If there’s no such thing as bad press, then Jaguar’s marketing department has hit it for six in the last few weeks. Jaguar’s reinvention began with a strange teaser devoid of any car featuring a bunch of folks dressed in primary colours cosplaying as Austin Powers attempting to get into Berghain, enraging their core fanbase and prompting Elon Musk to publicly question if Jaguar was still in the car business. Now after many heated online debates and dumbfounded opinion pieces, Jaguar have finally pulled the covers off possibly the most unexpectedly anticipated car of 2024: meet the all-electric Jaguar Type 00!
“Copy nothing” was the tagline for Jaguar’s makeover — a famous quote from company founder Sir William Lyons — and visually there aren’t many cars to which we can compare this new big cat, especially in the debut colours of Miami Pink and London Blue. The are perhaps hints of the Avions Voisin C28 Aerosport or Auto Union Type 52 in the Type 00’s monolithic silhouette and glassless rear tailgate, but it seems Jaguar’s design team is committed to their new ethos.
With the butterfly doors open it’s clear the Type 00’s interior is all about frill-free luxury. Two gargantuan disappearing displays are split by a 3.8 metre brass spine that forms the cabin’s focal point. It may not be as graceful as Jags of old — and we suspect that this concept will prove just as divisive as the similarly brutalist Cybertruck — but with so little to differentiate luxury EVs from their competitors apart from design, we wouldn’t be surprised if Jaguar’s bold approach pays off in a big way.
Despite the brand-new look, the Type 00’s gargantuan grand tourer format harks back to Jaguars of old and certainly serves as a breath of fresh air among all the electric crossovers flooding the streets. Jaguar says the Type 00 previews a four door saloon that will be unveiled in late 2025. We’re unsure how much of the concept’s avant-garde design remains once a pair of extra doors and numberplates are attached, but for now we can only commend Jaguar’s willingness to try something different.
