Quote:
Originally Posted by Germanauto
That has to be some serious mismanagement for them to have spent years and millions developing this new EV XJ only to cancel the project.
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I think what doomed it is that it was not a dedicated EV, but instead relied upon a combined ICE/PHEV/BEV strategy (similar, incidentally, to what BMW intends to do). Since they've now decided that their business will be better served by exiting the ICE market in 2025, it did not make sense to release new ICE products in 2021 resulting in what would be much shorter lifespans than the business case originally planned for. In other words, the economics of the vehicle program fell apart.
This is not the last time we'll see this kind of "Oh shit! We mis-steered the ship!" reaction in the coming decade. Disruption is a ruthless foe. JLR is not out of the woods yet, but they've probably given themselves a fighting chance. Other lower volume players may need to make similar moves, and/or consider mergers.