This is not a test!
11/24/2024
"This is not a test, this is Rock'n'Roll", Robin Williams once shouted into his microphone as US Army radio presenter Adrian Cronauer in the movie "Good Morning Vietnam". Whether what has recently been heard from Jaguar is just a test or a whole lot of rock'n'roll, i.e. shaking and rolling in the sense of a new sign of life, has been the question since a completely unknown logo appeared on Jaguar's official website - accompanied by a rather weird little film in the style that the world was able to enjoy at the opening of the Olympic Games. In the city on the Seine, the Grande Nation wanted to express its openness to the world, its pioneering achievements as the first real revolutionaries in world history and its always ambivalent attitude to high art and the great issues of the world.
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But what exactly does Jaguar want to express to us? Yes, the brand wants to change, to become a luxury brand and only build electric cars. But what exactly is the problem with Jaguar in its current form that such a radical change is even necessary?
What is certain is that last Tuesday evening, November 19, 2024, on Jaguar's Instagram channel with 17 million followers - and almost a single post - only just under 6000 viewers gave it a like. In contrast, there were an incredible, almost entirely negative 2500 comments. This is at least the number of posts that were not immediately deleted by the administrators for being too pithy. So there was no lack of attention for the traditional British brand.
Jaguar wants to reinvent itself, as the manufacturer, which has been in the hands of the Indian conglomerate Tata since 2008, expressed some time ago. Ratan Tata, the owner of the traditional company - with roots as a trading house in the 19th century - and who had originally only wanted to buy Land Rover from Ford and only became aware of the significance and history of Jaguar when the brand was already in his portfolio as "by-catch", once wrote in a letter to a friend: "I love the brand!" A firework display of new models erupted and some of them dispelled old prejudices.
The election of the Jaguar i-Pace as "European Car of the Year 2019" marked the high point - so far (?) - of Jaguar in Tata's possession. It is important to look at this in the overall context, even if you may not like electric cars very much. For the first time in the brand's history, a model had climbed to the top of this podium and outperformed the entire European competition; the i-Pace was the first European e-car in its class. However, Ratan Tata had already permanently retired from management in 2017 and died on October 9, 2024 at the age of 86.
For around two years, the manufacturer's PR department in Coventry has hardly made any statements to the public other than which model would be taken out of production and when. Or how many dealers were to have their contracts terminated. In the UK, this affected around 60 representatives from a network of 80 large Jaguar branches. But if there is nothing left to sell, then there is no need for dealers. On August 15, 2024, Jaguar even announced that there would probably be no new cars to buy from the remaining dealers at all in 2025. New cars are not expected until 2026, when they will probably all be in line with the new brand identity
Regarding the Jaguar F-Type's farewell drive - the last examples of the last sports car with a combustion engine are currently rolling off the production line - Jaguar's Global Head of Public Relations, Ken McConomy, said that there were "exciting new cars" in the pipeline. McConomy was once head of Jaguar Classic. Until recently, the world had never seen any of this. However, a picture of a prototype was leaked to the public last week, probably deliberately placed. Judging by appearances, the first thing to open the great new era will be a very crouched saloon that looks very promising even in camouflage. Jaguar calls it a four-door GT. This is admirably courageous in an era that is increasingly turning away from the classic sedan. However, it remains a mystery why the long-waiting fan community has never been given a taste of it.
If the brand still appears anywhere today, it is literally in tow with Land-Rover. One example: at the Goodwood Festival of Speed this year, the brand was only to be found in the JLR tent, as the parent company now calls itself - Jaguar Land Rover - with just one car bearing the "Leaper", the leaping cat, a Jaguar i-Pace. At least there were still some new Jaguar sports cars or SUVs to be seen outside. The appearance was not glorious; Jaguar only makes history with replicas of old models, such as the recent two E-Types for rich Southeast Asian customers. The fire still flares up from time to time thanks to such intermezzi. What is clear, however, is that Jaguar has been packing up its tents for some time in the familiar manner. A total of 67,000 cars could still be sold worldwide in 2023.
But it is not yet completely dark, so the world is now facing a Jaguar rebranding that has at least brought the Jaguar name back on everyone's lips for an eternity - whether as a laughing stock or a stroke of genius is still completely open. After all, the Leaper will live on. Whether this also applies to the Growler, the snarling Jaguar head, seems questionable. What is certain, however, is that the new appearance is a slap in the face for all those who associate the brand with classic British automotive engineering. The short film, which can also be found on the Jaguar.com website, would until recently have caused a great deal of astonishment even at an avant-garde French manufacturer such as Citroën or its premium division DS Automobiles.
But perhaps it just needs a little hope, confidence and a little more insider knowledge. Perhaps Jaguar wants people to understand the brand anew and take some time for it. Perhaps the new cars will be much better than the barely convincing repositioning of the Jaguar brand and these new Jaguar cars will quickly make this turmoil forgotten.
But should this also succeed in the same way as the new brand image, then there will still be the memories and automotive contemporary witnesses of the eras when Jaguar founder William Lyons (pictured in Geneva in 1961 at the premiere of the E-Type) knew how to amaze with ever new strokes of genius, when Jaguar dominated the racetracks and the development department revolutionized the automotive world with the invention of the disc brake.
What remains are the memories and stories of the most memorable new car launch ever seen at the Geneva Motor Show, the E-Type of 1961, or of how the brand went against the tide with a V12 engine at Browns Lane, the brand's long demolished headquarters in Coventry, during the 1973 oil crisis. Neither the Second World War nor the incompetence of British Leyland's management were able to bring the brand to its knees.
But is it now threatened with extinction - in the worst case even as a laughing stock? Or are we witnessing another piece of automotive history being written? We don't know, so we'll have to wait and see!
