A Brief History of Jaguar Cars

Luxury cars have their class and clientele in the automobile world. Jaguar has carved its name as one of the classiest, most sought after brands in the world of luxury cars, and more so because it only specializes in luxury and sports cars. It is so exclusive that even its repair costs quite a fortune and is done by jaguar mechanics at Jaguar’s repair shops.

When and where did Jaguar launch first?

Jaguar was founded in 1922 by William Lyons and William Walmsley as the Swallow Sidecar Company in the UK. Walmsley left in 1934, and Lyons then formed the SS Cars Limited. The first model launched by them was an SS 2 ½ liter sports salon, and a matching model was an open two-seater sports car, which was named as the SS Jaguar 100.

Company’s name changed to Jaguar:

In 1945, the company’s name was changed to Jaguar cars limited because the SS Cars logo resembled the Nazi flag. Jaguar’s punchline was “grace, space, pace.” Jaguar then went on to make classic, successful cars like Jaguar XK120, XK150, MK VII, MKs I and II, and the Jaguar E- type. Jaguar won the Le Mans 24-hour race in 1951 and 1953.

Buying Diamler and merging with the British Motor Corporation:

In 1960, Jaguar purchased Diamler from BSA. Jaguar used the brand name Diamler Marque for its most luxurious saloons in the late 1960s. However, this should not be confused with the Diamler brand.

Jaguar only installed the mechanics in their cars and purchased the bodies from Pressed Steel Company Limited. In 1965, the British Motor Corporation (BMC) bought Pressed Steel. Due to the threat of not getting the supply of bodies, Lyons accepted the offer to merge with BMC. In 1966, they changed their name to British Motor Holdings.

Jaguar merged with Leyland Motors:

Leyland Motors was a producer of trucks, buses, and rover vehicles from 1967. The government pushed British Motor Holdings to merge with Leyland Motors. So, in 1968, British Motor Holdings and Leyland Motors merged into the unsuccessful British Leyland Motor Corporation.

Privatization of Jaguar and bought by Ford:

Seeing the poor performance and declining sales. Jaguar was privatized. It was floated as a separate company in the stock market in 1984. 

In 1989, Ford offered the UK and US shareholders to buy Jaguar’s shares. Finally, in 1999, Jaguar became a part of Ford’s Premier Automotive group. In 2007, Ford announced that it intended to sell Jaguar.

Jaguar bought by Tata Motors:

Tata Motors is an Indian company. It purchased Jaguar in 2008.

Jaguar today:

After seeing its ups and downs, Jaguar managed to keep its class and name alive. It is used by the British prime minister and the royals and many other famous people. It has managed to give competition to the likes of Porsche and continues to excel after introducing its fully electrical and other latest models. Jaguar is criticized for its older outdated and style, but for classic Jaguar users, that is the beauty of it.