The Hindu Business Line : Jaguar, Land Rover: From utilitarian to premium

Innovation and resourcefulness were instilled in the Rover brand right from the beginning, as in post-war rationed Britain, aluminium replaced steel and paint left over from a fighter plane factory was used.

What does Tata Motors get with the JLR deal?

S. Muralidhar

Chennai, March 26 In many ways Tata Motors’ growth story in the field of passenger vehicles is similar to that of Jaguar and Land Rover, a story that is being rerun a few decades later.

From humble domestic beginnings to global ambitions and with products that were utilitarian and then grew up to be super premium, the stories of the transformation of these companies ring a tone of similarity.

In the case of Jaguar, its founder William Lyons, who was then designing motorcycle sidecars with his Swallow Sidecar Company, originally conceived the company in 1922. After a little over a decade of building special bodied cars and to better reflect the speed, sleekness and power of the company’s cars, the Jaguar brand was born.

During World War II, whilst concentrating primarily on the manufacture of sidecars for military use, the company also learnt aircraft design and production techniques. Jaguar later applied the learning from the war experience and subsequently introduced its new XK120 in 1948 – with an engine output of an unprecedented 160 bhp – it was destined to become one of the greatest sports cars of all time.

The Rover story

In 1947, Maurice Wilkes, a Technical Director for Rover Cars, detected a strong demand for utilitarian, ex-military 4x4 vehicles. The first Land Rover was conceived, built and designed a year later and launched in April 1948, at the Amsterdam Motor Show. Innovation and resourcefulness were instilled in the brand right from the beginning, as in post-war rationed Britain, aluminium replaced steel and paint left over from a fighter plane factory was used.

From this kind of a humble, utilitarian brand was born the very first luxury four-wheel drive vehicle. In the UK, the Land Rover was the 4x4 of choice. Seeing how people were using the cars prompted the company to develop a more civilized vehicle; one that felt as comfortable in the country as it did in the city.

The Range Rover was born in 1970, and sported a new V8 engine that was both lightweight and powerful. It had permanent four-wheel drive and independent suspension. At its introduction, the Range Rover became the fashionable 4x4 in Europe and was even displayed at the Louvre in Paris as automotive art. In 1987, the Range Rover was the most luxurious utility vehicle in North America and became a big hit.

By the end of the 80s, Land Rover needed a new model to compete with more car-like Japanese vehicles such as the Mitsubishi Pajero. And so, with the creature comforts of the Range Rover and the ruggedness of the original Land Rover, the Discovery was introduced.

Today Land Rover is a brand that is synonymous with luxury, ruggedness and extreme reliability. Its vehicles have crossed the most impenetrable jungles, lonely deserts and icy, barren stretches of the planet that explorers may not have attempted with any other vehicle. Land Rover has also been a vehicle of choice for the British royal family.

More Stories on : Cars | Mergers & Acquisitions | Overseas Investments | Tata Motors Ltd

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page