It’s not often that Jaguar has one up on its German rivals, but it’s well and truly succeeded with its first electric SUV, the I-Pace. Revealed last week and on sale from July, it has trumped its foes, including Audi and its E-tron and Mercedes and its EQ C as the first to market a premium luxury SUV (excepting Tesla’s Model X, of course).
According to Jaguar design boss Ian Callum, it even came as surprise to Jaguar. He told Autocar: “Nobody was more shocked. I don’t think it was something we intended. We’ll have a window of opportunity, maybe six or nine months.”
Geneva motor show as it happens
But the Germans certainly won’t let this Jaguar coup lie. And that’s why we strongly suspect a fleet of lightly disguised Audi E-trons doing laps of the streets of Geneva today and tomorrow isn’t just a coincidence. What better way to steal the limelight from the I-Pace when all of the world’s automotive media just happen to be in town for the world’s biggest motor show?
This stunt will make sure Audi isn’t forgotten amid all the I-Pace buzz. Which is wise, because in contrast to Jaguar which has done a remarkably good job of keeping the I-Pace story going ahead of its launch, Audi has been on the down-low. Since the Q6 E-tron (now just called the E-tron) was confirmed for production in early 2016, we’ve heard very little. No doubt Audi R&D has been busy behind the scenes with the E-tron but, in terms of PR, there’s been very little.
Audi isn’t the only one. Mercedes is launching its EQ C electric SUV, first revealed as a concept at the 2016 Paris motor show, in 2019. And whaddya know? The day after the Jaguar I-Pace was revealed, Mercedes released some official camouflaged images of the car testing, just in case we’d forgotten about it around all the I-Pace hype.
Of course, the proof of the pudding will be in the eating. With I-Pace deliveries starting in the summer, E-tron deliveries slated for autumn and EQ C deliveries next year, it won’t be until 2020 that we can really tell which model is favoured in the eyes of car buyers. Let the battle commence.
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Opinion: Why the Jaguar I-Pace can't rest on its maker's laurels
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Oh here we go again, Burgess
Oh here we go again, Burgess offering her 'opinion'.
Some cost are worth it.
what is the publicity value of being the first luxury brand to have a electric car worth. Plus the I-pace will underpin the road rover as well as the new XJ.
Exactly. JLR have three
Exactly. JLR have three electric vehicles in the pipeline - this I Pace, the XJ and a Range Rover - and it’s safe to assume there will be a great deal of commonality between all three.
Commonality...
No there won't. If there was, then the forthcoming vehicles would all be based on the I-Pace which they aren't, that's a new platform. Audi are coming to market initially with a modified existing platform (i.e lower development & investment costs) or a platform shared with the Porsche Misson E (i.e. economies of scale) depending on who's correct. While Mercedes are coming to market with the first vehicle off a new platform.
JLR has come to market 'first' with a bespoke vehicle, a proof-of-concept/technology demonstrator/limited volume type approach a-la i3/i8/Twizzy/etc. (i.e. high investment & development costs, low profit) and then had to invest in their new mainstream electrified platform but with insufficient delay to be able to apply much learnt from the I-Pace. This is an orphan vehicle, it isn't early, it's late. They've stupidly invested in too-similar but disparate products too close together. Small side projects like Ford GTs, VW EOSs and this get farmed out to contract manufacturers, not vehicles that are critical to your line up going forward.
What Autocar seem to be
What Autocar seem to be oblivious to is that the i-Pace is a dead end. While it could, or should, have been the start of a range of BEV vehicles off a new platform it's instead a bespoke vehicle, made obsolete by a new platform for the above mentioned XJ, etc. Add in the fact/evidence that production is subcontracted and so volumes and profit will not be huge despite the significant investment. That's not inspired thinking, that's a strategic screw up.