Jaguar design boss prefers small SUV

The Jaguar F-Pace might be the British brand's first foray in the luxury SUV segment, but it won't be the last.

The iconic sports car maker has arrived fashionably late to the high-riding soft roader market with the F-Pace straddling the compact and large segments in terms of overall size and space.

But the brand's design director, Ian Callum, admits the company is researching more variations on the theme with discussions under way about which direction to go next - smaller or larger. But he also concedes that the F-Pace needs time to take advantage of the booming popularity in SUVs and isn't prepared to rush into a family of cross overs just yet with more immediate plans to expand its passenger car range first.

He also says the focus on sister brand Land Rover and the imminent arrival of the fifth-generation Discovery - which is due to be revealed in final production form at the Paris motor show in September - and the development of the replacement for the iconic Defender will ensure the company has all aspects of the SUV market covered - for now.

"We honestly don't know [if there will be more SUVs]. I'm determined that we hold on to our values as a sports car company and I would not like us to end up making more SUVs than cars – I think we have more cars to make first," he said.

"It is changing, I know that. And to be honest, Jaguar over the last four or five years has been working extremely hard. We're not going to take a respite, but we need to take our foot off the gas a bit and, as far as the cadence goes, the focus will be more on Land Rover now."

Recent speculation has pointed to Jaguar planning a coupe-like SUV to take on the likes of the BMW X4/X6, Mercedes-Benz GLC/GLE Coupes and the upcoming Audi Q6.

While Callum wouldn't divulge any detailed plans, he said "We're exploring all the time – all sorts of things – and some that might surprise you. We haven't done a people mover yet, and we won't, but we're looking at all sorts of things."

But, apart from the obvious coupe-style SUV that would perfectly suit Jaguar's brand values and not encroach on Land Rover in any way, Callum did admit that his personal preference would be to develop a smaller SUV next.

"I like small cars because I believe in them. I'm very aware of urban needs and how clever small cars can be," he said.

"That's a personal thing, but from a business point of view it's probably a bigger one as that makes more sense."

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