Jaguar has been virtually radio silent since it first announced back in 2021 it was going all-electric by 2025, but this is set to change soon with a new concept due later this year.
Despite the upcoming launch, Jaguar’s managing director Rawdon Glover admitted to Top Gear the wait for the brand’s relaunch with exclusively high-end electric vehicles (EVs) has been annoying.
“It’s been hugely frustrating – saying we’re going all EV then ‘nothing’,” Mr Glover told Top Gear. “Jaguar is at a crossroads.
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“Then-JLR CEO Thierry Bolloré said at the time [the plan to go all-electric was announced] that Jaguar had a choice to elevate itself out of the premium space [into being a super-luxury brand] and that choice has since been validated.
“We decided on this structure in 2021, but cars don’t appear overnight.
“We need to take [the brand] back to when we made beautiful desirable cars, not in huge numbers and not having huge numbers [of models] in the portfolio.
“Until recently we were up to six or seven models.”
Jaguar is set to reveal its first concept car previewing its new design direction in December, as reported by Autocar. It’s expected to be a four-door grand tourer which in production form will go on sale in 2025.
A Bentley Bentayga-sized SUV will reportedly follow, and then a large four-door limousine in 2029.
All the new Jaguar EVs will be built on a new platform called the Jaguar Electrified Architecture (JEA).
Mr Glover told Top Gear the production version of the four-door electric grand tourer will have a range of 700km.
As recently reported, the combustion-powered F-Pace SUV will remain in production past 2024, essentially becoming the only model in its entire lineup until its first new EV launches in 2025.
Production of the XE, XF, E-Pace and electric I-Pace will reportedly wrap up shortly, with the final F-Type being produced in June.
It appears the F-Pace has been given a stay of execution, after Automotive News Europe reported in March word from Jaguar it would bow out in June.
The five models which have ended or are ending production were generating a loss for Jaguar, JLR CEO Adrian Mardell said in July.
“We are eliminating five products, all lower value. None of those are vehicles on which we made any money, so we are replacing them with new vehicles on newly designed architectures,” said Mr Mardell, as reported by Automotive News Europe.
“We are going to lose products but they are not the rich ones.”
MORE: Jaguar is finally set to reveal the first car in its EV transformation