Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) is set to burst on to the $80billion US pick-up truck market as it plans to unveil an all-American version of its classic Defender model.
The UK’s biggest carmaker is expected to unveil an Americanised pick-up version of its quintessentially British vehicle for the US market.
It represents a fightback from boss PB Balaji after the announcement of 4,000 job cuts across its global workforce.
The carmaker has struggled amid a ‘perfect storm’ of issues including a cyber attack, Donald Trump’s tariffs and increased competition from cheaper Chinese brands.
But in a major strategic pivot, the new Defender pick-up will be built in the US through a new joint venture with Chrysler carmaker Stellantis.
Stellantis owns Ram, previously Dodge Ram, the third-most popular pick-up in America.
Ram sold around 430,000 vehicles in the US last year.
Three million pick-ups are sold in the US annually, equivalent to about one in five car sales – with the market worth around $80billion (£59billion).
The new Defender pick-up will be built in the US through a new joint venture with Chrysler carmaker Stellantis, who make the pick-up truck Ram (pictured)
The move is expected to contain fears that Jaguar Land Rover was prepared to allow the American brand to produce the Defender entirely.
The Defender model is its best selling car and the US represents its biggest market.
The plans are expected to be finalised in the coming weeks by bosses from JLR and Stellantis, according to The Times.
JLR announced last week that as many as 4,000 employees could lose their jobs a year on from a cyber attack which brought production to a halt for more than a month.
The carmaker said it needed to save £1.7billion over the next two years to make it more competitive as the industry transitions to electrification.
‘The automotive industry faces significant challenges, with technological change amidst intense competition and ongoing geopolitical uncertainty,’ chief executive PB Balaji said in a statement.
The carmaker employs 34,000 across its three sites in England, while supporting a further 120,000 British jobs in the supply chain.
JLR, which makes the Range Rover, Discovery and other luxury SUVs, has reported slumping profits and sales in the face of intense competition from cheaper Chinese EVs, soaring costs and the impact of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
The UK’s biggest carmaker is expected to unveil an Americanised pick-up version of its quintessentially British vehicle for the US market. Pictured: the current Defender model
The tariff policy introduced a 10 per cent import tax for British-made cars, with the tax rising to 27.5 per cent after the first 100,000 vehicles produced in a year.
North America represents 29 per cent of all sales worldwide and, since tariffs came in, a number of carmakers have decided to reduce staff in a bid to improve finances.
The company’s sales were also hit last year when a cyber-attack forced it to halt production for a month.
The attack led to a 27 per cent drop in production at the company. The overall cost of the attack was later estimated to be £1.9billion.
A new wave of more affordable Chinese car brands is also thought to have negatively affected JLR’s and other traditional companies’ sales.
Unite Union’s Sharon Graham previously said: ‘Death by a thousand cuts has been going on under the nose of successive governments.
‘Years of under-investment, unsustainable zero-emission vehicle mandates and high industrial energy costs are crippling the industry. There must be further action.
‘There have been intensive government discussions over the weekend to look at how to mitigate these job losses at JLR.
‘Once again, we will leave no stone unturned to support these workers. It cannot be acceptable that workers again are made to pay the price.’
The British car making sector is attempting to drag itself out of a downward spiral that has seen production more than halve from 1.7 million in 2017 to just over 700,000 last year.
