Corporate Business

Caterham Cars will attend the popular male lifestyle show, Salon de l’Homme, in Paris on 27-29 November, exhibiting a selection of its iconic British road and track focused Seven models. The stylish men’s lifestyle event is in its second year, and is hosted at the illustrious Carrousel du Louvre with crowds in excess of 20,000 expected throughout the three-day show.

His Highness Sheikh Suroor bin Mohammed al Nahyan today signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Aston Martin CEO Dr Andy Palmer for a new Aston Martin showroom in Abu Dhabi, based in Etihad Towers. Richard Foulds, Head of Property Management at Etihad Towers said, “We are thrilled to be able to share this exciting news. Aston Martin opening in Abu Dhabi is good news for us all, and we are especially pleased to be hosting their beautiful new showroom here.”

Rolls-Royce Motor Cars is delighted to confirm the Zagame Automotive Group as its newly appointed dealer for Melbourne, Victoria, in Australia. “I am very pleased to welcome Zagame Automotive as our authorised partner,” said Asia Pacific Regional Director, Paul Harris. “Bobby Zagame has established a luxury automotive company with an excellent track record and is highly regarded in Melbourne’s business community through the Group’s hospitality, property and investment portfolio. His passion for the automotive business and service philosophy is truly in alignment with the standards expected by Rolls-Royce customers.”

Jaguar Land Rover today announced that it is to double the size of its Engine Manufacturing Centre (EMC) as part of a £450m expansion programme. This latest news from the UK’s leading manufacturing investor is a clear signal of the company’s long-term commitment to Britain. Total investment in the site, which opened a year ago, now stands at £1bn making it the most significant new automotive manufacturing facility to be built in the UK in the last decade. The EMC is home to the high technology, low emission Ingenium engine – Jaguar Land Rover’s first venture into in-house engine manufacturing in a generation. In just twelve months, the Midland based facility has moved from prototype production to full-scale manufacture with more than 50,000 engines coming off the production line.

Our Video of the Week (VotW) this time around is a brand new marketing video from Lotus for the Evora 400. As they say, “The most powerful production Lotus ever – the new Lotus Evora 400 is a superior machine to the previous model in every aspect.” Over two thirds of the Lotus Evora 400 is new, including its supercharged and charge-cooled mid-mounted 3.5-litre V6 engine. Power has been increased from 345 hp (350 PS; 257.3 kW) to 400 hp (406 PS; 298.3 kW) at 7,000rpm. Torque has also been increased to 302 lbs ft (410 Nm) achieved between 3,500 to 6,500 rpm. 42 kg lighter than the previous model, with a completely new aluminium chassis and significantly revised lightweight composite body front and rear. The new Evora 400 is also ergonomically more refined, with easier cabin exit and entry, […]

Bentley Motorsport has announced that Team Parker Racing will run two Bentley Continental GT3s in the British GT Championship and Blancpain Endurance Series in 2016. Well known for its championship-winning successes across Europe’s top racing series, Team Parker Racing has selected the Continental GT3 after witnessing its Blancpain Sprint Series and GT Asia Championship wins, and second place finish in Blancpain Endurance Series in 2015. “We’re extremely excited to have Team Parker Racing in the Bentley Motorsport fold,” commented Bentley’s Director of Motorsport Brian Gush. “It’s important that we partner up with teams that have proven they have what it takes to run race- and championship-winning cars and we are confident that, together, we can have success.

Jaguar Land Rover North America announced that both brands have been honored as ‘2015 Most Popular’ on Edmunds.com. The Jaguar F-TYPE has been named a 2015 Most Popular Premium Sports Car and the 2015 Range Rover a 2015 Most Popular Premium Luxury SUV. “The well-established Jaguar and Land Rover brands have a lot of appeal to those shopping in the premium luxury segments on our site,” said Edmunds.com CEO Avi Steinlauf. “These awards reflect significant interest in some very compelling new vehicles.”

Jaguar Land Rover, the UK’s leading manufacturer of premium luxury vehicles today reported best ever October retail sales of 41,553 vehicles, up 24% on October 2014. The company sold 390,965 vehicles in the first ten months of 2015, 2% up on the same period in the prior year. Retail sales for the month of October were 40% up year-on-year in the UK, 74% up in North America, 24% up in Europe and 9% up in China.  Other overseas markets were down 5% for the month, reflecting the challenging macro-economic environment in countries such as Russia and Brazil.

Established in 1999, the Lotus Driving Academy offers a comprehensive range of driver training and experience packages for customers to get a taste of the benchmark handling and pure driving experience of Lotus sports cars. Now available for the first time, prospective customers, Lotus fans and track driving enthusiasts alike can experience what a day with theLotus Driving Academy might feel like in full 360 degree immersion using the latest video technology. At the home of Lotus Cars in Hethel, Norfolk lies a 2.2 mile test track that has been the site for test and development of all Lotus Cars since 1966. Viewers now have the opportunity to experience this world famous circuit at full race-pace in virtual reality – through their computer, tablet or mobile device – and get a taste of what’s on offer before experiencing it for […]

In honor of its 45th anniversary, Land Rover has driven its flagship Range Rover luxury SUV across a bridge made of paper. The freestanding structure in Suzhou, China, spanned five metres without glue or bolts to hold it in place. Land Rover commissioned the unique bridge to mark the 45th anniversary of its Range Rover family and to highlight 45 years of Range Rover innovation ahead of the Guangzhou Motor Show in China. The hand-built paper bridge took three days to construct in the ancient water city of Suzhou, which is famous for its bridges and nicknamed ‘Venice of the East’. The unique crossing was made of high-quality paper supplied by specialist British manufacturer James Cropper PLC.

The all-original and complete set of body panels for the Series 1 Jaguar E-type and selected parts of Series 2 and 3, are now available to order from Jaguar Heritage Parts. In order to provide world-class quality for E-type customers, Jaguar’s skilled technicians and engineers employed state-of-the-art scanning technology to digitally map every inch of an E-type in 3D. Once scanned, the highly detailed scans are transferred to CAD images to create a complete and virtual model of the car to ensure perfect panel alignment. The exact dimensions and shapes of the inner and outer surfaces and recorded to within a fraction of a millimetre. Once the entire car is digitally mapped, Jaguar Heritage is then able to test the quality and accuracy of each panel plus the original tooling used to make it.  Each part is meticulously measured on […]

Land Rover has unveiled its first luxury compact convertible SUV along the iconic coastline of Los Angeles in Santa Monica, CA. SPECTRE actress Naomie Harris was one of the first to view the newest member of the Range Rover family, as it was revealed for the first time ahead of the Los Angeles Auto Show. Following the recent global release of SPECTRE, the 24th James Bond adventure, which features vehicles produced by the Jaguar Land Rover Special Operations division, Harris joined the brand to receive an exclusive first look at the new Range Rover Evoque Convertible as it debuted in the US.

Jaguar North America has announced it will expand the price range of the F-TYPE lineup in the U.S. for the 2017 model year to include new entry-level coupe and convertible models which lower the introductory price of the F-TYPE Coupe & Convertible to $61,400 and $65,400 respectively. The 2017 line-up of Jaguar sports cars will continue to consist of the F-TYPE, F-TYPE S and the range topping F-TYPE R. The addition of a new entry price level for 2017 Jaguar F-TYPE builds upon the pricing realignment strategy announced as part of The Next Generation of Jaguar for the 2016 model year in which an improved competitive value position was brought to market through a combination of new entry priced models, increased standard equipment and lower MSRPs that all help the brand target the heart of the luxury market.

Legendary racing driver and 24 Hours of Le Mans winner Andy Wallace relived his 1988 victory by taking to the Silverstone circuit to drive the Jaguar XJR9-LM during day and night back-to-back with the new 550PS, 5.0-litre Supercharged V8 Jaguar XJR. Wallace discusses his experiences in the XJR9-LM and the new XJR in an exciting new film. Driving at night on the Silverstone circuit gave Wallace the opportunity to test the new LED headlights on the new XJ, which are a first for Jaguar.  “Driving at Le Mans back in 1988, it was so hard to see at night,” said Wallace. “We were travelling at around 240mph and it was too fast to see the road ahead. We used the lights more to catch glimpses of landmarks as they whizzed past, so we knew where we were.

Jaguar is pleased to announce a major new chauffeur deal with Crawfords of London, underlining Jaguar’s fleet success this year and its status as a major player in the luxury private hire market. Crawfords of London will be adding 50 2016 Model Year XJ LWB Autobiography models to its fleet of luxury models, transporting its most demanding customers in a car that is the pinnacle of Jaguar’s line-up. As standard it comes with heated and cooled reclining rear seats, rear business tables, wi-fi and sunblinds.

Aston Martin Racing has announced that six of its Evolution Academy drivers will test the Vantage GTE at the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) in Bahrain, before the panel decides who will be offered a 2016 works team contract. Dan Lloyd (GB), who helped Craft-Bamboo Racing secure the GT Asia Series championship title, will be joined by British GT Championship GT4 class-winners Ross Gunn (GB) and Jamie Chadwick (GB). The 24H Series GT4 class-winner Devon Modell will also take part, alongside British GT Championship GT3 stars Matt Bell (GB) and Jody Fannin (GB).

As the only car marque supporting the SalonQP Fine Watch Exhibition, Lotus Cars is proudly exhibiting two of its high performance, handbuilt, pure sports cars, the new and recently launched Lotus Evora 400 and the exciting Lotus Exige Club Racer. Jean-Marc Gales, CEO of Group Lotus plc says, “We are delighted to be an official partner to SalonQP this year and to take the opportunity to showcase two of our handbuilt sports cars to an audience appreciative of fine design. Every car that comes out of our Norfolk Headquarters is built to order and bespoke to each customer’s requirements. Whether it is the hand-spray painted lightweight body or the craftsmen and women who stitch together high quality Scottish leather for the interior, each stage of the manufacturing process is a perfect example of passion and commitment.” Accompanying the Lotus Evora […]

The UK automotive sector’s workforce is one of the world’s most productive – but action is needed to address a shortage of skilled engineers and operators, according to new research by the Automotive Council. The report1, which ranks the UK’s strengths and attractiveness for automotive investment against other European and global countries, places the UK’s automotive ‎productivity in top position in Europe. The UK’s strong performance reflects a culture of constant improvement in the industry and a trend towards more efficient processes adopted since the global financial crisis – as well as the shift towards high-value manufacture of premium vehicles. The UK also ranks highly for collaboration between industry and academic bodies – essential in spearheading excellence in research and innovation. Labour flexibility is identified as another area where the UK excels – providing flexibility with working patterns and managing labour demands, vital in […]