Don’t Hate Me, but I Actually Love Jaguar’s EV Relaunch

Luxury British car maker Jaguar has a history going back almost 100 years, but many have claimed that its recent rebrand — and the unveiling of the new Type 00 electric car — is the beginning of the end. The 41,000 (and growing) comments on its YouTube advert are a dumpster fire of cynicism, while Marketing Week has called the rebrand “fucking lunacy.” Somehow, I like what Jaguar is doing. 

Jaguar has been a household name in the UK for decades. It’s a name with immediate brand recognition not just for Brits like me, but globally. Its cars are luxurious and prestigious enough to tempt business owners and bankers, providing them with a comfortable drive to the golf course with enough room for a set of clubs in the back. Yet they’re not so wildly expensive as to be out of reach to anyone without “CEO, Apple” in their job title. Jaguar has positioned itself well over the years as luxurious, yet achievable.

The problem is that the stereotypical “meet-you-on-the-golf-course” type of Jaguar customer is a dying breed. As are the big, thirsty petrol engines powering almost all of its lineup. I loved the ferocious F-Type SVR when I took it on a road trip around Britain a few years back, and while it felt anything but old-fashioned, there’s no escaping that the brand is associated with a certain stuffiness. 

That’s a problem when the automotive landscape is changing so rapidly. EVs are taking over, with new players on the scene from China, disrupting the sales figures of established car brands and in so doing, forcing those same brands to rethink their approach. That’s just what I believe Jaguar has done. 

Jaguar’s first EV, the I-Pace, has seen sales go from bad to worse over the past few years and the company announced in November that it would halt sales of all its cars in the UK until its electric revival in 2026. After its much-maligned teaser went out, Jaguar finally unveiled that revival in the form of the Type 00 concept.

Jaguar has thrown out or reimagined almost everything that defined its brand, from its logo and fonts to its vehicle identity. “Jaguar’s relaunch was controversial, but it made the world sit up and take notice,” said Rory Reid, Auto Trader UK’s YouTube director and ex-Top Gear host. “Almost overnight, the brand has gone from being a slightly stale, relatively obscure relic of the past, to being the number one topic of automotive conversation.”

The Type 00, with its angular edges and squared-off look, is a huge departure from the famously flowing forms of Jaguar icons like the E-Type. But I immediately liked it. I love the stark lines, I think the front and rear grilles look awesome and I even love both the soft blue and blush pink color options. 

Jaguar’s new “Copy Nothing” slogan rings true; I can’t say in all honesty that the Type 00 looks like anything else out there. In those angled panels, I do see some slight hints of the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and even a bit of the Tesla Cybertruck — a vehicle I hesitate to admit I do quite like the look of.

The Type 00 is far removed from Jaguar’s gin-swigging golf club heritage. It’s undeniably modern and I’d argue it’s a fresh take on what EVs can be. With petrol engines on the way out, it’s allowed car makers to redesign their vehicles around new electric platforms, not just stick an electric motor inside the same car you’ve had for years. Jaguar has seized this opportunity to create something eye-catching. Something that, in time, could become iconic itself. 

To be clear, the Type 00 is a concept. The company has said that its first EV, a four-door GT, will be shown off in late 2025, and it’s usually the case that retail-ready vehicles often bear only a passing resemblance to the concepts they were announced with. For now, if you don’t like the concept car, maybe just squint a bit and see if that helps tone it down for you. 

For me, I hope the final car stays true to the concept. I want to see something bold and exciting. Something that doesn’t just look like any other car on the road. I’m tired of generic SUVs passing me on the highway and I’m sick of losing my own Toyota in a parking lot full of identical-looking cars. 

“The sheer volume of new potential customers this rebrand will have reached gives Jaguar its strongest shot at surviving in the modern age,” said Reid. 

Jaguar has shown that it’s time for a big change, and I’m here for it. 

Andrew Lanxon Editor At Large, Lead Photographer, Europe

Andrew is CNET’s go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.

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• Shortlisted for British Photography Awards 2022, Commended in Landscape Photographer of the Year 2022

Andrew is CNET’s go-to guy for product coverage and lead photographer for Europe. When not testing the latest phones, he can normally be found with his camera in hand, behind his drums or eating his stash of home-cooked food. Sometimes all at once.