Jaguar pulled the cover off the Type 01 at a Tuesday evening event in New York, framing it as a high-end electric grand tourer with a £130,000 sticker. Assembly will take place in Solihull, while nearby Wolverhampton will produce the electric drive units and the battery packs. Early YouTube clips drew the internet's usual mix of hot takes, spanning "boring" and "looks like a generic modern Chinese EV" to "beautiful" and "fabulous."
It is Jaguar's first all-new model in eight years and is aimed at a younger crowd than the marque's traditional base. Customers will be able to order in early 2027, following Jaguar's 2024 brand overhaul, during which it paused UK sales of new vehicles and pivoted toward luxury EVs.
Jaguar's 2024 rebrand sparked pushback, including a teaser that skipped showing cars altogether in favor of impassive fashion models. The company, part of Jaguar Land Rover Automotive Plc and owned by India's Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd., had long leaned on Land Rover and Range Rover SUVs - which were more profitable and enjoyed growing US demand. Meanwhile, Jaguar's momentum waned, with annual sales at 66,900 in the final full year before the brand went into hibernation, roughly a third of what it managed after launching the I-Pace in 2018.
In 2024 Jaguar ended production of all models except the F-Pace SUVs, which it kept building in the UK for export. The company set its EV-only direction in early 2021 and traces its roots to 1922, with icons like the E-Type shaping its legacy. As CEO P.B. Balaji put it, Jaguar "is a vital part of JLR's growth story." The rebooted brand is expected to prioritize smaller volumes rather than chase past output.
Luxury relaunches are expensive bets on brand value that may have faded. Market Briefs covers the auto business free every weekday.
Luxury EV debuts have been a mixed bag. Ferrari NV introduced its first electric car, the Luce, and it met with broad criticism, while Volkswagen's Bentley brand stuck with a familiar silhouette to avoid design blowback on its first battery-only car. Jaguar chose New York for the reveal because it views the US as a key market, even as skepticism toward EVs remains entrenched at the premium end. Europe looks more open but still cautious, with sales improving this year on higher fuel prices and the return of incentives in big markets like Germany.
Against that backdrop, JLR is cutting around 4,000 jobs while dealing with US tariffs, the fallout from a production-crippling cyberattack, and rising competition, including from Chinese automakers. The company has also recently revealed its first electric Range Rover. UK Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds called the new Jaguar "another big vote of confidence in our world-class automotive industry," following fresh investment pledges from McLaren Automotive Ltd. and Nissan Motor Co.
Jaguar says the Type 01 can travel up to 400 miles on a single charge, reclaim about 200 miles in 13 minutes using rapid charging, and hit 62 mph in 3.2 seconds. If those numbers hold when orders open in early 2027, they set a clear performance and charging bar for a brand that is rebuilding for a new era. Small planned volumes, a tilt toward younger, affluent buyers, and a design that is already stirring debate all point to the same question: does this feel like a fresh chapter or just a glossy reset? For your money, the proof shows up in how well the car delivers once it leaves the hype behind.
Pricing a car this high is a statement about who the buyer is. Join Market Briefs free and watch the reception.
