The Jaguar F-Type convertible is proving to be a sales hit, with the British carmaker already selling half of the first year’s production.
“Half of the first year’s production of the F-Type is already sold,” global brand director Adrian Hallmark told Autonews. This means that customers who order the car now will get one by the end of this year – if they’re lucky.
According to Hallmark, the F-Type will have an even better influence on the Jaguar brand than on the carmaker’s overall production. “Sports cars have a global annual volume of about 75,000 units and a market share of 0.1 percent but the F-Type’s boost to our brand’s image will be phenomenal,” Hallmark added.
The F-Type is expected make up 15 percent to 20 percent of the brand’s total annual output of 60,000 units. Priced from €73,400, the F-Type is positioned between the Porsche Boxster and 911 Carrera convertible.
Since the car has no direct predecessor, Jaguar expects 90 percent of F-Type buyers to be new to the brand. Jaguar product manager Steven de Ploey told Autonews that the car will help attract younger customers.
The main markets for the F-Type will be United States, the UK, Germany, and China, where young millionaires are on the rise. The F-Type is offered with three gasoline engines: a 3.0-liter V6 with 340 hp or 380 hp and a 5.0-liter V8 with 495 hp. All three versions are supercharged and equipped with start-stop system and ZF’s new eight-speed automatic transmission.
A coupe version of the Jaguar F-Type is expected to arrive by mid-2014.
By Dan Mihalascu
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