Jaguar could build smaller cars and more EVs in future, says design director

Jaguar could make models smaller than the E-Pace in the future, although no such model exists in the product plan yet, according to its design director Ian Callum.

When asked if there was room in the range for a Jaguar smaller than the E-Pace, Callum said: “No plans, but I’d like to think so.”

Rival firms BMW and Mercedes-Benz have a full range of natively front-wheel-drive models derived from a common architecture. The E-Pace differs in that it has SUV, rather than road car, architecture, meaning hatchbacks and smaller spin-offs, for example, are trickier. 

“There’s no alternative to go front-wheel drive, transverse-engine here [with E-Pace],” said Callum.  

“It’s not cost, but size. You can’t afford to give wheelbase away,” he added, pointing out that BMW had switched from a rear-wheel-drive platform to a front-wheel-drive one with its second-generation X1. 

Callum has confirmed that the next-generation XE will remain rear-wheel and that in future there will be greater differentiation between Jaguar models, though still linked with common design themes. 

“We will separate them [the XE and the XF] more in the future,” he said. “There will be a constant grille, then a more flexible front.”

The I-Pace arrives after the E-Pace, built on a bespoke electric architecture. When asked if there would one day be a family of Jaguar EVs, Callum said: “Wait and see how we develop on mid-size platforms.”

More generally, he said that all types and sizes of car were available to Jaguar: “There’s lots of choice, with lots of architectures with massive boundaries. We’re able to pick the right one. Perhaps it’s old behaviour to create products to suit architectures; now there’s no need to.”