Jaguar's Radical Idea To Combat Slow-Selling XE And XF

Jaguar has some big decisions to make in the coming year or so. Despite the fact Jaguar Land Rover recentlyreceived a financial lifeline, it's not out of the woods yet. On the plus side,Land Rover remains solidwith both sales and demand. But as a whole, JLR has work to do. One area is the Jaguar brand. In short, theJaguar XEand XF luxury sedans are not selling well despite relatively recent facelifts to keep them competitive. The traditional sedan market just isn't what it used to be.

A decision will have to be made soon regarding their respective successors and Autocar has learned a couple of radical ideas are on the table. The first would be to replace them both with a single compact sedan available with both hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains. That's actually the more conservative idea. The second suggestion comes directly from Jaguar design boss Julian Thomson. He thinks building an even smaller vehicle is the answer.

Instead of a sleek exterior, Thomson's proposal is a premium hatchback with classical styling. Interestingly, this idea was first proposed back in 2003 with the RD6 concept, pictured below. Of course, it never reached production, but the idea never died. "I'd love to do some smaller cars," Thomson said. "It feels as though the time is right. Jaguar needs a global product that could appeal to younger buyers, and more females as well."

However, Thomson is clearly aware the premium hatchback segment carries its own set of risks. "But it's a tough sector. You need big numbers, which means big factories and a big organization to sell them. But that's definitely where I would like us to be." Thomson also admitted one source of inspiration came from none other than theFerrari Romawith its "la nuova dolce vita" branding, a classically-styled vehicle with its own unique place in the lineup.