By Editor Tom Cotterill
Jaguar has insisted its ‘woke’ rebrand – heavily slated by some fans – is not to blame for the British motoring icon’s plummeting sales.
Sales of the luxury car manufacturer appear to have nose-dived following its controversial move to scrap its iconic ‘growler’ big cat logo in November.
The firm’s rebrand saw it replace the well-known badge in favour of a geometric ‘J’ design – which lovers of the brand raged looked like the logo on a handbag clasp.
And as the firestorm surrounding the famed car maker’s change continues to engulf it, sales at Jaguar Europe have plunged a staggering 97.5 per cent.
But the British car marque has insisted the reason for the freefall in sales is not because of a lack of support or an image overhaul – but because it has stopped making older models as it focuses on its relaunch with an all-electric offering.
Defending the news, the firm said it was ‘pointless’ to compare figures for 2024 and 2025, as ‘Jaguar is not currently on sale in the UK’ while it goes through its ‘sunset period’ of radical change.
A spokeswoman for Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) said: ‘Jaguar’s transformation towards a new portfolio of pure-electric vehicles was announced as part of the Reimagine strategy in 2021. JLR always envisaged a period when the current range would “no longer be on sale” before the introduction of the new Jaguar collection.
‘Production of XE, XF, F-TYPE, I-PACE and E-PACE all came to an end in 2024 as part of that transition. This strategic “sunset” of the product range is going to plan and will allow Jaguar to transform and reposition the brand for the future.
‘Comparing Jaguar sales to 2024 is pointless as we are no longer producing vehicles in 2025 with low levels of retail inventory available. Jaguar’s rebranding is not related to a sales decline.’
Jaguar has not announced an official date for when its new fleet of high-end electric motors will hit the forecourt.
It stopped sales of current Jaguars on November 11 as it prepared for its next generation of luxury vehicles to arrive.
The car builder revealed its spaced-aged Type 00 design vision concept car in December last year.
The unveiling of the hi-tech motor, in Miami, followed Jag’s new advertising campaign that sought to refresh its image – but led to a fierce backlash.
Launched under the slogan ‘copy nothing’ – an adage from company founder Sir William Lyons – the advert featured androgynous-looking men and women in technicolour outfits walking through an alien landscape.
But it left fans fuming at the fact it did not feature a single car in it,
Jag’s big rebrand had been in development for three years and reportedly involved around 800 people.
The company’s boss has previously defended the decision to stop selling new cars for a year ahead of its bold transition to electric vehicles.
The British brand ceased sales of all petrol and diesel models for the UK market for the first time since the Second World War as it terminates its 102-year relationship with the internal combustion engine.
This comes ahead of its switch to battery power from 2026 and its dealers closed order books to new customers, leaving Jaguar with no new cars on sale for what it dubbed a ‘sunset period’.
When asked if it was a mistake to be taking a 12-month hiatus from the market, managing director Rawdon Glover said it has always been part of a ‘strategic decision’.
He said Jaguar wanted a ‘fire break’ period to ‘give customers and dealers the chance to reset as we move towards this new era for the brand,’ according to Car Dealer Magazine.
It’s unclear whether the brand’s gamble – thought to be in a bid to attract younger, more environmentally conscious motorists – will pay off.
However, global branding experts appeared to be less than convinced, ridiculing the makeover and dubbing it a ‘dog’s dinner’.
Californian designer Joseph Alessio said it would be ‘taught in schools as how not to do a rebrand,’ while another designer labelled it ‘one of the most destructive marketing moves ever attempted.’
While public relations experts said they were stumped by the firm’s decisions – from the ‘vandalism’ of the company’s iconic logo to the apparent casting off of decades of motoring heritage to attract new buyers.
Brand and culture expert Nick Ede said he was ‘baffled’ by the marketing push – which featured precisely no cars – while Oli Garnett, co-founder of creative design agency Something Familiar, called the rebrand a ‘dog’s dinner’.
The likes of Nigel Farage and Elon Musk led other critics, with Farage describing it as ‘woke’ and warned the automaker risked ‘going bust’ due to its new design choice.
And billionaire Space X owner Musk turned the knife on X, simply asking Jaguar: ‘Do you sell cars?’
According to figures from the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (AECA), the company registered just 49 new vehicles in April 2025 compared to 1,961 units sold in the same month last year.
Year-to-date sales from January to April also slumped, dropping 75.1 per cent with just 2,665 motors sold.