Jaguar USA now gets a Five Year package of Roadside Assistance, Servicing & Warranty, what about the UK?

Jaguar is lowering its prices and rolling out free scheduled maintenance in the United States to remove what customers cite as key reasons consumers reject the British brand: high purchase and maintenance costs.

The free EliteCare 5-year/60,000-mile scheduled maintenance warranty and new pricing will launch with the 2016 model year. On average, Jaguar is lowering the price of its cars between $1,500 and $3,000 by slashing the base price or increasing standard equipment, said Joe Eberhardt, CEO of Jaguar Land Rover North America. The repricing will make “all models significantly more affordable,” he said.

“The Jaguar brand is on the eve of a major transformation that will see it dramatically increase its presence in the United States luxury marketplace with an expanded lineup, pricing focused on the core of the luxury market and an all-new ownership package with best-in-class coverage,” Eberhardt said.

Jaguar's U.S. sales fell 4.4 percent to 10,221 cars through August.

To boost sales, Jaguar is lowering sticker prices in segments the brand wants to target, he said. “We will substantially increase equipment on vehicles where we will not lower the MSRP,” Eberhardt added.

For instance, the base price on the redesigned XF midsize sedan has been cut 9 percent, or $5,275, to $52,895, including shipping. The XF was the most expensive car in the segment, but Jaguar says it is now less than comparable V-6 versions of the Audi A6, BMW 5 series, Cadillac CTS and Mercedes-Benz E class.

Equipment levels across the range have been improved 10 to 20 percent. Base prices on the F-Type coupe or convertible remain the same, but the cars have between $4,000 and $12,000 of additional standard equipment, depending on the model.

Jaguar was often perceived as one of the most expensive brands and buyer surveys showed that price is the top reason a consumer will reject a luxury brand. With the new price strategy, “we are positioned at the heart depending on how you do the price comparison,” Eberhardt said. “Directionally, we are below all the Germans and we are par or slightly above the Asia or domestic competitors.”

The brand is also launching three equipment packages -- premium, prestige and R-Sport -- to simplify ordering and reduce complexity, Eberhardt said. Ninety percent of Jaguar options will be in those packages, he said: “We did not have option packages, and it was inconsistent and random for each model.”

Jaguar is making the moves as it prepares to launch two vehicles into new segments -- the XE compact sedan in April and the F-Pace midsize crossover in May. Starting next year, Jaguar expects these vehicles will represent 60 percent of its U.S. sales volume, Eberhardt said.

Product range

The product range will now start with the $35,895 entry XE, rising to $75,395 for the full-size XJ sedan that competes with the Mercedes-Benz S class and BMW 7 series. Prices include shipping.

Eberhardt said pricing for the F-Pace will be announced when the crossover is unveiled this month at the Frankfurt auto show.

The free scheduled maintenance program will include roadside assistance and Jaguar’s new InControl Protect and Remote system that allows the owner to monitor the car and perform various functions using an app on a smartphone.

Warranty comparison

The 5-year/60,000-mile warranty is 1 year and 10,000 miles longer than the plans offered by BMW and Cadillac. Jaguar will also allow the warranty to be transferred to a second owner. It does not cover wear-and-tear parts such as brakes or wipers.

Jaguar will launch a major marketing campaign to promote its pricing and new warranty and take a test drive program on the road to seven major cities starting this year. Cities include Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, Miami and New York. Eberhardt said Jaguar hopes the road tour will have at least 10,000 visitors.

“From a product substance, we are every bit as competitive as our main rivals,” Eberhardt said. “I can say we do not have to hide from anybody in terms of how good our cars are.”

REPORT HERE

Diana T. Kurylko

Mercedes-Benz TV: Defying Death Valley in F-Cell B-Class

For more than two years the Hollywood stars Diane Kruger and Joshua Jackson have been enthusiastic drivers of the B-Class F-CELL, whose only emission is pure water. But they are not the only ones: The Mercedes-Benz B-Class F-CELL is becoming a popular and treasured endurance runner. In the USA alone, an F-CELL fleet made up of some 70 vehicles has covered more than 1.6 million kilometres - saving around 113,500 litres of fuel and almost 270 tonnes of carbon dioxide in the process. A total of around 200 vehicles have been with customers in the USA and Europe since 2010 and one of these vehicles already has 315,000 kilometres on the clock. Diane Kruger and Joshua Jackson are now showing in a film just how much potential the fuel cell drive system offers – on a trip in California's DeathValley, one of the driest places in the world. The film can be viewed at http://mb4.me/drive4water.

"We've become absolute fans of the fuel cell. The car is so easy to use. On a day-to-day basis our normal mobility isn't restricted at all - and we had no water problems in Death Valley either", reported Diane Kruger. "It takes three minutes to fill up, drives about 400 kilometres and gives off zero emissions - simply perfect", added Joshua Jackson. In the film “Defying Death Valley” the two of them are driving through the 50 degree Celsius heat of Death Valley – without any drinking water stock. Their lives rely on the emissions of the B-Class F-CELL. The Hollywood stars are using the water, resulting out of the operation of the F-CELL, for drinking and cooking.

The fuel cell as tomorrow's drive system, ready for series production

The B-Class F-CELL is the first fuel cell electric vehicle from Mercedes-Benz to be built under series-production conditions. The electricity required for driving is generated on board the car in a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen. With a range of some 400 kilometres and short refuelling times of less than three minutes, the B-Class F-CELL combines emission-free mobility with absolute feasibility for use on long journeys and impressive performance.

Fuel cell technology is an integral component of Daimler's long-term drive system strategy, with emission-free mobility as the culmination of these efforts. "Our various projects in Germany, the USA and Norway and, not least, the Mercedes-Benz F-CELL World Drive, have shown that the time is right for fuel cell-powered electric vehicles and demonstrated the tremendous potential that exists for hydrogen as a source of energy. We are therefore all the more delighted that such well-known film stars have adopted a pioneering role in relation to this technology and call attention on the advantages of electric mobility", commented Professor Dr Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Group Research and Mercedes‑Benz Cars Development. During the Mercedes-Benz F-CELL World Drive of 2011, three B-Class F-CELL vehicles took 125 days to drive 30,000 kilometres through 14 countries on four continents, in a convincing demonstration of the everyday viability of this technology. Joshua Jackson was one of those who took part in the first circumnavigation of the globe with fuel cell cars, driving a section of the route in the USA.

As well as almost 200 B-Class F-CELL, Daimler AG has brought 60 A-Class F‑CELL, three Sprinter vans and almost 60 buses with fleet tests into the market since 2001. Until now the more than 300 fuel cell vehicles have driven around nine million kilometres altogether, providing proof indeed of the unrestricted everyday viability and durability of fuel cell technology. In early 2013, in a bid to speed up the widespread market availability of this emission-free technology and to reduce investment costs, Daimler, Ford and Nissan reached a cooperation agreement covering the joint development of a fuel cell system. The aim is to introduce a competitive fuel cell powered electric vehicle to market in 2017. It is envisaged that significant further progress will have been made by then, in particular towards creating a sustainable infrastructure – not least as a result of Daimler's high level of involvement in various demonstration projects and within the framework of the H2 Mobility Initiative. This initiative has recently agreed to expand the current network of 15 filling stations in Germany's public hydrogen infrastructure to about 400 H2 filling stations by the year 2023. This means that an H2 supply suitable for everyday use shall be created not only for densely populated areas and main traffic areas, but also for rural areas.