Jaguar Type 00: A Legacy Marred by Embarrassing Reinvention

Jaguar

Jaguar has sought to market its brand as a leading design automaker for several decades. Other models that were incorporated into the company’s makeovers include classic models such as the E-Type which became hallmarks of British motoring mainly admired for their beautiful looks and superior engineering. Jaguar cars were perfect bargains where performance met luxury; these were trendsetting cars for the enthusiasts and the luxury segment.

However, during the last decade and the first years of the new millennium, the competition in the top-end Jaguar segment has intensified considerably with players like BMW, Mercedes, and Audi. Despite this success, the economic climates and target markets changed over time and to meet the demands and capture the imaginations of young progressive markets Jaguar needed to reposition the brand— thus the birth of the Type 00.

Type 00: Bold but unclear shift

The Jaguar Type 00 was released in an effort for Jaguar to increase the model’s appeal and update its fleet. The intended strategy executed in the model was the ability to strike a balance between the Jaguar's traditional elegance and dynamic youthful appeal. However, this change in design and branding confused the market.

Type 00 implemented a more aggressive and austere design approach and felt quite differently in contrast to the regard Jaguar was known for. This kind of design orientation was thought to target younger customers but appeared to have nothing in common with the smooth irresistible shapes of E-Type, XJ.

Even the name of this Type – “Type 00” – had many millions of men and women wondering. Previously, Jaguar had not been shy to dish out car types with puerile, memorable names such as the E-Type and F-Type with a historical reference to the company’s brand. However, none of that was present in “Type 00” It was boring it did not invoke any emotion and it didn’t even tell what the car is all about or where it fits in the Jaguar line of cars. The numerical designation was less warm and friendly and proved to be much less conducive to the model to achieve a positive identity.

Jaguar planned Type 00 as a rival to sporty luxury models of rivals, but the positioning and appearance of Type 00 were ambiguous, so it was not entirely clear to whom the car was suitable. Some Jaguar’s regular consumers considered the design as too contemporary while other's young onward clientele already associated with brands with sporting orientation. This left the Type 00 in a very precarious market to deal with.

That is why Jaguar did not lose its faithful client, Type 00 became a signal that the radical transformation of the brand position supremacy can lead to disappointment of the regular buyer.

Due to difficulties that occurred within The Type 00 program, Jaguar had to reconsider its key branding and design activities. Informed by this new project, whereas Jaguar persisted in cultivating an image that was, at best, orthogonal to its brand, it began to work at integrating tradition with innovation.

Conclusion: A footnote in Jaguar's history

The Jaguar Type 00 still means little and is not one of the fabled Jaguar models that are well documented. Although it did not have the staying power the company wanted it to have, it was useful in teaching the company. Specifically, the model revealed that one of the potential dangers is the drastic change of the company’s name and that the company should keep to a coherent and truthful brand image.

While the Type 00 may not have replicated the success of the more famous Jaguar models it contributed to the lineage of the brand by helping Jaguar remember that technological progress is only as good as the traditions that continue to guide the company.

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