UK (Commonwealth) _ In order to compete with BYD in the biggest EV market globally, Jaguar Land Rover is bringing back the Freelander as an electric SUV. As the market moves toward electric vehicles, JLR intends to revitalize the brand, which includes the Freelander EV.
As the automotive industry transitions to electric vehicles, JLR’s recognizable “House of Brands,” which includes Range Rover, Defender, Discover, and Jaguar, is trying to define itself.
The company declared on Tuesday at JLR’s Investor Day 2024 that it will bring back the Freelander as an electric vehicle after it has been out of production for ten years. The Discovery Sport replaced the 1997–2015 Freelander SUV when it was manufactured in 2016.
JLR and Chery Automotive inked a letter of intent for licensing the Freelander brand in China. The brand will usher in a new era for the joint venture between Jaguar Land Rover and Chery (CJLR). The CEO of JLR, Adrian Mardell, stated that the new partnership “promises a very exciting future for CJLR combined with the appeal of the Freelander brand.”
According to the planned arrangement, CJLR will use Chery’s platform to build EVs under the Freelander nameplate. The Freelander EVs will stand apart from the current brands of JLR and Chery. The Changshu factory of CJLR will produce the new Freelander EVs. In due course, the new EV brand is “destined for global export,” even if it will “initially be sold in China.”
In the biggest EV market globally, Jaguar Land Rover intends to challenge BYD and other competitors. China’s premium vehicle industry is expanding rapidly, despite the company’s six years of steady growth in the area. According to the corporation, the rise is being driven by the growing penetration of electric cars together with the expansion of the luxury category.
Automakers with new energy brands like Yangwang, like BYD, are targeting the premium market. In December 2023, BYD’s Yangwang brand launched its first car, the U8 off-road SUV, with a starting price of more than $150,000 (1,089,000 yuan). It debuted the U9 electric sports vehicle in February.
In the meantime, during the last six months, the queue for the brand’s first electric vehicle, the Range Rover Electric, has doubled. The investment plan for Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), a division of Tata Motors, has been updated to £18 billion through 2028. £15 billion was the investment for the time that was previously stated.
The funding will be put to use by the business in product development. JLR invested £3.3 billion in FY24 and aims to invest £3.5 billion in FY25, when it will become net cash positive. “In an Investor Day presentation, we recommit to a 10% EBIT margin in FY26 and will grow from there,” the business stated.
For the fourth quarter of FY24, the firm recorded £892 million in free cash flow. JLR’s net debt was lowered to £0.7 billion. In Q4, revenue increased by 11% to £7.9 billion. According to the corporation, it plans to reach net zero in FY25.
According to Adrian Mardell, Chief Executive Officer of JLR, “JLR has delivered a record financial performance for the company, generating a free cash flow of £2.3 billion, enabling us to reduce net debt to £0.7 billion.”
JLR and China-based Chery have inked a Letter of Intent to enhance their electric portfolio through their joint venture CJLR, according to a news statement from Tata Motors. The CJLR joint venture would refocus under the proposed new licencing agreement to develop an advanced portfolio of electric vehicles only under the Freelander moniker, based on Chery’s EV design.
“Freelander, a brand revived under license from JLR, will usher in a new strategic era for CJLR according to the release, “as part of a new value creation system independent from both JLR’s contemporary luxury House of Brands and Chery’s current portfolio.”
Between 1997 and 2015, Land Rover vehicles under the JLR Freelander brand were manufactured with success. In 2016, the Discovery Sport took its place. In its new CJLR guise, Freelander will provide a selection of mainstream electric cars that will be marketed first in China via a specific network and then exported worldwide.
