Thanks -- but no thanks -- Jag says of Bertone concept

Bertone’s entry-level Jaguar wannabe

Photo credit: GREGORY ROBINSON

Add a comment

Thought Leadership

Sponsored by

	»
	»
	»
	»
	»

Article Tools

Reprints	Print
Respond	Size:

Related Topics

• Geneva Motor show
• Auto Shows
• Design
• Bertone
• Jaguar
• UK
• Adrian Hallmark

GENEVA -- Italian design house Bertone showed a design concept for a new entry-level sedan for Jaguar, the B99. But the concept wasn't commissioned by Jaguar and is not a hint of the small sedan the British automaker is considering, a top Jaguar executive said.

"I saw it for the first time yesterday," Adrian Hallmark, Jaguar's global brand director, said last week at the Geneva auto show. "It is not our concept. We appreciate the fact that Jaguar is interesting enough for people to do a concept around. It's not that we are offended by it, or against it -- it is just not for us."

European design houses often show concepts for specific brands without the cooperation of the automaker. The idea is to display design ideas and attract business with the automaker.

Jaguar has said that it will bring out a small sedan in 2013 or 2014.

"We want to access these new segments," said Hallmark. But he said a design for the car has not been chosen.

"We have concepts all over the place," he said. "A lot of work has been done."

After last year's launch of the XJ sedan, Hallmark said Jaguar can grow even without a small car for a few years. "We have so much room to grow to get to a normal level of performance," he said. "We did not have XJ for most of the year. The potential for us to improve is driven by lack of product the year before."

You can reach Diana T. Kurylko at dkurylko@crain.com. -- Follow Diana on

 Print    Respond to Editor    Reprints