When Jaguar revealed its latest concept car at the end of 2024, it briefly became the most famous car in the world, going viral and causing an outpouring of commentary about the British car company’s new design direction, which includes a complete rebranding for the marque. ‘Out with the old, in with the new’ would be an understatement. The Jaguar Type 00 looks like it just arrived from another planet.
Recently it landed in Monaco as a showpiece to celebrate the opening of BPM Exclusive’s new Jaguar-Land Rover showroom in Fontvieille, where invited guests were able to inspect it at close quarters. To be honest, the internet seems to be having a Marmite kind of dilemma about the styling, which is unlike almost anything else on the road today. The simplicity of design, which marries curves and straight lines to great effect, has a touch of art deco about it and this particular example is displayed in a beautiful matt red colour that makes it impossible to ignore.
At over five metres in length, it is ‘imposing’, reminiscent of the kind of huge car that the world’s wealthiest people drove in the 1920s (think Jay Gatsby). Whilst the sides and bonnet resemble huge slabs, the rear is a graceful curve that could have been inspired by the Bugatti Atlantic Type 57 or, dare I say it, the Jaguar E-type coupe. Like many modern cars, it has horizontal lights that stretch right across the rear of the body, but – apart from some very discrete badges – there is relatively little detail.
The interior is even more sparse, with two pedals on the floor, a steering wheel and… that’s it. Car manufacturers have increasingly been doing away with buttons but here Jaguar seems to have done away with controls altogether. We’ll have to see whether this cockpit gets carried over to the final production model (voice control for everything and head-up display perhaps?), but the overall impression is of high level design and top quality.
With 1,000 bhp and a range of almost 700 kms, the Type 00 looks as though it is made for crossing continents. You can imagine how other cars might feel compelled to move out of the way when they see it coming, such is the presence it has in real life. On the screen or the page, it looks like just another concept car, but seen in the light of day, it dominates its environment. “Breathtaking” is a phrase that is frequently overused in the media, but everyone who sees this car for the first time is forced to think about what they are seeing, until their brain can decide whether to like it or hate it.
Jaguar clearly decided that they needed a change of direction if they were going to survive in a world where Chinese and Korean electric vehicles are rapidly taking over. The designers have used the marque’s storied heritage to inspire this luxurious vessel without making it appear ‘retro’. The Type 00 is 100% fresh and is ‘make or break’ for Jaguar who have stopped production of ICE cars to focus entirely on this before it goes on sale next year. The reborn British brand will launch with a four-door version that should be very similar to the model on display here, although I suspect we won’t see many in the bright blues and pinks that Jaguar has used to market it.
The Jaguar Type 00 generated quite a bit of controversy when it was first revealed. However, when you see it in the metal, the whole concept seems far more credible and exciting. The design is coherent, striking and fresh. It really does look like the future. And if this car passed you in the street, you would probably do a double take before walking into a lamppost. Which is probably the reaction that Jaguar was aiming for.
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Photo credit: Richard McCreery