Jaguar's business was founded as the Swallow Sidecar Company in 1922, originally making motorcycle sidecars before developing bodies for passenger cars. Under the ownership of S. S. Cars Limited the business extended to complete cars.

The name S. S. Cars was changed to "Jaguar" in 1945. A merger with the British Motor Corporation followed in 1966, the resulting enlarged company now being renamed as British Motor Holdings (BMH), which in 1968 merged with Leyland Motor Corporation and became British Leyland, itself to be nationalised in 1975.

Jaguar was de-merged from British Leyland and was listed on the London Stock Exchange in 1984 but it was acquired by Ford in 1990.

In  2008, Ford announced that it had agreed to sell its Jaguar and Land Rover operations to Tata Motors of India at a cost of £1.7 billion.

Jaguar has, in recent years, manufactured cars for the British Prime Minister, the most recent delivery being an

XJ in May 2010. The company also holds royal warrants from Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles.

The Swallow Sidecar company (SSC) was originally located in Blackpool but moved to Holbrook Lane, Coventry in 1928 when demand for the Austin Swallow became too great for the factory's capacity. In 1951, having outgrown the original Coventry site they moved to Browns Lane, which had been a wartime "shadow factory" run by The Daimler Company. Today, Jaguars are assembled at Castle Bromwich in Birmingham. The historic Browns Lane plant ceased trim and final operations in 2005.

In 2000, Ford turned its Halewood plant over to Jaguar following the discontinuation of its long running Escort that year for Jaguar's new X-Type model. Jaguars ceased being produced at Halewood in 2009 following the discontinuation of the X-Type; Halewood now becoming a Land Rover-only plant.

A reduced Browns Lane site operates today, producing veneers for Jaguar Land Rover and others, as well as some engineering facilities.

A new assembly plant was opened at Pune, India in April 2011.

SS Jaguar 3½-litre, 125 hp drophead coupé 1940

1954 Jaguar XK150

1963 Jaguar E-Type Roadster