Jaguar owners have reminded the carmaker of its heritage at a display that coincided with a major re-branding.
The Jaguar Enthusiasts’ Club (JEC) brought six classics – an XJ-SC, an XJ-S, an XJC, an XJ40, an XK8 and an S-Type – along to Jaguar Land Rover’s technical complex at its headquarters in Gaydon last week. The display happened to coincide with an announcement last week that Jaguar was planning to ‘re-imagine’ its brand.
A spokesperson for the club told enthusiasts: ‘We were worried about how the link between heritage, enthusiasts and the new Jaguar brand would be affected by recent events. The love for our cars and the community that preserves them has been overwhelming.
‘Whatever your views, this has been a seismic moment in automotive history and Jaguar Enthusiasts’ Club has been at the heart of it, representing our heritage.’
The club’s magazine editor, Wayne Scott added: ‘In this time of great change we’ve been here to remind the staff and management at JLR of the company’s heritage – and the response from the staff and the company management has been truly wonderful.
‘The display was a bit of a coincidence because we had always planned to have the display anyway, and it’s great that we’re forging a better relationship with the brand.’
A JLR representative welcomed the display and said: ‘Jaguar is a brand with rich heritage but in order to move forward, Jaguar is undergoing a complete renaissance, focused on exuberant modernism. Sir William Lyons, our founder, believed that Jaguar should be a “copy of nothing”.’
‘We have not forgotten our heritage in any way – we are a brand with heritage, not a heritage brand.’