Demand for the F-Pace helped push up sales of Jaguars by 83pc to 172,000 in the year. This helped drive JLR’s total sales - which include the Land Rover off-roaders - to 604,009 vehicles in the year to the end of March.

The Land Rover brand, which makes up the bulk of JLR’s sales, had a flat year, with total vehicle sales rising just 1pc as it faced tough competition and the impact from discontinuing the iconic Defender vehicle. A new Defender model is planned for 2018.

Pre-tax profit rose 3pc to £1.6bn in the year to March 31, some 40pc below the record seen two years ago when strong demand in China helped fuel sales.

Profits were helped by customers purchasing more higher-margin cars. JLR also gained from insurance payouts following a fire at the Chinese port of Tianjin in 2015, which destroyed almost 6,000 vehicles.

However JLR - which produces nearly a third of all cars rolling off UK production lines - was also hit by rising marketing costs as it promotes its growing range of cars, and continued investment in R&D and facilities.