Jaguar cars have been the pride of England for decades. The company was founded in Blackpool in 1922 and later moved its production plant to Coventry. Over the years, it went though a string of ownerships and is presently owned by the Indian based Tata motors.
The first jaguar cars were not an instant hit because of the small 2.5 liter engine, however, by the 50s Jaguar had steadily redesigned the cars and developed elegant sports cars and luxury saloons. Because of increasing competition from other luxury car manufacturers, Jaguar could not compete financially. Later in the 60s and 70s, Jaguar merged with British Motor Corporation, Austin Morris, Triumph, British Leyland and lately Tata.
Despite the stylish elegant cars, Jaguar has always been struggling financially. The dearth of luxury European cars made competition was difficult and Jaguar was never able to establish itself abroad. The chief reason was the lack of buyers.
In 1989, Ford took over the ownership and this relationship lasted till 2007. Many people wanted to buy the Jaguar ownership but not the combined Land Rover operations also run by Ford. Finally in 2008, Tata took over the entire company.
Jaguar has always made great cars. Known as the Mark IV and V, they were widely sold in the 40s and 50s. Over the years, the Mark series was improvised and the cars became more compact. After the Mark X, the XJ series was developed. Jaguar cars also became very successful on the racing circuit. Today, Jaguar cars are no longer on the racing circuit primarily due to costs.
The most elite car of the Jaguar cars carry the logo Vanden Plas or Daimler (rest of the world) on the number plates.
In 2000, Jaguar models included the C XF. The CX E and C XJ models are planned for 2010. Like all other car manufactures Jaguar has also been hit by the recession. Sales worldwide are down and the future at the moment is uncertain. The car will survive because it has a solid reputation of efficiency and power- the only question is how many will be produced each year.
