Jaguar “EV-Type” Trademark May Signal Tesla Electric SUV Rival

BOLD RIDE

Copyright © 2015 Bold Ride LLC.

 

Posted by Zach Doell 

 

                                 

The grand reveal of the thinly-disguised 2016 Jaguar F-Pace comes in only a few short weeks at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, though word has surfaced that the new Jaguar crossover may not be alone.

 

According to the UK’s Autocar, Jaguar insiders have suggested that the F-Pace won’t be a standalone vehicle, but instead a family of crossover SUVs, giving Jaguar a range of vehicles to field against the likes of the BMW X-3/4/5 and Audi’s Q crossovers. One of the most eye-opening of the vehicles purported? An electric version of the F-Pace, rumored to be called “EV-Type.”

Jaguar first trademarked the EV-Type moniker in October 2014, and although Jaguar Design Director Ian Callum has hinted that an electric Jaguar is indeed in the works, the company has been mum as to what form the future EV would take on.

With the Tesla Model X soon to carve out the all-electric crossover market, an electric SUV based on the F-Pace’s lightweight aluminum architecture represents as good a shot as any at challenging the Model X.

The Jaguar F-Pace is set to go into production at the company’s Solihull factory, outside of Birmingham, England. In July, Jaguar Land Rover entered into an agreement with Magna Steyr to build a portion of future vehicles in Graz, Austria, which may provide an engineering home for such an EV-Type vehicle.

Although the final specifications are still unknown, the SUV is expected to sport a range of four-cylinder engines from Jaguar’s Ingenium engine family, a supercharged V6, and potentially even a V8 in the form of an “R” or “SVR” package. Stay tuned for updates as September’s Frankfurt Motor Show ticks closer.