Category Archives: JLR

Jeep has revealed three all-new electric cars

Electric Cars, JLR, News, Reviews and Comment

And the Avenger, Recon and plush new Wagoneer will be joined by a fourth EV soon after…

Jeep is having a major pile-on in battery electric drive. It wants to be the ‘global zero-emission SUV leader’. In Europe that means all its new-vehicle sales will be full electric by 2030. Even in the US, land of freedom and gasoline, it’s expecting 50 per cent by then.

And instead of just boring us with airy but blind promises, they actually have some cars to show for it. Three of them.

First is the Avenger, the JCB-yellow car pictured above. This itty-bitty Jeep was designed in Italy and will be built in Poland. It fits under the Renegade in the lineup, and uses the smallest of the new Stellantis specialist electric platforms. It’ll be launched at the Paris Show on 17 October and available to order from that date.

Says global design chief Ralph Gilles: “It was designed in Italy for a reason. These cars exist in cities, they go up kerbs, they need body armour. But it also has Renegade elements like the tail lamps and grille.” City use means the planned 250-mile range should be OK.

Read more: TopGear

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Jaguar I-PACE Electric Car (Image: T. Larkum)

Could the UK really lead the world in electric vehicles?

Electric Cars, Jaguar Land Rover, JLR, News, Reviews and Comment

Amidst a gloomy series of announcements pointing to car manufacturers pulling out of the UK, there are still some signs that the future could be bright for the UK’s automotive industry.

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has announced it will invest hundreds of millions of pounds in electric vehicle (EV) production at its Castle Bromwich plant in the Midlands, helping to secure 2,700 jobs. The previous government had been eager to show its support, handing a £500m loan guarantee to JLR, announcing it will make charging points mandatory in new homes and cutting company car tax for EVs from 2020. In his first address to Parliament as new prime minister, Boris Johnson emphasised his vision for the UK as “the home of electric vehicles”.

Jaguar I-PACE Electric Car (Image: T. Larkum)
Jaguar I-PACE Electric Car (Image: T. Larkum)

But how realistic is this grand ambition? The UK still only attracts a small fraction of the new global investment in electric car manufacturing. China, Germany and the US are getting the lion’s share, with car makers’ planned investments in these countries reaching a total of over $240bn. The domestic EV market lags behind other EU countries. And, while Johnson also claims that the UK is “leading the world in battery technology”, there are no plans for large scale domestic battery manufacturing facilities, with production capacity in Europe instead expected to reach 130 GWh by 2025.

Unless this changes, the global auto industry will continue to invest elsewhere and the UK will miss its chance to claim a major stake in this industry – not to mention the benefits of cleaner air and real progress in cutting carbon from the largest emitting sector in the UK.

Read more: CityMetric