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Jaguar’s management is “entirely relaxed” about the prospect of the carmaker’s takeover by India’s Tata group and believes it will allow Jaguar and Land Rover to develop unfettered, Ian Callum, the director of design who is responsible for the new Jaguar XF and XK, told the Financial Times yesterday (28th January).  

Callum told the paper, “The two national cultures appear to fit together very well and Tata is being very respectful about what we are doing.”

In the same interview, Mr Callum also indicated that there had frequently been tensions in the relationship with Ford since following its purchase of Jaguar for $1.4bn in 1989. The X-Type small Jaguar was, he said, essentially designed in Detroit and presented as close to a fait accompli to reluctant designers and engineers at Jaguar, although he added that was no “persistent bullying” by Ford, and blamed many of the problems associated with Jaguar cars’ loss of market share lay within Jaguar itself.