New Jaguar EV concept to be revealed in December, to preview four-door GT

Jaguar sticks to its plans to go all-electric; no new cars coming for about a year.

Published On Aug 13, 2024 08:00:00 AM

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Jaguar Future Type Concept used for representation only.

Jaguar will continue to adhere to its plan to become an all-electric brand starting next year, despite EV demand slowing in most markets around the world. The British company is just months away from discontinuing its current international line-up and taking the wraps off a concept that will preview Jaguar’s future. We can now confirm that this concept will be revealed in December.

New Jaguar concept to preview three new EVs
Names to hark back to iconic models, but with a modern twist

The next generation of all-electric Jaguars is said to be unrelated – visually, technically, and in positioning – to the brand’s older and outgoing models. When asked about the design of these upcoming EVs, the company described them as being a "copy of nothing."

The four-door GT concept, set to be revealed in December, will preview future models and be priced around GBP 1,00,000 (approximately Rs 1.02 crore). It will have a range exceeding 700km, ultra-rapid charging, and a dual-motor powertrain with over 580hp. The concept will also preview the design of a Bentley Bentayga-rivaling SUV and a Flying Spur-sized limousine, both expected to be revealed by 2028.

Jaguar managing director Rawdon Glover told our sister publication Autocar UK that a priority while designing these new cars was to rethink the basic principles of EV design. Talking about today’s electric cars, he said, “All look quite similar because they’ve spent too long in a wind tunnel, for range purposes.” Glover added, “If we look at it, it’s quite a homogenous sector, and I suspect that might be part of the reason why the BEV sector stalled a little bit. Actually, what you want to do is make a car that actually challenges some of those conventions.”

He did not provide details, but Autocar UK has already reported that the three cars will have long, probing bonnets and minimalist, imposing front ends that house a distinctive new grille motif envisioned as the new face of the Jaguar brand. Meanwhile, the LED lights at each end will be so slim as to be almost invisible when off. It is also understood the cars will have no rear windows.

Glover did say that reports of the demise of Jaguar’s leaping cat emblem have been “a bit over-exaggerated” because “for brands that want to operate in the luxury space, their provenance, history and iconography are really important. So we have reimagined the leaper for the new brand and for the vehicle, so it will live on, but in a slightly developed format.”

Glover also hinted that historic names will have some influence over what these cars are called: “When you see the naming strategy, what you will see is acknowledgements and nods to our past, but also aspects which are much more forward-thinking.”

Glover said the GT will be unveiled in the US because of how crucial that market is for Jaguar, but said the brand is not disregarding its origins: “Don’t read that as ‘Britishness isn’t important’. It’s a really important part of the brand, but we’re also a global brand. And look at the size and the scale of the US market – for us it’s really important.”

Jaguar’s move to pure-EV propulsion comes as direct rivals have adjusted their electrification strategies in response to flatlining demand for premium electric cars. Porsche, for example, will produce the petrol-powered Cayenne beyond 2030, Audi has massively ramped up its focus on hybrids, and Mercedes-Benz has extended the life cycle of several plug-in hybrid models due to “slower than expected” EV sales.

Before its new era begins, Jaguar has stopped producing the XE, XF and F-Type in Castle Bromwich, and production of the E-Pace and I-Pace will come to an end at Magna’s factory in Austria by the end of the year. Just the F-Pace will remain in production through 2025. Glover told Autocar UK that “we will no longer be on sale for new vehicles in certain European markets by the end of this year, with the UK to follow from the early part of next year.”

He also confirmed that global deliveries of the new electric GT won’t begin before 2026, so there will be a period of around a year with no new Jaguars on sale in select markets. In the meantime, said Glover, retailers will intensify their focus on used cars and aftersales services, “but yes, there will be a period where you will not be able to buy a Jaguar”. In India, the British brand has recently delisted the I-Pace EV and the F-Type from its website, which means that at the moment, only the F-Pace SUV is on sale in the country.

Also see:

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