The first car in the reborn Jaguar line-up will be a four-door electric GT and it will be the most powerful model in the brand’s history. The new GT will be revealed in 2024 and go on sale in 2025 as the first of three models in the new Jaguar family. Each will be built on an all-new bespoke EV architecture called Jaguar Electrified Architecture (JEA).
- New electric Jaguar GT to produce over 580hp
- Likely to have two e-motors, four-wheel drive
- Will be followed by two more EV crossovers
New Jaguar EV GT performance
Confirmed recently as part of an update to the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) Reimagine strategy, the new Jaguar will have a range of up to 700km and a starting price in excess of GBP 1,00,000 (roughly Rs 1.02 crore). It is likely to have two motors for four-wheel drive and a power output in excess of 580hp. The target time for charging is 322km of range in 15 minutes. Prototypes of the new GT will hit the road before the end of the year.
New Jaguar EV GT design
JLR’s chief creative officer Gerry McGovern said the styling of the GT and subsequent future Jaguars would be “the copy of nothing”, invoking the mantra and philosophy of Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons. He said it was an “honour” to be asked to lead the rebirth of “a brand as loved and cherished” as Jaguar and vowed to return it to its past positioning as a "true British luxury brand”.
He referenced the E-Type and XJS as models that provided a blueprint – but not a retro copy – for how the reborn Jaguar would operate in creating shocking but beautiful designs and how the current Jaguar range was created under a different strategy that the brand would no longer be following.
“The E-Type in its time looked like it had dropped from space," he said. "The XJS was equally compelling and a copy of nothing. The designs of current Jaguars aren’t bad. The strategy was more one of universal appeal and chasing more mainstream premium, which made the cars more normal. We want to go back [to the old philosophy]. It’s a complete reimagining.”
Upcoming Jaguar EV models
The three new Jaguars are the result of an internal design competition that encompassed everyone in JLR’s creative team across all brands. The creative team was split into three teams as part of Project Renaissance, which McGovern believes will go down as a pivotal moment in Jaguar’s history, with each given the same brief to create a family of models for Jaguar’s future.
A total of 18 cars were created as full-sized models in just three months across the teams, but the winning team accounted for just three of them. McGovern said the verdict on choosing this team’s design was “unanimous''.
Our sister publication Autocar UK understands that while the first model will shock, the second and third models will reinforce that design and the models will clearly all be part of the same family. The two cars to follow the GT, likely to be crossovers, will come at a rate of no more than one per year after the launch of the initial car. Volumes will be around 50,000 cars per year for the range as a whole. The cars will all be built at a new dedicated area within JLR’s Solihull production facility.
Jaguar’s plans for the future
Lennard Hoornik, JLR’s chief commercial officer, said the investment in Jaguar stood at around GBP 1 billion (roughly Rs 10,214 crore). “We’re creating an entirely new brand, new business models and new competencies, with every part of the client journey reimagined,” said Hoornik. This ground-up reinvention includes dealers and Hoornik said Jaguars “would not be available everywhere”, confirming reports that the firm is going to reduce the number of dealers selling its cars.
“But equally, there will be a range of three other brands [Range Rover, Discovery and Defender], all electric and with dedicated areas,” he added, a reference to the fact the Land Rover brand would be taking a back seat, with Range Rover, Discovery and Defender becoming model ranges in their own right alongside Jaguar in a four-strong line-up of JLR brands.
Commenting on the relaunch of Jaguar, new JLR CEO Adrian Mardell said: “Jaguar will not disappoint. It will begin to put right unfinished business.” He said it wasn't a “last chance” for the brand and that “this cat was going to purr”. “We create chances by what we deliver. I believe this brand will be here in 50 years,” he added.
Jaguar in India
The Jaguar brand, as well as Land Rover, is owned by Tata Motors and sells several models including the all-electric Jaguar I-Pace, F-Pace and F-Type in India.
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Land Rover evaluating smaller Defender model