The Land Rover Discovery Will No Longer Be Made In The UK

Land Rover is a quintessentially British brand. And the Discovery is (at least in the absence of a Defender) arguably the quintessential Land Rover. But the model won’t be made in the UK anymore.

Bloomberg reports that JLR is shifting assembly of the Discovery to its new plant in Slovakia, effectively ending production of the core model in its home country. The decision comes against the backdrop of Brexit – the UK’s decision to withdraw from the European Union, to the potential detriment of local industry. And it will result in layoffs – but only in the short run, as Jaguar Land Rover remains committed to manufacturing in the UK.

The shift in production of the Discovery is being made so that the automaker can rededicate the capacity at its Solihull plant for producing electric vehicles. The Range Rover and Range Rover Sport will also continue to be manufactured at Solihull, while the Discovery Sport and next-generation Evoque will be produced at its other plant at Halewood in the north of the country. Once the groundwork is laid – as part of an investment totaling hundreds of millions of pounds – the automaker could potentially move production of the Jaguar I-Pace to Solihull as well, and out of Magna Steyr’s contract-manufacturing plant in Austria.

Though it also manufactures in China and Brazil, and is working on bringing the new Slovakia plant on line, Jaguar Land Rover ranked last year as the largest manufacturer of motor vehicles and engines in the UK. In 2017 it produced over half a million vehicles at its domestic plants.

“We are proud to strengthen our position as Britain’s number one car manufacturer,” said JLR CEO Ralf Speth in a recent statement. “However, the car industry is facing a number of challenges that are undoubtedly impacting consumer confidence, particularly in the UK. Jaguar Land Rover must become as lean and fit as possible so that we can continue to invest in our autonomous, connected and electrified future.”