As the automotive industry advances towards full electrification, Jaguar is looking to reinvent itself, firstly by hopping on the EV train with two immaculately shod feet.
That reinvention does not include a total re-branding, but maybe not that far from it. Let’s call it an image shift, one that takes all of what makes a brand a brand into account. There will be both all-new and refreshed logos, new styling signatures that will touch each vehicle the brand releases going forward, and a move to building electric-only vehicles. Oh and a very deliberate move upmarket.
All of that will be on full display - along with an all-new concept car that Jaguar is calling a “design study” - at Miami Art Week in December.
See: Jaguar's Coming All-Electric Taycan Rival Shown in Camouflage
While brands like Porsche and BMW have started to back off on full electrification, Jaguar is showing no jitters. The company is also running point within the automotive group it’s part of. While we’re starting to see moves towards electrification under the Range Rover, Defender and Discovery SUV brands, there’s no serious talk yet of ceasing production of gas-powered Velars and Defender 110s.
No half-measures
Jaguar managing director Rawden Glover is candid in his assessment of the brand today: “It feels like we’ve got to evolve. We chased volume in the past but generally, it wasn’t successful. The direction we’ll be taking now is of value over volume. We will not succeed in doing what we need to do by taking really tentative steps or not having the strength of our own convictions.”
In practice, that means it’s time for Jaguar not to completely forget its past, but take aspects of its that it’s always been known for – style, innovation, performance – and bring it to the modern, EV sector. The brand is steadfast in its claim that it will not get there by doing, as Glover says, “restomods of the E-Type” (referencing the classic coupe and roadster of the 1960s and 70s). A look at the latest Defender reveals there’s a way to make a modern car with nods to the world of retro without compromising on tech and innovation.
It’s in the details
Jaguar’s new branding suggests that there’s something special coming our way. Gone is the font it’s used for half a century for its badging, replaced by a new font designed in-house. That’s right, you aren’t going to be able to copy this latest Jaguar logo by pouring through the special characters menu in your word processor – you won’t find it there. The trompe-l’oeil here is that the logo is actually made up of both upper- and lower-case letters, working in harmony to create a new label for the brand. You could even say the two cases are a subtle allusion to Jaguar blending its past and its future going forward.
A new Jaguar
That font is accompanied by a new take on the famous leaping Jaguar logo. Coined “leaper” by the brand, it has recently been placed only on the rear deck of current models like the F-Type sports car and F-Pace SUV.
The Jaguar always faced to the left, but no more: it will now be used more prominently on Jaguar’s cars and will be leaping “forward”, that is to say towards the front of the car. It’s complimented by a monogram logo featuring twin “Js” that we suspect will be found on round surfaces, such as the centre cap of an alloy wheel.
The final new branding touch is what Jaguar is calling a “strikethrough”, essentially repeating parallel lines found throughout the exterior and interior of new Jaguars. Add exuberant new colour choices, and you have a brand that at least looks transformed.
So what will all this look like? To give us a taste, Jaguar just shared spy shots of a heavily camouflaged version of the first car to come from the reimagined company, arriving late 2026. Through the camo, you can see a long, proud hood as well as a rear window that – if you squint – looks like it could be a modern take on what’s seen on the classic E-Type coupe.
All we know is that Jaguar is confident that it will turn heads. “It will shock, it will surprise and it will polarize,” said Gerry McGovern, chief creative officer at Jaguar, with emphasis on ‘polarize’. “Forget everything that went before, because this has to make sense in a modern context.”
We’ll have to wait a little while longer to see if it does. On December 2nd, we’ll meet the first Jaguar of its new era – as well as the new Jaguar feline displayed on it.