SIR Ralf Speth, the chief executive of Jaguar Land Rover, has announced he will retire in September.
The German engineer has led the prestige car builder for almost a decade.
Sir Ralf confirmed he would step back from heading JLR, and become a non-executive vice-chairman of Britain’s largest car company based in Coventry with plants in Solihull borough.
His leadership saw a modernisation of the Jaguar-Land Rover offering, but thousands of jobs were cut amid billion-pound write-downs.
Dr Speth will also retain his role on the board of JLR’s parent company Tata Sons.
He focused on promoting the Range Rover brand in China and the United States to boost profitability, but some workers believed plants were opened in Slovakia and Brazil at the expense of British plants.
The group recently announced job cuts at its Halewood plant in Merseyside.
It follows some cuts in the last two years at Solihull and Castle Bromwich.
During the early years of his tenure, JLR focused on diesel engine efficiency only to be stung by a government crackdown on air particulates.
With investment in electric, the Jaguar I-Pace was well received with awards, but German car makers have stolen a march on producing hybrid and electric vehicles.
N. Chandrasekaran, chairman of Tata Sons, said: “I want to thank Ralf for his passion and commitment over the last 10 years. Ralf developed Jaguar Land Rover from a niche UK centric manufacturer to a respected, technological leading, global premium company.”
