Quo vadis, Jaguar?

In December 1935, Jaguar presented its first car in London, called the SS Jaguar Type 00. 90 years later, the British brand is experiencing one of the most uncertain moments in its history, with a commercial repositioning that generates more doubts than certainties and development and electrification plans that neither the general public nor the specialized press have finished.

And the most talked-about case in automotive history in recent years has undoubtedly been Jaguar's change of direction and its new "Copy Nothing" philosophy, which aims to be innovative and groundbreaking. The British brand decided to undergo a radical metamorphosis in November 2024 that no one has yet fully understood, with advertisements intended to explain the new brand concept – a point kitsch and excessively disruptive – rather than formulating concrete proposals on future models.

Jaguar is a brand with a rich industrial heritage, boasting iconic models like the E-Type, the luxurious XJS, and the legendary XK120, a prototype that shattered all speed records of its time. The British marque has experienced several ups and downs in recent years, along with numerous changes in ownership and parent company. In 2007, Ford sold it to Tata Motors, which decided to revive the brand by merging it with Land Rover and offering a broad, aspirational product range, priced somewhat below that of German premium brands.

The reliability problems of the group's Ingenium engines, coupled with issues with timing chains and engine failures, became a nightmare for the prestigious British brand, which earned a (perhaps well-deserved) reputation for unreliability. To this disastrous performance in terms of reliability and after-sales service must be added a misguided commitment to the electric transition, with a product like the Jaguar I-PaceThe SEAT, a zero-emissions car launched in 2017 that generated high expectations and was named Car of the Year, has ultimately failed to sell well in any global market and, moreover, has been plagued by fires. Once again, a reputation for unreliability casts a shadow over the British brand's products.

A very controversial 'rebranding'

Given the stark reality facing Jaguar and the string of failures and disappointments accumulated in recent years, the brand's management decided to completely halt product development and launch a new advertising campaign (which the most critical critics describe as) wokeThis new design, which, among other things, conceals the traditional feline logo, aims to target a very different audience than the typical Jaguar buyer. The idea is to break with Jaguar's past and transform it into something new, innovative, and different from other manufacturers.

The problem with Jaguar's new positioning is that it hasn't satisfied the brand's traditional customer, who isn't fond of disruptive, innovative ventures, and it hasn't attracted any new buyer profile either. In short, Jaguar has seen a 97.5% drop in car sales in 2025, in an open crisis that the brand has tried to downplay. Jaguar's communications department maintains that the process of rebranding This implies a transition period, and suggests that Jaguar does not plan to add any new cars to its product range until at least 2027.

The British brand announced a £500 million investment to adapt the Halewood plant for future electric models. The brand's roadmap involves focusing Jaguar's product on a more modest production volume but with higher quality and added value, with a GT or Gran Turismo on the horizon, to be followed by a sedan and an SUV, all with zero emissions. Adding to this somewhat vague future is the dismissal of Jaguar Land Rover's head of design, Briton Gerry McGovern, due to differences with the brand's CEO, Indian PB Balanji, regarding the brand's future design direction. It's worth remembering that McGovern was the architect of successful models such as the Range Rover Evoque and the new Defender. The brand's management believes it's also worth taking risks in the design of future Jaguars by introducing more disruptive and distinctive designs.

However, the reality at the moment is that Jaguar has no models available for sale to its dealerships and has halted production of its current lineup. If all goes well, Jaguar should begin presenting prototypes of the models on which it intends to build its commercial offering during 2026. It remains to be seen whether the brand's management promises will materialize and whether the brand's new approach will have the desired effect on the bottom line.