Rumour: Tata Motors JLR to develop Fortuner rival

Tata Motors Limited is rumoured to be on the verge of finalising a project with Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) for the development of an SUV. This will be the first vehicle to be developed jointly by the two companies since Tata Motors took over JLR six years ago.

The new SUV is likely to be priced at Rs.20-25 lakh and will compete with the Toyota Fortuner, Ford Endeavour and Hyundai Santa Fe.

According to a report on Economic Times, a team of 45 engineers is working on a project codenamed Q5, which could result in the production of a five-seven seater SUV in 2016-17. The project was initiated by the former CEO of Tata Motors, Carl Peter Foster. If the project is approved, the vehicle will be built on the Freelander 2 platform and modified to suit Indian market conditions, which will make it 50-85% different from the Freelander.

The Q5 is likely to sport a Tata badge, which makes it Tata Motors' second product in the premium SUV segment. Its first offering, the Aria has not managed to find many takers. The Q5 too could find it tough to survive unless Tata Motors makes considerable efforts to change its brand image.

Note: Image of Freelander 2 used for representation purpose only.