Although no official decision has been made public, Jaguar Land Rover global fleet director Ken Forbes told Automotive News Europe that the XE will be Jaguar’s first China-built product. Forbes declined to reveal when the XE will start production in the world’s largest auto market.
Jaguar’s new XE sedan, which will compete against the BMW 3-Series and Mercedes-Benz C-Class, will go on sale in Europe in May followed by a United States rollout later in the year. The XE’s Chinese production won’t likely begin until at least 2016, when Jaguar will expand the capacity at its new plant in Changshu to 130,000 units. Opened in October, the Changshu plant currently makes the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque and will soon begin production of the Discovery Sport.
Jaguar will also open the doors to a new engine plant in China in 2015, meaning the XE will be the first Jaguar-badged vehicle to be fully assembled outside of the UK.
Jaguar hasn’t announced if it will build a long-wheelbase version of the XE for the Chinese market.
Analyst predict the new XE as well as an upcoming crossover model will lift Jaguars global sales to 200,000 units by 2017. By 2020, JLR forecasts that combined sales of Jaguar and Land Rover will top 850,000 units worldwide.
Photos by Drew Johnson.
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