Jaguar’s new electric vehicle platform will be built at the company, according to JLR (Jaguar Land Rover), revealing new details about its transition to a fully electric line from 2025 according to Jaguar Land Rover Reimagine’s plan.
JLR CEO Thierry Bollore originally said the company would externally look for an EV platform that is suitable enough to support a range of electric Jaguars, but JLR is now working on its own platform, Bollore said.
How it reports Autocar, Bollore said JLR cars, including Jaguars, need a platform that combines design proportions and capabilities not offered by other carmakers, citing both the MLA High platform of the new Range Rover and the future EMA platform for smaller Land Rovers.
“As far as the new Jaguar is concerned, a unique proportion is our priority. That is the reason why we are doing it alone at the moment, “Bollore said.
The new platform is called Panther, said Chief Financial Officer Adrian Mardell. Panther is the scientific name for a genus of big cats that includes jaguars, tigers, lions and leopards.
JLR’s decision to work alone on the platform instead of saving money on development by purchasing the platform is probably related to JLR chief designer Gerry McGovern’s demand that cars must look unique as the company moves the brand closer to Bentley in terms of pricing.
Bollore also said that JLR looks at “significantly” common elements on all future JLR platforms as it moves towards a future of smaller scale and greater value. “
“Proportions are key to getting what we want from a Jaguar,” Bollore told Autocar last year. “The platform is a consequence of the proportions we have chosen.”
Bollore explained that the plan for Jaguar is to create “different cars without overlapping”. It will be “truly modern luxury cars in style or design, state-of-the-art technology and sophistication, but not looking back.”
JLR is currently lagging behind in sales of purely electric vehicles, with Jaguar I-Pace accounting for only 3% of the company’s sales in the last financial quarter ending December 31, 2021.
source: Autocar
MORE JAGUAR NEWS: Jaguar will not introduce new models until 2025