Jag's ninth life: at long last, here's the Jaguar Type 01 luxury electric GT

The Story

TopGear reports that Jag’s ninth life: at long last, here’s the Jaguar Type 01 luxury electric GT — here’s the gist of what’s worth knowing.

This is it then, the Brit carmaker's last chance saloon. Massive, ambitious, controversial, and expensive. Published: 07 Oct 2026 External link to Top Gear Magazine Subscription – 3 months for £6This is not a new Jaguar.

Grace, Pace, Hands Face Space. Until now, it’s been known as Project Pantera. Or Codename X900. Now it’s officially the Jaguar Type 01. That’s ‘Zero One’, not Type One, and definitely not Type Oh-One.

“Oh-s***!” is more likely to be the reaction. The whole point of this car is to create a ‘bloody-hell’ moment. You might argue Jaguar overcooked that with 2024’s infamous ‘Copy Nothing’ sting. Insiders diligently insist it was carefully plotted not to please everyone. Hmm. Death threats against the creative team and share price freefall included?.

Since the advert that launched a thousand columns, other EVs from beloved marques have broken the internet. But unlike Luce, Torcal and AMG GT, this is not a toe in the water from an otherwise profitable powerhouse. The Type 01 sets the tone for a totally new Jaguar company. All electric, more luxurious, rarer, bespoke. If this car bombs, Jaguar dies.

Look out, here comes the justification for such a radical rethink. “Jaguar was at a crossroads. Ageing customer base. Stiffer emerging competition. An evolving political situation. A legendary brand underperforming commercially.”.

My favourite titbit is the admission Jaguar’s interviewed 2,500 people across six continents during Type 01 customer clinics. Each was asked to grade it out of ten. The car got more nines and tens than any Jag previously measured by the same metric… but more ones and twos as well. It’s not here to please all the people.

If, say, 10,000 people a year spend £150,000 on one (the base price is £120k but Jaguar is eyeing juicy options to pump profits), it’s mission accomplished. And dividing the voters isn’t the only record under its belt. Welcome to the most powerful, stiffest, most aerodynamic and most patented Jaguar of all time.

Stiffness?. An impossible to quantify 57,000Nm per degree. Let me put it this way: the state-of-the-art McLaren W1’s racecar-spec carbon tub claims 51,000Nm per degree. The Jag, with its structural battery and fancy castings, is untwistable. Good news for handling, for letting the suspension do its thing when there are bumps to absorb. Handy, when the wheels are gargantuan 23s as standard. And reassuring if you crash.

Why It Matters

And here we get into the compromise of the supposedly zero compromise Zero One.

CarMotion Daily’s Take

You might argue Jaguar overcooked that with 2024’s infamous ‘Copy Nothing’ sting. Watch this space over the coming weeks. Electric momentum is uneven across the industry, and moves like this reshape how buyers compare EV lineups. Range, charging speed, and price still dominate EV shopping — every new entry forces competitors to either match or reposition. Watch for EPA range certifications and DC fast-charge benchmarks once independent tests land. Pricing tiers, software updates, and any regional trim adjustments will tell us how serious the launch intent is.