Jaguar Land Rover Mulls Full Production in India

Tata Motors Ltd.'s Jaguar Land Rover unit, which currently assembles several models from kits in India, is exploring the possibility of building vehicles from scratch there, Reuters reports, citing unidentified sources.

The company already assembles the Land Rover Freelander compact SUV and Jaguar XF sedan at a Tata facility in Pune, India, from parts and powertrains shipped from England. Kit-assembly of the Range Rover Evoque is scheduled to begin there soon.

Local production from India-sourced components would allow JLR avoid import duties of 30% on kits and 75% on finished luxury cars. Last week India's finance minister proposed raising the latter tariff to 100%.

JLR tells Reuters the company continues to examine its options in India.

Analysts doubt JLR will undertake such a project in India soon because its current sales there aren't big enough to justify the expense, according to Dow Jones Newswires.