Tata starts making Jaguars in Pune

Cars to be assembled in India to make these more affordable

To make its cars more affordable for Indian buyers, Mumbai-based Tata Motors has started assembling the Jaguar XF at its new facility in Chakan near Pune.

This has allowed the company to offer the luxury saloon at Rs 44.5 lakh (ex-showroom, Mumbai), pitting it directly against the BMW 5 series and the Mercedes Benz E Class.

So far, the Jaguar XF was imported from the UK as a fully-built unit. The car was launched in the country in 2010 for Rs 48.37 lakh. However, subsequent increases in import charges led to a rise in its prices.

The Jaguar XF is Jaguar Land Rover’s second model to be assembled in India.

In May 2011, the company started manufacturing the Land Rover Freelander 2 at the Chakan assembly plant. Jaguar XF models manufactured at Chakan would have the 2.2-litre diesel engine; this is the first time such engines would be available in the Indian market.

Rohit Suri, vice-president, Jaguar Land Rover India, said, “Our best-selling models in India are the Land Rover Freelander 2 and the Jaguar XF, and this has driven the move to build these products locally. We are delighted to offer this car as a locally-built product with a new engine for this market. This would enable us to provide our customers with a wider choice of competitively priced models.”

A company statement said the Jaguar XF also had other variants---with a three-litre V6 turbocharged engine (peak power of 275 hp) and a five-litre supercharged V8 engine (peak power of 375 hp).

The car features an array of upgrades available as standard features such as rear view camera, TV tuner, navigation system, optimised audio and navigation controls, front passenger seat away, touch screen, gear-shifting paddles, full-size spare wheel, electric sunroof and rear screen electric blind.