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 | | Tuesday, 11 September, 2001, 19:27 GMT 20:27 UK Jaguar goes light  The X Type model, which is also made in England By BBC West Midlands business correspondent Mark Foster The Big Cat is to shed weight. The luxury car maker, Jaguar, has announced it is to use more aluminium in its future models - and it means a large investment in its factories in Birmingham and Coventry. At the opening of the Frankfurt Motor Show on Tuesday, the company said the next XJ saloon, Jaguar's flagship, would be the first production model to feature a mainly aluminium body. The metal will also be used in other components, including the engine. Jaguar says it will benefit performance, fuel economy and emissions.
A new press shop is being built at Castle Bromwich for a joint venture between Jaguar, Polynorm and Stadco to produce body panels, creating about 100 jobs. Jaguar will not put a figure on the total investment but says newspaper reports of a �4bn programme are "way off". It has confirmed that over the next three years there will be 16 model revisions, including the all new XJ saloon and the F Type sportscar, due in 2002. Business case Jaguar, owned by Ford, has yet to announce where the F Type is to be made, saying it will have to put forward a strong business case. The company's newest car, the X Type saloon is made at the former Ford plant at Halewood near Liverpool. Aluminium has been used in Jaguars before - from the XK 120 of 1948, through the C-Type (of Le Mans fame) and lightweight E Types of the 50s and 60s to the XJ 220 supercar of the early 1990s. | | See also:  Top Business stories now:  Links to more Business stories are at the foot of the page. | |||||||||||||||||||||
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