JAGUAR'S HAIL MARY.

Sunday

Dec012024

Sunday, December 1, 2024 at 07:33AM

Editor's Note: This week, Peter dissects the "reimagining" efforts going on at Jaguar, as the brand leaves its storied past behind with a desperation “Hail Mary” pass aimed at total reinvention. And because the images from Monday night's concept reveal were, of course, leaked early, Peter shares his thoughts about Jaguar's all-new design direction as well. Also, be sure to check out Reader Mail this week for our readers' take on what's going on at Jaguar. In "On The Table," we report on the resignation of Carlos Tavares, the CEO of Stellantis. Then, we detail very big news about an upcoming stand-alone auction for one of the world's most historically significant racing cars, the 1954 Mercedes-Benz W 196 R Stromlinienwagen, chassis number 00009/54. And we have an update to our new (and quite popular) segment, The Farley Follies, in honor of CEO Jim "Electric Boy" Farley and his chronic mismanagement of Ford. Our AE Song of the Week is "Steal Away" by Robbie Dupree. In "Fumes," we're launching a new series, "The V8 Era," recalling when the emergence of V8 power transformed American sports car racing and propelled it into an entirely new dimension of popularity. And in "The Line," we’ll have F1 results from the Qatar Grand Prix, and highlights of the 2024 MotoGP season with words and images by AE Special Contributor Whit Bazemore. We're on it! -WG

By Peter M. DeLorenzo

Detroit. Well, that was truly special indeed. The new Jaguar positioning video “Copy Nothing” roared to life last week and damn-near broke the Internet. (In case you missed it, watch it here. -WG)

I watched and read as the intelligentsia and the not-so-intelligentsia – some of the commentary was excruciatingly painful and lame, by the way – weighed in with their assessment of the video, often referring to it as an “ad.” It wasn’t anything of the sort. A more accurate description is that it was a desperation “Hail Mary” pass by Jaguar operatives masquerading as a brand statement video.

On a very basic level, as my former ad colleague Toby Barlow succinctly pointed out, it worked like gangbusters. It did? Yes, it most definitely did. Why? Because absolutely no one had given one thought to Jaguar as a living, breathing car company in years. Let me emphasize that again, in years. Jaguar operatives had managed to run the once-proud brand into the ground with misstep after misstep, and it is no big secret that the brand’s very existence is now hanging by a thread.

I’m not going to wax on about Jaguar’s heroic brand heritage, but suffice to say, it is rich in glorious machines – the SS 100, XK-120, C-Type, D-Type and E-Type, etc. – multiple triumphs at the 24 Hours of Le Mans (’51, ’53, ’55, ’56, ’57, ’88 and ’90), and a brand character that used to be the envy of other auto manufacturers.

But that hasn’t been true for years. Tata Motors took over the Jaguar brand and made it part of its Jaguar Land Rover Limited conglomerate in 2013. Jaguar enthusiasts were hoping that this would bring new life to the moribund brand, and despite some glimpses of goodness – the Jaguar F-Type, for instance – this was not be the case. Why? Like other car companies, Jaguar succumbed to the SUV craze and got lost in the toxic haze of optimistic profitability forecasts. That didn’t happen, of course, and in the process the brand completely lost its way in the market. And its poor-quality reputation outlived any real improvements that might have surfaced in its new models, to boot.

So, with all that in mind, Jaguar operatives unleashed its “Copy Nothing” brand positioning video. Visually jarring and off-putting – intentionally so, obviously – with cold, robot-looking people and bold, colorful graphics on a planet of red and pink, the words “create exuberant,” “live vivid,” “delete ordinary,” “break moulds” are revealed sequentially, followed by “copy nothing” with the final flourish of “jaguar” in a type face that is not only excruciatingly derivative, but eminently forgettable. (Watch it again, here – WG)

The net-net of all of this? The torrent of “WTF?” commentary was unrelenting and completely understandable. It couldn’t be further removed from anything to do with Jaguar, at least the Jaguar we thought we knew. But that’s exactly the point of all of this. That Jaguar that we once knew is pretty much nonexistent. Whether or not Jaguar operatives screwed the whole thing up over the years – they most assuredly did – isn’t the point. That Jaguar has succumbed to serial incompetence and is not coming back, ever.

So, here we are. Jaguar operatives have emphatically stated that the total reinvention of the brand is at hand. There’s no turning back because there’s nothing left to turn back to. As much as I love reliving Jaguar’s glory days and relish those magnificent and seductive machines of its past, they’re all just relegated to vintage car shows and “historic” driving events. To a new and future generation, Jaguar is starting completely from scratch with a blank computer screen.

Will Jaguar survive and what state will it be in if it does? That remains to be seen, but the only thing we have to go on is the new Jaguar concept, which was to be revealed Monday evening (December 2nd).

Well, that was special, Part II (1:00 p.m. Monday, December 2.) This being the age of 24/7 Internet saturation, it was inevitable, of course, that the images of the new Jaguar concept would be leaked ahead of its formal reveal in Miami Monday night. (See them below - WG.)

What has Gerry McGovern wrought this time? At first look, the Jaguar Type 00 (zero zero) concept falls right in line with the aforementioned brand direction of, "We're nowhere so let's blow it up real good." Larger, wider and chunkier, the imposing EV has absolutely nothing to do with any Jaguars of its historic past. Again, that is clearly intentional. This honking EV concept has traces of McGovern's past when he was at Lincoln, and it also has more than a bit of a Rolls-Royce aura about it too. “Type 00 is a pure expression of Jaguar brand’s new creative philosophy. It has an unmistakable presence. This is a result of brave, unconstrained creative thinking, and unwavering determination,” McGovern, JLR’s chief creative officer, said in a statement. “It is our first physical manifestation and the foundation stone for a new family of Jaguars that will look unlike anything you’ve ever seen, a vision which strives for the highest level of artistic endeavor.” That is consistent with the fact that this new, 575HP (est.) Jaguar, which is allegedly to arrive in 2026, will be priced in the $150,000+ range. (The reports say around $135,000, but I don't believe that figure for a second.) Range details (400 miles+) are purely speculative at this juncture, and are of no interest to me. I would rather discuss the physical presence of this concept. I used the word "imposing" before and that is exactly the effect McGovern is looking for, apparently. Jaguar overlords want to push the brand to a new luxury price position, and this concept certainly indicates that. It's a definitive brand statement to be sure, and if the goal was to start over and dramatically break from the past, I would say that mission is accomplished. Do I like it? Given the previously stated mission of the "new" Jaguar going forward, I don't dislike it necessarily. Do I find it an emotionally compelling design, however? No, not in the least. I find it to be yet another example of the "blunderbuss" school of modern automotive design, complete with all the subtlety of a pink-wrapped anvil.

But again, this "new" Jaguar will have absolutely nothing to do with the brand's glorious heritage of the past. That's what Jaguar overlords want, and that's exactly what they're going to get. As for me, I'm not the target market apparently, given the colorful robots in the brand positioning video. So, you can include me out.

And that's the High-Octane Truth for this week.