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This has probably got to be the most hated car, or at least the car that has divided opinion more than any other in recent automotive history. Until, of course, the Ferrari Luce came along.
But today isn't about Ferrari. It's about Jaguar.
Because this isn't just another new model. This is Jaguar's future. This is what the company disappeared for. After effectively taking a couple of years off, shutting down its existing line-up and hitting the reset button, this is the first glimpse of what the brand believes it should become.
The ambition is enormous. Jaguar no longer wants to fight Mercedes-Benz, BMW or Audi. It wants to sit somewhere between Mercedes-Maybach and Bentley. Above an S-Class, a 7 Series or an A8, but just below the truly ultra-exclusive world occupied by Rolls-Royce.
That's exactly where the Type 01 comes in.
No, that's Type Zero One, not "Oh One". Jaguar says the "0" represents zero emissions, while the "1" marks the beginning of an entirely new generation of Jaguars. It's also a subtle nod to the company's rich history. Think E-Type, C-Type, D-Type and F-Type. Jaguar has always loved the "Type" nomenclature. Earlier, the letter came first. This time, the number comes after. Same philosophy. Different era.
Jaguar's designers repeatedly told us how this car carries design cues inspired by those legendary classics. Ironically, that's the exact opposite of the message the company initially tried to communicate during its controversial rebranding campaign. Back then, Jaguar seemed almost embarrassed by its own heritage. In our opinion, that was a colossal mistake. Because once you actually speak to the people behind this car, it's obvious that the past has influenced the future far more than those original advertisements ever suggested.
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Before driving the Type 01, Jaguar had us spend time in several older XJs. Designers, engineers and communications executives all spoke about the lineage connecting the two cars. Honestly? I struggled to find much of it. And that's perfectly okay. Because this Jaguar isn't trying to recreate the past. It's trying to create the future.
Now, before we go any further, remember this is still a prototype. It's heavily disguised, and I have already seen the production car. Unfortunately, I can't tell you everything just yet.
What I can tell you is that those enormous 23-inch wheels are production-spec. Yes, they look slightly smaller here because they're finished in black, but in their final colour they fill the arches exactly as Jaguar intended.
I can also tell you that the production car remains remarkably faithful to the Type 00 concept. The proportions, the stance and the overall design language are all very similar. Even the absence of a conventional rear windscreen, something that looked almost impossible on the concept, survives into production. In fact, the body shell you see here is, for all intents and purposes, very close to what customers will eventually receive.
By the time you're reading this, the full reveal probably isn't very far away. The very first thing that strikes you when you walk towards the car is simply its size. It is enormous. Forget traditional Jaguars for a moment. This feels closer to a modern-day Aston Martin Lagonda or perhaps the Lamborghini Estoque that never made production than anything Jaguar has ever built before. It has presence. Real presence.
Whether you love it or absolutely hate it, one thing is certain, it will not disappear into traffic. We've already seen various development mules over the last couple of years. There was the red one spotted in Monaco. The blue one recently seen at Goodwood. Even beneath all the camouflage, one thing has remained constant. This is an incredibly imposing machine.
Jaguar also tells us that pricing will be roughly double what the old XJ used to command. That means well north of ₹2.5 crore by the time it reaches India, perhaps even more. At that sort of money, convincing buyers to spend Bentley money on a Jaguar is going to be a monumental challenge. Then again, that's exactly why this car exists.
Now let's talk about how it drives. Yes, it makes around 1,000 horsepower. Then again, these days it feels like everything makes 1,000 horsepower. What's surprising isn't the number, it's how little Jaguar wants you to notice it. Drive something like a Porsche Taycan Turbo GT and the acceleration borders on violent. It physically punches you into the seat.
The Jaguar takes a completely different approach. Instead of delivering everything in one explosive hit, it builds. It almost reminds me of a heavily modified thousand-horsepower internal combustion car running boost-by-gear. The initial acceleration is smooth, measured and almost restrained, before the power progressively ramps up harder and harder until you're travelling at frankly ridiculous speeds. You don't really feel the violence of the acceleration. You simply glance down at the speedometer and realise you're covering ground at an alarming rate.
And that's entirely intentional. While everyone else is chasing theatre, Jaguar has prioritised refinement. This isn't aimed at somebody replacing a Porsche 911 or a Taycan. This is aimed squarely at the Bentley Flying Spur buyer. The Mercedes-AMG S63 owner. Somebody who wants to arrive in complete serenity but still appreciates having an absurd amount of performance available the moment they ask for it. It never feels rushed. It never feels frantic. It just gathers speed with incredible effortlessness.
Equally impressive is how effectively it disguises its sheer size. The rear-wheel steering system is genuinely exceptional. Through a particularly tight section of road, this enormous luxury saloon shrank around me. It honestly felt closer to driving something like a Mercedes-Benz C-Class or even a Skoda Octavia than a limousine stretching well beyond five metres in length. And trust me, it really is a very, very long car.
As I mentioned earlier, the typical buyer for this car isn't someone chasing lap records. It's someone who values comfort above almost everything else. And that's precisely where the Type 01 completely blew me away. It has one of the finest chassis I've experienced this side of a Rolls-Royce Phantom or a full-size Range Rover. The ride quality is extraordinary. We deliberately drove it over every horrible surface we could find, searching for weaknesses, waiting for something to upset its composure.
Nothing really did. This is genuinely one of the most comfortable luxury cars I've ever experienced. But don't mistake comfort for softness. This isn't one of those old American land yachts that floats endlessly down the road with no sense of control. Beneath all that refinement still lives a proper Jaguar. The steering remains accurate, body control remains excellent and there's still enough dynamic ability to remind you this company once built some of the world's finest sports saloons.
Remember when I said Jaguar was aiming directly at the Bentley Flying Spur? Now I understand why. The ride quality is genuinely in that league. In fact, I'd argue the Jaguar actually rides with slightly more suppleness than the Bentley, while sacrificing remarkably little body control in the process. That's an astonishing engineering achievement. Somebody, somewhere inside Jaguar, understands suspension tuning better than almost anybody else in the industry.
There are also a few details inside the cabin that we're finally allowed to discuss. The first is the steering wheel. Oddly enough, it's much chunkier than I expected. Given the clean, minimalist design language Jaguar is pursuing, I imagined something slimmer and more delicate. Instead, the wheel feels substantial in your hands, a little unexpected, perhaps, but not necessarily in a bad way.
Heritage should always be respected. Jaguar possesses some of the richest heritage of any automotive manufacturer on the planet. But heritage should inspire innovation, not imprison it.
Ferrari understands that better than almost anyone. Every now and then you'll find subtle nods to older models, but Ferrari never allows nostalgia to dictate its future. Technology moves forward. Design moves forward. Performance moves forward. Jaguar has finally decided to do exactly the same.
Let's also be brutally honest for a moment. Nobody was really buying Jaguars anymore. More importantly, nobody was talking about Jaguar anymore. Mercedes dominated the conversation. BMW dominated the conversation. Audi dominated the conversation. Even Lexus often generated more interest.
This single car has changed that overnight. Whether people love it, hate it or simply don't understand it yet, they're talking about Jaguar again. That's already a victory. And I think the real victory is when people see this on the road instead of on their screens in some isolated studio image. Trust me, you're about to be shocked, awed and pleasantly surprised. Or, you're going to absolutely hate it. There is NO in between with the Jaguar Type 01. I'm properly in the former camp, in case you were curious!
