Jaguar teases new, controversial styling direction

Just a day or so after releasing its new, and very controversial, rebranding, Jaguar has released the first teaser of its upcoming electric concept. The concept car will be unveiled on December 3 (Australian time) at Miami Art Week, and previews the design direction for Jaguar’s upcoming range of higher-priced electric vehicles. Released overnight on social media, the teaser image shows off the company’s new brutalist design language full of sweeping lines, sharp edges, and sheer surfaces. The concept also features a closed off rear windscreen, and what looks like a giant silver grille — not dissimilar to an air conditioner cover — on the rear fascia. 100s of new car deals are available through CarExpert right now. Get the experts on your side and score a great deal. Browse now. It’s unclear if these last two elements will be carried over onto production vehicles. Either way, the concept is really playing up to Jaguar’s “Copy Nothing” slogan. Earlier this month Jaguar released its first official “spy photos” of its electric GT sedan. Together they indicate Gerry McGovern and his design team are planning for a sharp break with Jaguar’s immediate past and its much-gloried history. In announcing Jaguar rebrand, Mr McGovern said Jaguar’s new models were being built around the idea of “Exuberant Modernism”. Like the modernist art of Picasso and Mondrian, the brand’s new direction is definitely creating controversy. It remains to be seen whether the new Jaguars will join the 1963 E-Type as one of the handful of cars in the collection of New York City’s Museum of Modern Art. Jaguar first announced its plan to go all electric and jump further upmarket in 2021 during short reign of CEO Thierry Bolloré, who simultaneously cancelled the electric XJ months before its scheduled debut. To that end, the company has been discontinuing production of its existing cars for the past year or so. Only the F-Pace crossover remains in production, with the mid-size crossover due to end its run in 2026. The brand’s rebirth will see it launch a large sedan, a large crossover, and a Porsche Taycan-rivalling four-door GT. All three cars will be based on a new platform called JEA, which is being developed in house. The first cars are expected in showrooms across the world from 2026. In a conscious effort to no longer chase the BMWs and Mercedes-Benzes of this world, these vehicles will be priced beyond where the old XJ sat. MORE: Everything JaguarMORE: Jaguar XJ leaked: EV flagship finally surfaces after 11th-hour cancellationMORE: Jaguar teases its first car in EV rebirthMORE: Jaguar relaunches branding ahead of push upmarket