Jaguar's $130,000 Type 01 Debuts In New York—And The Internet Can't Agree On It

Jaguar has pulled the wraps off the Type 01, its first production electric car since the brand’s polarizing relaunch two years ago. Revealed in New York on Tuesday, the roughly $130,000 electric sedan borrows heavily from the Type 00 Concept shown back in December 2024—right down to the stark, brutalist sheetmetal and the angular proportions that once set car forums ablaze. The result is a machine that seems engineered to split a room, and early reactions suggest it has done exactly that.

The surprise, though, is just how much affection the Type 01 is drawing compared with its concept predecessor. On Jaguar’s own subreddit and under the company’s social posts, a notable share of longtime owners have come out in favor. One Redditor who says they’ve owned four Jaguars over the years called the exterior “magnificent” and “the best looking EV I’ve seen,” describing it as “brutally handsome and purposeful,” even while admitting the cabin left them cold. Another commenter argued the car is simply ahead of its time, predicting that buyers will only recognize its value once it’s discontinued—a pattern they say has haunted the marque for decades.

A recurring observation is that the Type 01 channels something closer to 1990s animation than traditional British luxury. Multiple commenters compared its art-deco, chiseled silhouette to the Batmobile from “Batman: The Animated Series,” and it’s a comparison that’s hard to shake once you see it. Design-conscious observers have also zeroed in on what Jaguar calls the “Impossible Panel,” a single rear quarter section that stretches along the entire roofline. Jaguar’s own software reportedly deemed the one-piece pressed aluminum panel unbuildable, until a human engineer worked out a method by hand—a small engineering win that even skeptics have acknowledged.

Not everyone is sold. A frequent criticism targets the interior, which many describe as austere, generic and unexpectedly cramped given the car’s massive exterior footprint. Much of that bulk comes from an unusually long hood that does little for passenger room, and some commenters argued the back seat feels tighter than far smaller hatchbacks. Others lamented the missing hood leaper and classic logo, with one YouTube commenter joking that the new branding makes Jaguar look “like a hipster stationery store that sells cold-pressed juices on the side.” One particularly sharp critic flipped the brand’s own tagline, saying the car has “No Grace, No Space.”

So where does that leave the Type 01? Reaction appears to be roughly an even split—markedly warmer than the reception the Type 00 concept received, even if the badge overhaul still rankles purists. And in practical terms, the debate may matter less than it seems. This is a low-volume, six-figure flagship aimed at a narrow slice of buyers, and Jaguar’s leadership has made clear that the loudest online detractors were never the target customer anyway.