There’s a real sense of momentum at Jaguar Land Rover’s headquarters in Gaydon. You feel it as soon as you walk in. The corridors are bright and simple. People move with purpose. There is focus, but also a quiet edge of tension.
That same mix shows in Rawdon Glover. He leads Jaguar through one of the biggest shifts in its history. During an early drive of the Type 00 prototype, he shared how the brand plans to change, and why.
Glover is direct about what comes next. Jaguar will not follow the usual path, especially in the EV space. The brand has reset itself before, and it plans to do it again.
The design language will change. The cars will still feel like Jaguars, but they will not look like recent models. The goal is simple: stand apart, not blend in.
Solving the EV trade-offs
The Type 00 is bold in both design and engineering. It is a low four-door GT, about 55 inches tall. That creates a challenge. In most EVs, more range means a larger battery, which raises the car’s height. That often hurts design and driving feel.
Jaguar chose a different route. Part of the battery sits ahead of the lower structure. This setup required a full rethink of energy flow and crash safety. It lets the car stay low without losing range or performance.
The result is a drag coefficient of 0.23, the most aerodynamic Jaguar yet. That stands out because the car does not follow the usual rounded EV shape. It keeps strong proportions and larger wheels, which are harder to manage for airflow.
Lessons from development
The process was not easy. Glover is clear on that. Building a new car while rebuilding a brand adds pressure at every step.
Aerodynamics show how much work went in. The team started at a drag coefficient near 0.30. They pushed it down to 0.23 through about 15,000 changes. Designers and engineers worked side by side. No single team could solve it alone.
That approach tight collaboration became a key lesson. Without it, the project would not move forward.
Who this car is for
The Type 00 will not be cheap. In Europe, it will cost over €130,000. That places it in a high-end space.
But price is only part of the story. Jaguar is targeting buyers with a certain mindset. These customers care about design and quality. They are open to new tech. They tend to live in cities. Most of all, they want to stand out.
Glover describes them as independent and self-assured. They choose brands that reflect who they are. For them, every drive matters even a short trip.
What comes next for Jaguar
Future Jaguars will follow the same core ideas. Expect low, wide cars with strong proportions. Each model will have its own identity, but the family link will be clear. Jaguar will not chase tall SUVs. That space is already covered by Range Rover within the same group. Instead, Jaguar will stay focused on distinct, low-slung vehicles.
Why the reset was needed
Glover looks back five or six years and sees a model that did not work. Jaguar was not growing. It was not profitable. Its audience was getting older. The brand also lost cultural relevance.
Competing with German rivals in the premium volume space proved tough. Scale matters in that segment, and Jaguar could not match it.
The solution was a clean break. The company stopped existing programs and chose to start over. It shifted toward the high end, where unique design and higher pricing can work together.
The launch backlash
The first reveal drew strong reactions. Some people felt Jaguar tried to erase its past. Others criticized the bold visuals and tone. Glover says the aim was simple: send a signal. Jaguar wanted to show it was doing something radical and different. It did not expect the level of attention that followed.
For a few days, Jaguar became one of the most talked-about brands online. That brought visibility, but also a problem. The brand lost control of the narrative.
Social media tends to split opinions into extremes. Subtle messages get lost. Jaguar’s deeper story about renewal and connection to its past did not come through at first.
Now, the company is taking time to explain its direction in more detail. As it talks more about engineering and driving feel, the conversation has started to shift.
Glover does not dwell on past choices, including the bold pink reveal. He focuses on what the team learned: take time to shape the message and guide how people understand it.
One thing is firm. Jaguar will go fully electric. There are no plans for hybrids. With a target range near 435 miles, the company believes range anxiety will fade for most buyers.
The four-door GT is close to completion. It will soon move into the next stage of technical work. More models are already in development.
Jaguar knows the risks. But it also knows its history. The brand has often taken a different path. Glover believes this is the right moment to do so again.
