The British Press Is Freaking Out Over Jaguar’s Decision To Sort-Of Downplay The ‘Land Rover’ Brand

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Part of what we do here at this fine establishment is go one level deeper into the news, and today our journey is into the psyche of the British Motoring Journalist. These are very nice people who, generally, have amazing British names like Jasper Jethro-Hendershend and all somehow manage to own sixteen vintage Lamborghinis on a writer’s salary. Over the last 24 hours, many got super pissy over the news that Jaguar was kinda, maybe gonna downplay the Land Rover part of Jaguar Land Rover. [Ed Note: Matt is just kidding around with our lovable fellow car journos from Britain, to be abundantly clear. -DT]. Allow me to translate what I think is happening. While we’re at it, we’ll take a peek at what’s going on with Tesla’s financials, Ally’s floorplan loans, and BMW’s plan to maybe not let Mini die in the United States.

Jaguar Land Rover Becomes A “House of Brands”

Land Rover Defender 130 side
Photo credit: Land Rover

Let’s start the day with “marketing speak,” because that’s going to be important to understanding this latest kerfuffle. There are various ways for large companies to market various brands. A unified/family/umbrella branding puts everything under one company with numerous sub-brands (Virgin Atlantic, Virgin Galactic, Virgin Gondwana, et cetera). A “house of brands” sees each individual brand as its own distinct identity with its own specific marketing (Louis Vuitton, Moët, Hennessey, Sephora, Dior are all the same company, but you wouldn’t know it unless someone told you).

What is Jaguar Land Rover? Who knows. The branding has been muddled as of late: all Range Rovers are technically Land Rovers, though not all Land Rovers are Range Rovers? This led to hilarious branding like: Land Rover Range Rover SVAutobiography Dynamic Edition. As reported by Autocar, Jaguar has announced a change to all that, with the intent of downplaying Land Rover:

Land Rover would become a “trust mark” for the Defender, Range Rover and Discovery brands, said chief creative officer Gerry McGovern.

“The reality is Range Rover is a brand and so is Defender,’” said McGovern. “Customers say they own a Range Rover. In luxury, you need absolute clarity. Land Rover Range Rover SV Autobiography doesn’t give it.

We love Land Rover, but there isn’t as much equity as Range Rover, and Defender is increasing massively.”

We’ve already written about the troubles at Jaguar and how the brand has to find its own identity in a complex global market. This seems entirely sensible to me. Cue the freakout:

I think there are three partially overlapping reasons to explain the freakout, which I will take in order, and will hopefully explain why British autojournalism is the way it is (as opposed to American or Canadian autojournalism, which have their own quirks):

Gerry McGovern Irks Some People

Designer Gerry McGovern is the chief brand strategist for JLR and, based on private (and not so private) conversations with British journalists, it’s clear that he can be controversial. The tweet’s been deleted, but a well-respected British journalist last night tweeted out “I wonder if Gerry’s behind this fuckery..”

To some, it seems, McGovern is a much needed change agent with a desire to fix what needs fixing. To others, he’s changing things that don’t need changing. Any job at JLR is a tough gig, so I can’t accurately weigh in on the merits of any complaints, though I’m sympathetic towards the former view as, clearly, JLR needs to change.

Some Part Of The British Press Cannot Accept Britain’s New Role In The Car World

This is gonna be tough to hear, but the United Kingdom has ceded some of its place in the global environment over the last 300 years. The sun does set on the British Empire, and that’s nowhere clearer than in the Automotive space. Ze Germans own Mini, Bentley, and Rolls-Royce. Jaguar Land Rover sits within an Indian company. MG, Lotus, and even the famous London Black Taxis are owned by the Chinese.

The world has changed and I don’t believe that almost anyone truly cares if Land Rover maintains its image as a tough, farmer’s truck. The great Hazel Southwell nailed it:

Everyone Just Got Upset On Twitter Super Fast Because That’s What’s Twitter is For And Actually Land Rover Will Still Be On The Buildings

Guess what, it took car writer and satirist Richard Porter of all people (we love Richard Porter almost as much as we love Hazel, just FYI) to clarify this mess:

I love a good British press freakout.

Tesla Is Happy Making Less Money, Thank You

Tesla recall
Photo credit: Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.

Helmuth Johannes Ludwig Graf von Moltke, aka Moltke the Younger, aka Chunky Mario Delight, was the head of the German army before the outbreak of World War I. An outbreak he was, in large part, responsible for starting. His theory was that the Germans were going to get outmuscled by its neighbors and it was better to start a war they could win rather than wait around for a war they’d inevitably lose. He got it half right!

If anyone is happy to criticize Tesla for making stuff up to serve their own narrative it’s me, but I’m actually with Tesla and Elon Musk on their strategy of constantly lowering their own prices. It’s shades of Moltke the Younger [Ed Note: I don’t get this reference, so if you don’t either, don’t fret. -DT], of course, with Musk fighting a war before the other companies can catch up to his advantage. Still, I actually think it owes more to Henry Ford, who continued to lower the price of the Model T as they got cheaper to build.

Here are the numbers from Yahoo! Finance:

For the quarter, Tesla reported Q1 revenue of $23.33 billion, slightly below Street estimates of $23.35 billion, with Q1 adjusted EPS coming in at $0.85, below Street estimates of $0.86. That revenue figure for Q1 represents a slight dip from the $24.32 billion Tesla reported in Q4, but still 24% higher than a year ago.

On the profitability end, Tesla reported adjusted net income of $2.9 billion, less than the $3.03 billion estimated by the Street, and a billion less than last quarter and $700 million less than a year ago. With revenue staying flat-ish and profit dipping, the effects of margin compression could be at play here.

Increased revenue and decreased profit margin is what happens when you slash prices, which is basically what Musk said on his earnings call yesterday, as reported by Automotive News:

“We’ve taken the view that pushing for higher volumes and a larger fleet is the right choice here, versus a lower volume and higher margin,” Musk said on Wednesday’s quarterly earnings call. “However, we expect our vehicles over time will be able to generate significant profit through autonomy.”

Moreover, Musk said, Tesla’s margins remain among the healthiest in the industry even after multiple rounds of price cuts this year for its Model 3 sedan, Model Y crossover, Model S sedan and Model X crossover.

“While we reduced prices considerably in early Q1, it’s worth noting that our operating margin remains among the best in the industry,” Musk said, adding that global production should reach between 1.8 million and 2 million this year. In 2022, Tesla reported global production of about 1.4 million.

Ok, it wouldn’t be Elon Musk if he didn’t say one silly thing. Will his vehicles over time product significant profit through autonomy? I’m not so sure, but he’s correct to point out that his margins still exceed the competition and that gives him room to put price pressure on the rest of the market. Will this ultimately hurt Tesla’s brand value and prestige? Maybe, but he wants to sell 2 million cars a year and you can’t do that without reaching down.

Mini Isn’t Dead Yet

2009 Mini Cooper S Cabriolet

Speaking of electric cars, the U.S. market, and the British automotive industry, it looks like Mini could actually bring EV production to North America, as explained in this helpfully titled article from Automotive News: “Mini could bring EV production to North America” 

A Mini electric crossover could go into production at BMW’s central Mexico factory in the second half of the decade, sources briefed on the plans told Automotive News.

The $1 billion plant in San Luis Potosi produces BMW’s 2 and 3 Series sedans and will build the next-generation 3 Series electric sedan and iX3 electric crossover. One of the sources, who asked not to be identified, said that the new Mini model will share the same platform as the 3 Series EV and its crossover sibling.

It’s unclear how far along Mini is in its decision-making regarding North American production. A spokesperson declined to comment.

The existence of Mini in North America relies, in no small part, on its ability to sell an affordable electric car here. It’s kinda crazy they aren’t already doing that. Because of the Inflation Reduction Act, it would be almost impossible for Mini to sell an electric car in the United States market that was cheap enough if it built it anywhere else than North America. In my mind, that means Mini’s days in the U.S. could be numbered.

This, if it turns out to happen, shows that BMW still wants Mini as a brand for the U.S. Let’s keep an eye on this, eh?

Is Ally Financial A Canary In The Coal Mine?

Allyprinttori2

All of a sudden, it seems like the car market in the United States is going to improve and sales will increase as inventory goes up over the coming months. So why are the people who make the loans to car dealers suddenly pulling back?

Here’s a Bloomberg (via Yahoo) report on the difficulty Ally Financial has had in the auto game:

First-quarter net income attributable to common shareholders plummeted to $291 million, or 96 cents a share, from $627 million, or $1.86, a year earlier, the Detroit-based lender said Wednesday in a statement. On an adjusted basis, net income was 82 cents a share, compared with the 86-cent average estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Ally and other auto lenders have toughened underwriting standards as Americans fall behind on car payments at rates not seen since 2009. Car debt is piling up, with some consumers walking into dealerships with $10,000 in negative equity and others struggling to make payments on existing loans.

“As we progress throughout 2023, we continue to see opportunities across all our businesses, but are mindful of the current environment and are making necessary adjustments to manage risks,” Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Brown said in the statement. “Our focus remains on risk-adjusted returns, which may lead to slightly lower origination levels as we look to tighten underwriting in certain segments that don’t meet return thresholds.”

For the last few years, an inventory squeeze has meant that transaction prices for cars were through the roof. Due in part to economic support from federal and local governments, as well as an increase in savings rates, buyers seemed comfortable taking on high loans for cars at inflated prices. Banks, of course, didn’t hesitate to make those loans. The unfortunate side effect of an improving car market for those people is that their loans are now underwater. How this ends depends a lot on the United States maintaining low unemployment and relative wage growth.

Your Turn

What do you think of the Land Rover brand? What does it mean to you?

Photos: Jaguar Land Rover, Ally, Tesla

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56 thoughts on “The British Press Is Freaking Out Over Jaguar’s Decision To Sort-Of Downplay The ‘Land Rover’ Brand”

  1. “However, we expect our vehicles over time will be able to generate significant profit through autonomy”
    That’s code for “buyers will continue to be fall for the FSD scam”,right?

      1. How do Brits feel about their marquee brand being owned by India, in a truly remarkable reversal that took, what, only 70 years?

        1. I’m a Brit. I don’t care.

          No one cared that Jag used to be American either.

          Supporting businesses based on the nation that owns them isn’t really a big thing here, not least because 50 years ago anything British was probably shit.

        2. Honestly, it feels like a very small amount of payback.
          Some days I think that the further and faster the UK slips towards being a second world country will speed up us getting used to the fact we don’t own the whole fucking world any more. Maybe we should change our name to just “Britain”, I think the ‘Great’ part is giving us delusions of grandeur.

          (The ‘Great’ part is actually a French addition, to distinguish mainland Britain from “Petit Bretagne”, aka Brittany)

          1. When I was a kid we’d sometimes go to the seaside holiday resort of Great Yarmouth.

            So I associate the prefix “Great” with decayed, depressing and smelly.

        3. No one gives a shit really. The cars are designed, engineered and a lot are built here, which is what’s important. Tata are very hands off.

  4. Besides Mini Land Rover really is the only properly internationally successful automaker, but like Mini Land Rover forgot what people wanted, stopped making what people wanted, then started making something entirely different with a badge slapped onto it.

  6. Thought on the Land Rover brand, I’ve always found the logo to be sort of goofy. It looks like it belongs on a golf cart? Never really understood it.

      1. I like the original logo but I can’t quite put my finger on why I’ve never liked the newer one. Which has apparently been used since the late 60’s and switched to the green background in the late 70’s. Is it the green and beige combo that’s throwing me? Not sure.

  7. “Who cares?”

    -Everyone who does not self-identify as a Land Rover super-fan

    Seriously, the branding is very confusing, to the point where on an average day (specifically one in which I haven’t just read an article about Land Rover branding) I would have hard time remembering the difference between Land Rover, Range Rover, and Land Cruiser (yes, I know one of these things is not like the others, but my brain lumps them all together).

    I think the main takeaway here is that Land Rover people are all masochists and this is a way for them to be miserable that doesn’t involve their vehicle of choice broken down on the side of the road for a change. 😛

  8. Why did LR (Tata) even bother announcing it? Jeep’s already been doing that. Nowhere on the rear of the new Wrangler does it say ‘Jeep’, and I don’t think any part of the Wagoneer lineup says ‘Jeep’, yet no one’s freaked out about that yet.

  9. Ok love this:
    “Land Rover would become a “trust mark” for the Defender, Range Rover and Discovery brands, said chief creative officer Gerry McGovern.”

    No ones trusted a Land Rover not to randomly breakdown, catch fire, just not work in years 🙂

  10. I’m pretty sure “Jasper Jethro-Hendershend” is actually a cousin from up the holler, with a last name left over from the indentured servitude days.

    A real British auto-journalist has a name like Jerome Featheringstone-Wolmondsley, and it’s pronounced “Jerry Fanshawe-Wurmsley”

    As far as Land Rover goes, I have no real association with the brand other than old ones ran like crap, forever, and new ones cost a mint. Also, “Chelsea Tractor” is a fun mental image.

    1. Don’t you mean “J.R.T. Featheringstone-Wolmondsley?” Pretty sure all Brit journos have to have three given names.

      Even though I have more experience with Range Rovers, I’m still partial to Landies. Would hate to see them go. At least until the Land Rover Nano comes out; then, it’s all over.

  11. As brands go, Land Rover has a cool factor and an authenticity that rivals Jeep, in spite of dodgy reliability and multiple owners over the years.

    The aspirational part of the brand has never faded.

    What they can’t forget, aside from improving quality, is to keep themselves shamelessly British even though they are a multinational.

    If the Royals and Beckhams are tooling around in Range Rovers, all is well. The Kardashians, not so much.

    Also, army green and khaki paint should be available on every model, lest we forget the adventurous roots of the brand.

    1. Army green and khaki paint should be MANDATORY on every model.
      Jkjk. I had a red Discovery back in my youth that I loved soooo much until the engine blew up (was that last part so obvious it didn’t need to be said?).

  12. Ally is the company I’ve used for investing for…. well… a long time, since before they were named Tradeking, I think. Anyway, I got into the GME before it popped, and just like Robinhood, I was locked out of trading my GME shares when I wanted to. The problem is all the Gen Z/younger millenials were using Robinhood because OOooOo App is pretty so that got all the press, and there were class action lawsuits against them, but nobody gave a shit about anyone who had an account with Ally.

    F Ally.

  13. I’m British, and English, which is the worst kind of British. Land Rover means very little to me.

    I’ve spent a lot of time in Defenders, doing Defendery type stuff like towing through blizzards. They’ve all been some degree of broken, and have made me realise the very important differences between “rugged” and “reliable”. Rugged is something you fix with a hammer, reliable is something you don’t have to fix. Crude but charming when they are functional. Fun to climb on.

    I’ve spent enough time in Range Rovers to know that they are similar, but for people who have enough money that a broken car is someone else’s problem. I still think of a P38 Rangie every time I smell hot coolant.

    Discos are for people to tow horse boxes with, and also drop the kids off at school. Stuff you’d do in your Range Rover if you could afford one, which you can’t. A silver medal. Also there was one with a needlessly offset rear number plate, which would be cripplingly embarrassing to have parked near my house.

    If I needed something Land Rovery I’d just get a Toyota, because Land Rover to me means “broken, and probably expensively”.

    I have worked for JLR, and with a lot of former JLR engineers. I get the impression that when JLR make a decision it’s exclusively picking which foot they are going to shoot themselves in.

    My feelings about the UK automotive press are expressed by my choice to be here at the Autopian.

    1. “I have worked for JLR, and with a lot of former JLR engineers. I get the impression that when JLR make a decision it’s exclusively picking which foot they are going to shoot themselves in.”

      The ghost of British Leyland casts a very long shadow over Gaydon.

      1. Some people view British Leyland as a success because of how huge it was, rather than as a failure because of how stupidly it destroyed itself.

  14. I’m somewhat conflicted.

    My previous vehicle was a Range Rover Sport Supercharged (aka footballer’s car or L322). The current vehicle is a Jaaag F-Pace.

    The LR was more truck-ish and the J is more refined, and that’s kind of how I see the brands overall. There is a lot of history in both marques, but if they can survive the move from V8s and body-on-frame to smaller turbo engines and unibody construction I think they can survive the renaming.

    However, dumb statements like this from McGovern are not helping:

    “In luxury, you need absolute clarity. Land Rover Range Rover SV Autobiography doesn’t give it.”

    Make + Model + Trim level does not give clarity?? That’s probably the second most common way to describe a car. The most common relies on context and/or the shared knowledge of the people involved. Hardly anyone will say “Chevrolet Corvette ZR1” – they’ll just say “Corvette ZR1”. The “Chevrolet” in that case is understood, not deleted: it still applies even if it doesn’t need to be stated, because it’s fairly common knowledge that Chevy makes the Corvette.

    “Land Rover Range Rover” is clear; it just sounds slightly awkward because it uses four words and two of them are the same.

    1. I get what he’s saying and I think he’s right. Land Rover Range Rover is correct, but stupid. The whole SV thing has been a botch from the start – it’s why the short lived Velar SV wasn’t called SVR, because some journalists told marketing it didn’t corner flat enough (the Velar can’t be equipped with the active anti roll system). Believe me if Gerry had his way he’d fire the marketing team.

    1. Except it was always only Range Rover. Land Rover was the manufacturer of Range Rovers, but they should never be referred to by both names. Same as with LaFerrari or the Metropolitan and a whole slew of other single-named vehicles.

    1. Do you see any stripes on my arm? Then don’t me Sir. Believe me when the revolution comes I’ll be the first one sharpening the guillotines.

  17. “Land Rover would become a “trust mark” for the Defender, Range Rover and Discovery brands, said chief creative officer Gerry McGovern.”

    McGovern is a turd. They are downplaying Land Rover because outside of the new defender…which by its nature is the LEAST McGovern looking Land Rover…they are selling terribly. The Discovery and Discovery Sport are capable hunks of fashion suicide. They have not caught on and they aren’t aging great. Luxury buyers of off-road brands expect a certain vibe and McGovern…its not that vibe.

    Just google image the dude, it looks like someone Pretty Woman’ed the hair that collects in your shower drain. THIS is the chief creative?!

    3. Calling some marketer the “chief creative” is the stupidest thing. I’m self describe myself as awesome. Please refer to me as “Chief Awesome”

    4. The Discovery Sport sells pretty well, but Discovery has never been a big seller, and Discovery 5 despite being a massively capable car was a misstep, which is recognised inside the company. Defender, FFRR and RRS are all doing extremely well.

  18. What everyone is forgetting is that, LAND ROVER WAS A MODEL BEFORE IT BECAME A BRAND. Especially the Doomer Boomers who were fucking alive when it was just a British Leyland vehicle model. It’s so bloody stupid lol. In the beginning it was:
    British Leyland LAND ROVER Series 1.

    This is a big ol’ nothing burger.

    1. Land Rover started as a product of Rover, which was independent at the time. British Leyland didn’t come into existence until twenty years later, although by then Rover had already become part of Leyland Motor(s).

  21. I don’t think they’re wrong about the value of the model names on their own in the Land Rover lineup. But I’m already feeling tired of the “models are their own brand!” push that’s been happening. It’s like an inverse of the alphanumerics 25 years ago where the branding was all about the main brand (and Land Rover participated in – LR3, LR4) being stronger than the models.

    Genesis kind of was at the forefront. Didn’t really work for the Prius ~10 years ago. But now we have Bronco, Mustang, Ioniq, Corvette (SUV) as a few different models in a lineup that are considered sub-brands or threatening to be. Could even stretch that to the general nostalgia push of bringing back Integra or throwing “Eclipse Cross” on that crossover.

    Doesn’t GM still own the rights to the Cutlass name? How about an all-EV subbrand with Calais and Ciera? A W-body Supreme with the Guide headlights remade in the retro-futuristic vein of Hyundai’s concepts?

  22. Huh. It’s almost as if mismanaging your industry, letting it implode, and selling off the remnants for whatever brand value they have takes away your say in what happens to those brands under their new ownership.

    Honestly, at this point, car brands are almost as meaningless to me as clothing brands. I don’t really care what logo is on a new car any more; I only care about the machine itself.

  23. I always found the Land Rover / Range Rover branding confusing. They weren’t too common when I was growing up and by the time they became more common most people called them Range Rovers. I didn’t realize they were a model of Land Rover until a Land Rover Dealership opened in town.

    If I found the vehicles more interesting (no offense, just not the type of vehicle I’m into), I would probably have learned the difference.

  24. I imagine tow truck operators across America momentarily had their hearts in their throats when they saw a headline about “Land Rover going away”.

    It’s shades of Moltke the Younger [Ed Note: I don’t get this reference, so if you don’t either, don’t fret. -DT]

    For someone who spends as much time in Germany as you do, this is especially surprising. But deep cut from Hardigree, nicely done.

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