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Jaguar Land Rover might buy another luxury brand that it doesn't need

It seems that Jaguar Land Rover may be getting bigger in the near future. According to Bloomberg, the company is looking at acquiring some tech companies, and possibly yet another luxury car brand, provided that it fits with the current lineup of cars. On the surface, this makes some sense since Bloomberg reports that a whopping 78 percent of Tata Motors' revenue comes from luxury brands. And of course, any kind of tech acquisition could be useful considering the rapid development of electric and autonomous vehicles. But dig a little deeper, and a possible luxury brand acquisition just doesn't make sense for Jaguar Land Rover. The main reason for this is that the Jaguar and Land Rover brands have the luxury market thoroughly covered. Both brands offer full luxury lines from entry-level to high-end ( Discovery Sport to Range Rover on the Land Rover side, and XE to XJ on the Jaguar side). They also cater to every kind of luxury, from sporty vehicles such as the F-Type and SVR Land Rovers, to cushy luxury machines such as the XJ and Range Rover. So whether the company is competing with BMW or Mercedes, Jaguar and Land Rover have the bases covered. There aren't any other typical luxury brands that would actually add anything to the current lineup. In fact, adding another conventional luxury brand could actually result in the new brand poaching existing Jaguar and Land Rover buyers, rather than picking up new ones. What would make more sense for Jaguar Land Rover would be to pick up either a more mainstream brand, or an ultra-luxury marque. Neither Jaguar nor Land Rover has something that competes directly with the likes of Ford or Toyota in the mainstream game, or Rolls-Royce or Bentley at the top of the luxury heap. Picking up a brand in one of these segments would allow JLR and Tata Motors to actually expand offerings and pick up more sales, rather than having an internal competitor. What path would be ideal? Probably going even farther upmarket. Supercar makers and ultra-luxury brands continue to sell well, and there's the potential for significant profit by layering on features and content to existing platforms. Perhaps the best possibility for a high-end complement to Jaguar Land Rover would be Aston Martin. Not only does it have a strong reputation and line-up, it also could handle both supercars and luxury sedans, thanks to its Lagonda sub brand. Of course it would require Aston Martin to be receptive to a purchase.

Buy a Jaguar E-Type continuation, get a matching wristwatch

From time to time, automakers release special branded watches. Jaguar and Land Rover are no different. The latest from Land Rover isn't particularly remarkable, but one new Jaguar piece is pretty special. Jaguar partnered with British watchmaker Bremont for a line of watches, the most impressive being a 43mm watch that commemorates Jaguar's continuation series of Lightweight E-Types. Like the cars, only six of the watches will be produced, and they will be offered to the owners of those $1.5 million cars. Each watch features a serial number that matches a corresponding car, and the faces have been designed to look like the instruments aboard the E-Types. The same goes for the hands, which look like the gauge needles. The winding crown also has a tire tread pattern that wraps around the sides, with Jaguar's heritage logo on the top. And these timepieces are built with aluminum left over from the continuation E-Types. On the back is the most impressive part, though. Here is where the watch's automatic winding weight is visible. It's shaped like a vintage steering wheel, and the outer rim is made from real wood. The weight keeps the watch and its exclusive Bremont movement wound. If you can't afford this ultra-limited watch, Bremont has a line of other Jaguar watches with many of the same design cues, at prices ranging from less than $5,000 to more than $11,000. The Land Rover watch is a bit disappointing, since it bears little apparent connection to the vehicles. Zenith, the Swiss company that partnered with Land Rover for the piece, claims the design is inspired by the Range Rover. And Land Rover claims a connection in that a British explorer wore the same series watch while completing an expedition with a pair of Range Rovers. There's also the fact that the watch and the SUV are both made of aluminum, but otherwise, the Zenith watch doesn't look particularly automotive. The box sounds pretty cool, though, since it's fashioned from Land Rover wood and upholstery. Related Video:

Freelander name making jump from old Land Rover model to new EV brand

The Jaguar Land Rover House of Brands is about to grow by one. JLR signed a Letter of Intent to license a new brand called Freelander to its Chinese joint-venture partner of 12 years, Chery. For those who missed it, Land Rover sold a compact four-wheel-drive model called the Freelander or LR2, depending on market and generation, from 1997 to 2015. The Freelander didn't get the best press, but that didn't stop it from being popular because, before the Evoque, it was the least expensive way to get into something bearing the green oval. The moniker's rebirth will also apply to "mainstream" products, this time pure-electric vehicles outside of JLR's or Chery's current lineups. What's more, the Freelander range won't be limited to China, although JLR wouldn't say how long it would be before international markets could expect Freelander arrival.  They new cars will be designed by teams from both automakers and sit on Chery's E0X battery-electric architecture. Car News China reports that the E0X can support an 800-volt architecture, Level 3 autonomous driving, and air suspension setups. The platform also plays nice with range-extended EVs, a powertrain type enjoying the same upswing in popularity over there as in other markets. Autocar writes that extended-range EV sales from January 2023 to September 2023 rose 157% over the same span in 2022. Chery's Luxeed R7, above, sits on E0X bones. The Luxeed R7 EV comes in single- and dual-motor variants from 288 horsepower to 489 hp, and offers a maximum range of 531 miles on the Chinese cycle. Previous to this new announcement, Chery said it would also share its M3X platform with the Chery Jaguar Land Rover collaboration, the vehicle structure said to have been developed with Magna International. The M3X is suited to internal combustion and PHEV powertrains. JLR's press release specifies that for now, Freelander will be "an advanced portfolio of electric vehicles," so it's possible future Freelanders will expand powertrain options once the electric lineup gains momentum, or the M3X might be applied to a different set of products.