Ian Callum leaving Jaguar


Originally published at: https://www.jag-lovers.com/ian-callum-leaving-jaguar/

Ian Callum Effective July 1, Ian Callum will step down as Jaguar Design Director. He will be replaced by Creative Design Director Julian Thomson, his current second in command. Callum joined Jaguar in 1999, and was responsible for a marked shift in Jaguar’s design language to a more modern approach. Among his credits are the…

This is the BEST news all day! I never liked his styling from day 1. This IS likely one of the main reasons Jaguar is in trouble today. I would not be surprised if the typical buyer feels the same. If Lexus, Mercedes and BMW can make beautiful cars, Jaguar can as well! Jaguar today looks like a everyday car with little or no class!

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I’ve been singing this song for years… just hope Jaguar as a company survives… very likely in a VERY different form… who knows… they might just rise from the ashes again… next model the Phoenix XJ V12 ICE with twin blowers ? Looks like a REAL Jaguar and built for REAL men. Not these woosie electric wannabees and glorified mommy wagons. Needs someone like John Egan at the helm. and Norman Dewis in the experimental dept. Become a niche market player in the same way Aston is. trouble is Aston now has the upper hand. Currently if I was to buy new …it would be an Aston.

Good luck with that.

AML Chief Executive Andy Palmer:

Andy has no doubt that the new models will dramatically extend the appeal of Aston Martin by taking the company into new sectors, including the fast-growing SUV and electric car markets. Aston Martin’s first SUV is due to go into production at the new manufacturing facility in St Athan, Wales, in late 2019 and will go on sale in 2020.

https://magazine.astonmartin.com/people/road-ahead-andy-palmers-expectations-2018

Andy Palmer again:

“Without being patronising about it, women today control variously around the world between 60-80 per cent of the buy decision on a new car,” said Mr Palmer.

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I could make further comments regarding the emasculation of the male of the species… but I’d be banned. REAL men seem to be not politically correct… Time the world recognised that “ Honey… you can have it all” doesn’t work. Just as well I bought my 220 when I did… A REAL Jaguar for the 90s … nothing that Jaguar builds comes close since… all smoke, mirrors and go faster buttons. O well maybe it will be a Ferrari. Saw a nice Countach perescopico offered the other day. or maybe a 288. or for mommy a 400i …

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It’s not a new phenomenon. I’ve seen that mentioned at least 30 years ago and it probably has been that way far longer. the b elow article suggests that women were a major factor in car buying decisions as far back as 80 years ago.

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Real man… or caveman? Given that the 220 was a sales failure, indeed virtually a disaster financially for Jaguar, building a few more “real Jaguars” would have put the company out of business decades ago.

An older person can just as easily say a “real man” doesn’t need pansy technology like synchro gearboxes and fuel injection. It’s not that fine a line between traditional values and being a dinosaur. More companies have gone out of business by not adapting to the tastes of the modern market than by continually aping the past. Even Harley-Davidson, the temple of atavism, is now offering electric motorcycles in an attempt to stave off impending irrelevancy.

Dave

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Come on, you as the owner of a V6 Jaguar… Smoke? V12? Gas guzzling? Twin blowers? Manly? You described something between a supercharged modern Jaguar and a F250, not to forget that you forgot the lines which Callum was about and what you probably wanted to criticize!
And nobody will buy anything today that actually uses fuel much.

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Ahem. Jaguar is currently selling a 4-door saloon/sedan that blows the XJ220 out of the water, including around the Nürburgring.

XJ220: 7.46 seconds (1992, John Nielsen)

XE SV Project 8: 7.21 seconds (2017, Vincent Radermecker)

Granted, there’s been a lot of technological innovation between 1992 and 2017, but that’s exactly the point. You can call it smoke, mirrors, and go faster buttons all you want, the fact is that your supercar was beaten fair and square by a 4-door sedan. Made by Jaguar.

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Fair point, but I think he was talking about it in the context of time. What he wants is a huge achievement, something so awesome that people want it. Acceleration (I-pace), top speed, handling, we peaked pretty much. The self-driving car is there too. What else, a flying saucer first would be cool?

Women have taken over the car market, because most of them are now single, and they buy cars like they buy shoes. This is not necessarily good news for the future of serious automobiles.

Correct me if I am wrong… but the article quite clearly states that the car that achieved that figure was a stripped down prototype… not a production vehicle… the 220 did its time as a fully trimmed production car. Right down to the stereo and air conditioning.

Sure, I see that. And also styling. The XJ220 is a work of art, the XE, except for the extreme Project 8 version, is a snooze fest. And even that is ugly compared to the 220. So, there’s that.

These days, throwing massive amounts of horsepower at a car is quite common. I’d even argue that right now is the true muscle car era. You can drive out of any Dodge or Chevy dealership with over 700 horses under the hood, or a Ford dealership with over 500 horses. My point is, massive amounts of power alone isn’t going to cut it. If you want to stand out, if you want to make a car that people will aspire to, you need to make it look like an Aston Martin. On that point, I completely agree with @godfrey.

Back on track: Did Ian Callum single-handedly “destroy” Jaguar? Of course not. He made his designs, it was up to management to accept them. In my opinion, he outright succeeded with the F-Type. It’s a gorgeous car, and I still get compliments for it everywhere I go, 5 years after I bought it. Is it a Ferrari or an Aston Martin? No, it’s a Jaguar. It works. Of course, I’m biased.

Given the mandate from management to “create a pair of Jaguar SUVs” and “create a Jaguar electric car, and have it done by lunch tomorrow”, I think he was moderately successful with the F-Pace, the E-Pace, and the I-Pace. They’re not bad looking for what they are, but they don’t stand out from the crowd. They’re selling OK, so some people must aspire to them. If you have to have Jaguar SUVs, then OK. But damn it, couldn’t they have been a little braver with the design? And don’t get me started on the naming.

Now. the sedans … I don’t get how anyone could approve the XF, the XE, or the X351 XJ. Again, in my opinion, Ian Callum did destroy the XJ. Like others have pointed out, it’s not like Mercedes is going to cut the S-class or BMW the 7-series, so the market is there. The XJ just doesn’t cut it in that segment. Again, Callum didn’t do this single-handedly, someone was blind enough to approve his design. They share the blame.

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The article says “production-intent specification”, whatever that means. “What they intend to put into production”, perhaps?

It also says that the car is available with or without a “Track Pack [that] replaces that interior with a pair of carbonfibre racing seats, four-point harnesses and harness bar where the rear bench would have been”. So yes, that’ll save a few pounds, even with the harnesses and the bar. No word on the stereo or AC.

It’s still a 4-door car, though. It has the same number of seats as the XJ220, and it is a production car. Made by Jaguar, today.

Like I say in another reply, your XJ220 wins on looks, though. No contest.

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gunner that XE may be fast but it will NEVER have the visual looks of an XJ220!

and very few people will ever use the full potentail of either car!
ron

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… BWAAAhahaha!

Ya, we men got it real bad.

:laughing:

I am a happy boy…:grimacing:

True, this is a western agenda. But the emasculated go willingly, Embracing boyhood. See also “marriage rate.”

I agree, both statements are entirely true!

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Makes two of us, Gunnar!