a car in this segment and see the words "could be better" referring to the interior materials.
Rob
http://www.autoshortlist.com
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Oliver 10:44AM (2/07/2007)
X Type is their best seller. An R would be a good incentive to walk into a Jag showroom.
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Mike 10:20AM (2/07/2007)
I'll never understand how a car company with a following and mystique such as Jaguar can continue to do so poorly...actually yes I do it comes from Ford not understanding their customer.
As a Jag lover I want luxury (not excessive luxury just luxury), performance (doesn't have to be fast, just quick), and style (not extreme but not regal)...and a price below MB and BMW (on par with Audi is acceptable). I think the former S-Type R is a good example of this but coulda been cheaper considering the Ford-ish interior.
Jag needs a smaller, quicker E-Type variant (XK is bloated) and a more powerful, more stylish sedan (the XJ while loved by me has seen its last days).
As for the post on Jag's failed supercharging plans, that was a genius idea I can't believe they let that one whither.
I pray daily for the Jag's return to the classy, nimble, powerful cars they once were.
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Paul Read 12:42PM (2/07/2007)
The X is the best seller, but still way below expectations/hopes. The margin per vehicle is also lowest. Adding a supercharger and adjusting the brakes/suspension etc. would have cost more per unit, but the higher perceived value would have meant a better margin.
Back in 2002 there was talk of an X-Type R being in the works, but that failed to arrive. We got diesels instead. Margin was sacrificed for volume, oil-burners being very popular in Europe. So, in a way, US sales were sacrificed for European sales.
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felonious monk 1:35PM (2/07/2007)
What's wrong with Jag can be summed up by this:
In the 80s, the mere mention of "Jaguar" conjured up images of IMSA and prototype endurance racing domination. Today, it conjures up images of metrosexuals males, males who play for the other team, and old has-been trophy wives with big perms and 6 tons of makeup.
An organization can't be "bold" if management doesn't have balls.
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