Success story as JLR hits top gear

Up until now it has just made diesel engines for Jaguars, Range Rovers and Land Rover Discovery models.

New convenience and safety features are also featured in the vehicles and the new models follow a strong start to the year for Jaguar in the UK.

The increase in output from JLR's engine plant near Telford can only be good news for Shropshire businesses, writes Thom Kennedy.

For starters, it is an indicator that one of Britain's great business success stories is continuing to increase output of cars, having already celebrated a record-breaking year in 2016.

And the more cars Jaguar produces, the more suppliers based in Shropshire stand to benefit.

A number of companies based in the county already supply to the manufacturer, including Denso, Stadco and its soon-to-arrive sister company Cosma Castings.

Telford is increasingly opening its arms to new manufacturers who are designing and building their own factories in the borough, and many have been enticed by JLR's proximity to Telford.

The engines factory lies only a few miles down the M54, and that means Telford and wider Shropshire can play an important role in supporting the big-name marque.

Within the last month, another car parts manufacturer – Austrian company Polytec Group, which makes external plastic parts for cars – has unveiled plans to create as many as 240 jobs at the Telford 54 site.

Among its neighbours on the site will be Cosma's aluminium castings facility, which is primarily focused on the town's proximity to JLR.

But as well as the implications for car maker as a whole, the engine plant by itself has a significant impact on the local area.

At its most basic level, with an overall workforce at the plant of more than 1,000 staff, the plant is an important employer for Shropshire.

It draws its workforce from a large area, so the wages paid to staff who live in Telford or Shropshire and who work for JLR play a significant role in boosting the local economy.

That is translated into spending on the high street, in shops, in pubs and restaurants, sports clubs, theatres and cinemas, on this side of the Shropshire border.

If JLR is ramping up production, it can only point to benefits for jobs, businesses, and the circulation of money in Shropshire.

More than 2,694 vehicles made their way onto UK driveways in January, an increase of 20 per cent on the same month last year, giving the brand its best January UK performance ever.

Last year Jaguar sold more vehicles in the UK than ever before, surpassing a 12-year-old record. The popularity of the XE, XF and F-PACE were key in helping the brand to retail 34,728 vehicles in the UK last year, a 17 per cent climb on 2015.

Jeremy Hicks, JLR's UK managing director, said: "These three models were important in driving us to a record performance in the UK in 2016. The XF sold almost 10,000 vehicles last year and the XE and F-PACE alone made up 62 per cent of all Jaguar 2016 UK sales. These models are attracting new customers to the Jaguar brand and now with an extended offering this appeal can only grow."

"It is all about giving our customers more choice. All three vehicles offer a wider range of engines and a suite of new technology, comfort and convenience enhancements that will make them even more relevant for UK buyers."

The new models will utilise a pair of all-new four-cylinder Ingenium petrol engines, which have been introduced alongside a high-output 240PS diesel powerplant.

Also F-PACE benefits from an efficient new E-Performance diesel derivative, which promises carbon dioxide emissions as low as 126g per kilometre.

The new 200PS (available with XE and XF) and 250PS two-litre four-cylinder Ingenium petrol engines use JLR's low friction all-aluminium-intensive design to provide excellent thermal properties and lightweight construction for improved efficiency and enhanced vehicle dynamics. Models with the 200PS engine wear a 20t badge while 250PS derivatives are identified by 25t badging.

The diesel range is bolstered by the introduction of the 240PS two-litre four-cylinder twin turbo Ingenium diesel.

The strengthened engine has uprated pistons, crankshaft and fuel injectors and is the first four-cylinder Jaguar Land Rover engine to deploy twin turbos. Their sequential configuration boosts power at high engine speeds while improving responsiveness at low engine speeds.

Jaguar F-PACE, XF and XE models fitted with the new diesel engine wear the 25d badge.

Nick Rogers, executive director for product engineering, said: "We are committed to expanding the Ingenium powertrain family produced at our award-winning £1 billion Engine Manufacturing Centre as we meet current and future consumer needs."

JLR's family of Ingenium engines have been designed to deliver exceptional performance, efficiency and refinement and meet the most stringent global emissions regulations.

F-PACE, XF and XE feature a pair of new technologies – forward traffic detection, part of the surround camera system, and forward vehicle guidance, which helps drivers to place the vehicle when completing low speed manoeuvres.

Jaguar XE, XF and F-PACE owners can now use the touchscreen of their car to pay for fuel at Shell service stations with a new in-car cashless payment system. Rather than using a card at the pump, or queuing in the forecourt shop, owners who install the Shell App can simply drive up to any pump at a Shell service station and use the touchscreen to select how much fuel they require and pay using PayPal or Apple Pay. Android Pay will be added later in 2017.