Jaguar Range Rover, a UK luxury carmaker owned by Tata Motors, will now start manufacturing their luxury SUVs in Pune, India. The carmaker is also celebrating the launch of the first Range Rover manufactured outside the UK. This signifies a major development for “Make in India” and increased affordability for Indian customers. Tech Today’s Aayush Ailawadi spoke to Geraldine Ingham, Global Managing Director at Jaguar Land Rover, at this milestone moment for the company.
Talking about setting up a manufacturing unit in India, Ingham told Tech Today, “We’re incredibly proud of this moment.” She also emphasised the significance of having a Range Rover House in India. She stated, “We’ve had great growth for the Range Rover brand in India over the past year, and with local manufacturing, we expect that growth to continue. We’re responding to the demand we’ve seen from our customers here.”
Ingham further opened up about the much-awaited Range Rover Electric. She told Tech Today, “It’s a huge milestone moment for the brand. I’ve driven it, and it’s phenomenal. It’s a Range Rover first, and electrification allows us to further enhance the refinement, smoothness, and quietness of the car. We opened our waiting list back in December and received great interest. Globally, 33,000 people signed up to be the first to reserve a car, and in India, we have 400 clients eager to get their hands on one.”
Since Range Rover customers are very particular about a certain type of performance and output that is typical to ICE vehicles, on being asked if an electric Range Rover will interest them, the Range Rover MD noted, “The beauty of our architecture is that it’s flexible, allowing us to cater to all customer demands. Whether it’s a hybrid electric vehicle or diesel, we offer a variety of powertrains. We know our customers value choice, and we provide them with that.”
Because Range Rover cars will now be manufactured in India, the waiting period for the new cars for Indian customers will reduce significantly. In addition to this, the Range Rover SUVs have also received a price drop in India. The prices of locally assembled SUVs will likely get a price cut of 18-22 per cent. With local production, Range Rover Sport’s price will come down to Rs 1.4 crore from Rs 1.9 crore. It will be available for deliveries in August this year. The carmaker will assemble the Range Rover Velar, Range Rover Evoque, Jaguar F-PACE and Discovery Sport at its Pune facility.
