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Watch Jaguar reveal the C-X17 Concept live, right now!

Jaguar is set to reveal the C-X17 concept crossover in just a few short moments. The show starts at 11:00 AM EST, which is supper time in Frankfurt where the reveal is taking place. It's almost lunch time here on the East Coast of the US, so enjoy your sammy and a bag of chips while you sit back and watch Jaguar show us all some new technology and possibly an entirely new direction for the brand. Our own article on the Jaguar C-X17 concept will go live on Autoblog at 11:30 AM EST, and stay tuned for own live images of the crossover concept tomorrow from the show floor.

Jaguar Land Rover said to favor Europe rather than US for new plant

With its plants running at full tilt, Jaguar Land Rover is in desperate need of additional manufacturing capacity. That's led to reports that the Indian-owned British company was looking to join European, Japanese and Korean automakers in America's southern states, all while it opened new plants in the UK and China. The company even announced it would be building the Land Rover Discovery Sport in Brazil. Now, though, reports are suggesting that JLR is looking at Europe for a new facility, rather than the US, with Automotive News claiming the company's execs are eyeing the lower costs afforded by Austria and Turkey. The report cites the Birmingham Post (UK), the broadsheet that's closest to the company's headquarters. According to the original report, labor costs and wage disputes with unions are ruling out another factory in the UK, while those same disputes with labor outfits may also be souring the automaker on a US facility. "At this stage Europe seems more likely than America. The union pay dispute had a big effect," an unnamed source told the Post. "There is a feeling of alienation that has been left over from the way the pay talks were handled." JLR, meanwhile, offered a solid no comment to the Post, with a spokesperson saying, "No decision has been taken on future manufacturing locations. We will continue to evaluate opportunities to increase our manufacturing footprint in the future." Related Video:

Jaguar's Callum refutes two XJ bodystyle rumor

Not long ago, we relayed word from Edmunds that Jaguar was planning to split its next-generation XJ sedan into two bodystyles - one model that continued the ambitious design approach fostered with the current X351-based model, and another, more upright model to better appeal to China's conservative design sensibilities.
We expressed some cynicism in the idea, noting that such a strategy "might catch more profits for the marque, but it might also represent a setback to design head Ian Callum's vision for a thoroughly modern Jaguar portfolio." Callum has been quite insistent in his belief that Jag needs to be a forward-thinking brand in terms of design, and the two-model strategy seemed to conflict with that idea. We tried to get some comment from Callum at that time, but were unable to reach him.
As it turns out, our cynicism was well-placed. Autocar says that while the next XJ will continue to have two wheelbases, Callum has denied the two-model talk, saying flatly: "I can't see us doing two bodystyles. The cost would be enormous and the message inconsistent. You have to believe in what you produce and to do two bodystyles would undermine that."