JLR has extinguished reports that it will offer a range-extender or hybrid powertrain option for the incoming Jaguar Type 00 – and a senior source has branded the notion to Autocar as “rubbish”.
A report over the weekend, citing a source close to the project’s development, claimed that JLR had instructed engineers to develop a petrol-engined system for the new Jaguar GT – the first model in the brand's reinvented line-up, which is due to be revealed this summer.
The Sunday Times’ story claimed this option would be offered alongside the electric powertrain, as JLR bosses were getting nervous about relaunching the brand exclusively with electric power, given stalling sales of EVs, especially at the premium end of the market.
JLR first announced its all-electric plan for Jaguar at the end of 2024, and sales of ICE models (such as the big selling F-Pace SUV) ended in early 2025.
However, a senior source has now told Autocar that the report is “rubbish” and Jaguar will be relaunched as an EV-only brand as planned.
In addition, a spokesperson for JLR said officially: "Our plans to reinvent Jaguar as an electric-only luxury automotive brand are unchanged. Last month prototype passenger rides received overwhelmingly positive reactions from global media and we are looking forward to unveiling the first new electric Jaguar later this year."
Autocar recently got to experience the Type 00 production car for the first time as part of a passenger ride at the firm’s Gaydon headquarters and found it the “best-riding car ever”.
By the end of 2027, the GT will be joined by a saloon and an SUV in Jaguar's initial luxury EV line-up.
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If they're going to survive in the EV world they have to make something that is worth £100k.
That means it CANNOT have similar range and charge time to Chinese EV's. It needs to be better. The charge time needs to be really fast and efficiency really high.
I-Pace had the problem of poor efficiency, range and charge time so in comparison tests it just never fared well. Tesla was better and cheaper, Hyundai and Kia too. Now the Chinese EV's are there so this Jag better be a technological beast or it's doomed.
Depends what you mean by "better". I doubt jAg is looking to make a cheaper and more efficient car than a Chinese or Tasteless. It needs to competitive range, pwoer and charging time, but should sell on luxury, prestige, exclusivity, craftsmanship, attitude, Britishness. No point competing with MG and Tasteless.
Not quite true. When Car Wow did tests with i-Pace against other premium EVs it came out near top. Tesla was always one to beat, but I'd argue its build quality isn't premium. Against Audi, Mercedes, it did rather well.
Here's a summary of their results on range:
Mercedes : 194 miles = 312km
Audi : 206 miles = 331km
Nissan : 208 miles = 334km
Jaguar : 223 miles = 358km
Kia : 255 miles = 410km
Tesla : 270 miles = 434km
When in a hole stop digging.
It took Jaguar 7 years to replace the X-Type, we got constant drip feeds of information about it being fully aluminium, lighter, more effiecient than rivals, with new high performance engines etc etc, and then they finally released it and it didnt live up to the hype, they then replaced the well received MK1 XF with the mk2 which was just a slightly bigger XE that wasnt really as good as the car it replaced, we eventually got an XF estate, and that was it, and the engines were terrible. They decided that the market for saloons just wasnt there, whilst BMW, Audi and Mercedes had no problem sell them, but they also produced coupes and cabriolets and estates from the same platform thus increasing sales, meanwhile JLR gave us various shades of Freelander/Evoque/Velar all trying to sell to the same customer.
I seriously hope someone like Geeley comes in and buys Jaguar and gives their managers heads a wobble, they could easily spin off some Jaguar models from within the group platforms, with a mix of ICE and EV power.
If not they will be a faded memory by the end of the decade, or screaming for more (taxpayers money) from the Govt.
I wanted to by an X-Type but the styling just wasn't there. I had hoped it was going to be modern looking, but it still looked like a car my grandad would have bought, and he was gone in the mid-60s. RIP.
Then the XE I really was close to buying. But it had an old Ford lump in it. With what I could see was really sh*tty fuel economy.
I ended up with BMWs instead.
Geely, no thanks.
A positive future for JLR (and the UK) does not mean handing control to China.