Jaguar Land Rover's future on show in Shanghai as the Range Rover Velar and Jaguar i-Pace debut

Photo Range Rover Velar and Jaguar i-Pace Shanghai

Range Rover Velar and Jaguar i-Pace get their China debut in Shanghai

Jaguar Land Rover is showcasing their future in China at the Shanghai Motor Show, with the Chinese debut of the new Range Rover Velar and Jaguar i-Pace Concept.

We may already have seen the new Range Rover Velar and the Jaguar’s first electric car – the Jaguar i-Pace – but the Chinese haven’t. And as China is Jaguar Land Rover’s biggest market they’re putting that right at the Shanghai Motor Show.

Arguably, it’s the Jaguar i-Pace which is the biggest news for China, as although it’s currently billed as a concept we are expecting the production version to arrive in Frankfurt in September. And that’s a big deal for China.

By delivering a premium EV in to a market clearly committed to an electric car future, Jaguar are hoping its i-Pace will grab a decent chunk of a burgeoning market.

At the start of 2017, China had in the region of 150,000 EV charging points, but they have committed to a further 800,000 new charging points this year to take the total up to nearly one million, with that pace of new points continuing until 2020, by which time China also expects to have five million EVs on the road.

On the other side of the JLR equation, the new Range Rover Velar may not offer any sort of electric powertrain (for now), but it’s the best looking Range Rover to date and sales in China are going to be a big part of its success.

Ralph Speth, JLR CEO, said:

Jaguar Land Rover constantly pushes the boundaries and this spirit is embodied in both of these vehicles. China is of huge importance to us.
It is our largest single market and over the past seven years our success and brand influence have been strong not just in terms of sales but in the facilities we have built here and the jobs we have created.

With 120,000 cars sold in China by JLR last year, production of more than 100,000 JLR vehicles at the Chery JLR Plant in Changshu and plans to increase production in China by 70,000 a year, the new Jaguar i-Pace and new Range Rover Velar are the new keys to the wallets of China’s wealthy middle class.