Jaguar’s new Type 01 ends year-long sabbatical

It’s a risk, but then Jaguar as a brand has always flirted with the edge. Sometimes to its advantage, and sometimes not. Back in the 1960s, the brand took a leap of faith and introduce the beautiful E Type. Priced aggressively, it was roughly half of what its closest Brit rival – the Aston Martin DB4, cost, the E Type brought good fortune. Decades later, the X Type was a risk that didn’t. Built on a Ford Mondeo platform, it simply couldn’t outdo similar products from rivals like BMW or Merc. Then came another risk, the XF. It marked a complete departure from established Jag styling and did well, as did the XJ that came after it. The XK-R was another risk that worked and brought the revered Jag name back into the racy world of sportscars. So, when Jag took that incredible step of wiping out its entire legacy line up of internal combustion powered cars and announced that it was going all EV, it wasn’t really shocking for anyone who was aware of the brand’s history of living on the edge. Cut to the now, the new Type 01 has been launched and it ends the leaping cat’s manufacturing hiatus after production of the lovely F-Pace ended in December 2025. But will this risk pay dividends? On paper, there’s nothing to indicate it won’t. The Type 01 is a ground up new product that has no precedent in Jaguar. And while it’s not the first EV GT car, it offers a fresh interpretation of what an EV GT car should or could be like.

The very polarising Type 01 is built on a fresh-out-of-the-crate JEA architecture that boasts no less than 360 patents. Jaguar says that the Type 01 has the strongest underpinnings of any Jaguar ever made, with 73 per cent aluminium and torsional rigidity of 51.7kN/deg. Taking lessons from the Jaguar TCS Racing team that competes in Formula e, Jag engineers learned to embed a competition development mindset to create the JEA body architecture. A new compressed-radius hemming technique means that Jaguar is able to create a near seamless transition from glass to metal without the need for conventional seals or trims. Then there are the distinctive frameless flush fit doors that close against a new innovative cant rail design. The most significant thing about this architecture is how Jaguar has integrated an 118kWh battery along with a vertically stacked motor and transmission. A design in which the battery pack connects directly with the chassis to offer increased rigidity and therefore handling prowess.

Jaguar claims a WLTP range of 720km from that battery. The brand’s trademarked ThermAssist technology continually manages heat and moves thermal energy to wherever it’s needed, whether to warm the battery in extreme cold weather or the cabin. The technology also improves battery longevity and charging capabilities by ensuring that the battery is always at the optimum operating temperature.

The battery powers three motors – a 260kW motor at the front and a pair of 310kW units at the back. Combined output is a tarmac shredding 1016bhp and 1365Nm. That’s not too far off from the Porsche Cayenne Electric that was launched recently. Acceleration from standstill to 100kmph is done in a blistering 3.2 seconds while a rolling acceleration from 100kmph to 180 comes up in just four seconds. Top speed is electronically limited to 250.

Straight line performance aside, Jaguar also claims exceptional handling prowess for the Type 01. Part of it is of course, thanks to the near perfect 50:50 weight distribution. But that’s not the only thing aiding this massive 5325mm long vehicle. In spite of its length, the turning circle dia is a very normal 11.5 metres, thanks to its all-wheel-steer tech that turns the rear axle by up to six degrees – either in the same direction as the front wheels or the opposite direction, depending on speed.

But a car that has GT ambitions can’t achieve it by performance and technology alone. It must offer luxury and elegance. The Type 01 therefore looks like nothing else on this planet. Long and low and wide, this car also presents a new Jaguar face. The brand is calling the styling and design reductive, minimalist in layman’s terms, and it shows. Whichever side you see it from, the Jaguar Type 01 seems intent on avoiding visual excess. To the point where the design might even seem slab sided. To aid aero efficiency and manage heat effectively, there are active vanes at the front that compliment that slab sided styling when closed but will open up when the propulsion system or the brakes need cooling. This is also Jag’s most aero efficient silhouette ever with a drag coefficient of just 0.23.

Up front is a distinctive new four-light signature that defines the new face along with what Jaguar is calling the new device mark. The automatically levelling HD LED projection headlights are the slimmest ever Jaguar headlights, measuring just 84mm high. They each have 17,000 pixels. The rear is a solid glassless affair and feature a full-width lightbar. When switched off, there is a monolithic quality to this design that will either make you fall in love or loathe it. There’s no middle ground to be had.

This monolithic or minimalist or reductive theme is carried into the cabin of this four-seater, four-door Jag. In typical GT fashion, seating is low and a central spine through the full length of the cabin creates four individual spaces for the passengers, says Jaguar. Hidden in that spine, which is reminiscent of transmission tunnels of old, are brass coloured stowage and cupholders. Driver and passenger seats are 12-way electrically adjustable, heated and cooled, with hot stone massage effect while the 50:50 split folding rear seats offer heating and cooling. The roof is a panoramic glass and features a virtual blind that eliminates the need for a metal sheath under the glass and also allows complete control over how much natural light is allowed into the cabin. The duotone steering wheel has a brass inspired finisher and instrumentation is combined with infotainment controls in the 24-inch OLED screen.

The only other screen is a vertically orientated 7-inch touchscreen that sits on the spine and has controls for the automatic climate control and audio operations. Instead of conventional speakers, the Type 01 has a full width full range panoramic soundbar, which is also an automotive first, which combine with front headrest speakers to deliver a signature auditory experience. Given the absence of a rear window, the driver gets a digital rear view display that is embedded centrally within the soundbar.

“Jaguar Type 01 is the first production car to showcase our new creative philosophy of exuberant modernism. It’s unmistakable from every angle, exquisitely crafted inside and out with dramatic proportions, innovative details and sophisticated surfaces delivering visual impact and aerodynamic performance. With Type 01, we wanted to create something where every journey is an occasion, from how it looks to how it drives and how it makes occupants feel. Type 01 will never arrive unnoticed,” said Andrew Wheeler, Design Development Director, JLR.