This Is The Car That’s Supposed To Save Jaguar

Jaguar might be taking a breather from making any new cars for a while, but it has a plan. What you see here is the lynchpin on which the brand’s future rests. Jaguar hasn’t announced what it’ll be called but it’s a new six-figure electric sedan/grand tourer that’s supposed to mark a new vision for the company.

This photograph comes from the automaker itself. Evidently, this prototype is now beginning global testing and development. Jag says that it’s already logged “tens of thousands” of miles virtually and physically. With this launch, we expect to see it pop up more and more around the world. Until then, it’s time to discuss what we see here, what we know is coming, and when we’ll see this cat without the camo.

First, let’s chat about what we can make from this new prototype. The entire car appears long and low-slung. The hood seems to have a small bulge in the middle and what almost looks like a Chrysler 300 grille sits on the nose. A wide air intake spans from one fender to the other at the bottom of the bumper.

The passenger compartment looks positively huge. No doubt some of that volume is battery in the floor of the car. Nevertheless, the rear seats appear to have quite a lot of headroom, thanks to a slowly sloping roof. It honestly looks like the perfect car for royalty.

Interestingly, we don’t get a single good look at the back end of this kitty. From the side profile, we can tell that it has a simple sharp cutoff at the back bumper. Beyond that, it’s a bit of a mystery and that’s obviously by design. Clearly, Jaguar is using a lot of camo and a lot of body cladding to keep us all guessing.

Jaguar is in the midst of a brand transformation. Few automakers of its size have done what it’s attempting to do. It’s quit selling new cars in some places and only makes the F-Pace right now. The plan is to become an all-electric brand in the not-so-distant future.

This prototype is the start of that new direction. “I think of it as taking us back,” Jaguar managing director Rawdon Glover told MotorTrend in June, “to where Jaguar started.” Instead of trying to sell at volume, the brand wants to revamp its approach and sell to wealthier buyers. To accomplish that, it’s reportedly working to change the selling experience to a more luxurious one.

It’s not just the cars that have to change, either. Glover said every aspect of the “client relationship” had to change, from the retail experience to service appointments. He’s trying to emulate the approach of the luxury goods industry rather than the traditional auto sales experience. We take that to mean a low-pressure, white glove sales experience in lounge-like dealers with lots of personalization and concierge service any time the vehicle needs maintenance.

That is in line with what Gerry McGovern, creative boss at Jag told Top Gear last year too.

“When these new Jaguars appear for the first time, they need to have a jaw-dropping moment. What we’ve decided to do is go back to ‘a copy of nothing’. That’s what this is about: a complete reimagining.”

Speaking of the car itself, we can expect a few things when Jaguar takes the wraps off of it on December 2. The brand is targeting over 400 miles of range, it should look quite aggressive, and it won’t be cheap. Til then, keep an eye out for one of these prototypes buzzing around wherever you might live.