Jaguar Sets All-Time Sales Record
7 January 1999
Jaguar Sets All-Time Sales Record DETR0IT, Jan. 6 -- Jaguar sales and exports hit an all-time
record in 1998. Announcing the sales results at the North American
International Auto Show in Detroit today (Wednesday), Jaguar's chairman and
chief executive Nick Scheele said that for the first time in its 76-year
history, the Coventry-based luxury car manufacturer had sold over 50,000 cars
in a single year.
During 1998, Jaguar sold 50,220 luxury saloons and sports cars in world
markets, an increase of 15 percent over 1997 and 2 percent more than the
49,495 cars sold in 1988 -- the previous best-ever sales year. Exports during
1998 totaled 38,550, 9 percent higher than the 35,473 cars exported in 1987.
A record 10,522 Jaguar cars were exported to Continental Europe where
sales were 21.4 percent higher than 1997 -- itself a record sales year. Sales
in Germany, Europe's biggest luxury car market, were also a record, with
Jaguar selling 4,059 cars in 1998 -- the first time ever that Jaguar has sold
over 4,000 cars in this key European market.
Jaguar also shattered sales records in Italy, Switzerland, Belgium, the
Netherlands, Spain, Austria, Norway (where sales doubled), Finland, Portugal
and Ireland.
In the United States, Jaguar's biggest single market, sales increased by
15.4 percent to 22,503 cars, Jaguar's best sales performance since 1987 and
the third best sales year on record. Sales in the United Kingdom were the
highest this decade with UK dealers registering 11,640 cars during 1998 -- an
increase of 22 percent over 1997.
"These are outstanding sales results," said Nick Scheele. "Achieving the
highest sales in our history, in our last year as a two model company, gives
us the strongest possible platform for the launch of our third model -- the
new S-TYPE sports saloon -- in the spring.
"The commitment of all our employees together with a focused management
team have helped us achieve record breaking sales in an increasingly
competitive global market place."
