Jaguar Design Boss Pushing For Small MINI Rival: Report
Jaguar is looking to expand beyond its current three-model line (and the upcoming F-Type roadster) to better compete with German rivals BMW, Audi and Mercedes.
The British carmaker is known to be considering several options, but according to What&n
Jaguar is looking to expand beyond its current three-model line (and the upcoming F-Type roadster) to better compete with German rivals BMW, Audi and Mercedes.
The British carmaker is known to be considering several options, but according to What Car magazine, design chief Ian Callum is pushing for a light car along the lines of the MINI Cooper.
“There is hardly anything we haven’t looked at as a potential Jaguar product,” Callum told the magazine.
“I have mentioned supermini and that is my personal soapbox, internally and externally. I’d love to think that one day we could make something the size of a MINI.”
Combining chic design with a smaller-than-small bodystyle has proven successful for other premium offerings in recent years, including the Audi A1, Citroen's DS3, and even the 'small' Range Rover Evoque.
Such a model would be a significant departure for Jaguar, a company known for large sporting sedans and coupes.
Callum added that such a project would only reach production if a business case could be made for it.
Jaguar is believed to be developing a successor to the unloved X-Type, along with a small crossover, meaning that Callum's hopes for a MINI-esque Jaguar will remain on the backburner for the foreseeable future.
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