Jaguar Concept 8

The Concept Eight has been designed to reflect the unique position that Jaguar holds in the luxury car market. Developed from the New XJ Long Wheelbase saloon, it has been extensively reworked beneath its broad, single-piece, glass roof to produce a luxury concept car that is understated and tasteful, yet powerful, exciting and undeniably glamorous. Making the most of Jaguar's New XJ Long Wheelbase structure – with the longest wheelbase in its class - the Concept Eight introduces new luxury elements, new in-car entertainment technology, and new performance styling cues.
British design is acknowledged to be world-leading in creative areas as diverse as fashion and architecture, interiors and furniture making. The Concept Eight reflects Britain's standing in design by using the most contemporary materials and trim to create an environment that is unlike any other luxury saloon. You won't find lap-top computers, satellite uplinks and plasma screens inside the Concept Eight, instead you will enter a world of inch-deep handmade carpets, chilled champagne, Waterford Crystal and even essential oils to allow you to sit back, relax and enjoy the ride.

“The Concept Eight is not about cramming in half an hour's work on the way to and from the airport,” says Julian Thomson, Chief of Advanced Design, Jaguar Cars. “It is a car that exudes British good taste and calmness. It has a very relaxed but contemporary feel about it. Jaguar is not an ‘all work and no play' company and the Concept Eight reflects that. When you ride in it you should get the same feeling of well-being that you would enjoy if you stayed in the latest trendsetting hotel.

“The biggest luxuries in life are increasingly just having your own time and space – this is what the Concept Eight is meant to provide. This car is all about travelling in style to a movie premiere or a party. It's about having fun.” CONCEPT EIGHT DESIGN PHILOSOPHY

“We now have a car with more space in it than any Jaguar ever built, so we thought we'd have a bit of fun and conceptualise something that was about space and luxury and pampering.”

Ian Callum, Director of Design, Jaguar Cars

“The materials we are using, the way we have reshaped the interior, the atmosphere we are trying to create – these are all pointers to how Jaguars should look and feel.”

Julian Thomson, Chief of Advanced Design, Jaguar Cars

Ian Callum's design department went through a long period of discussion and debate before work began on the Concept Eight. A great many ideas were discussed and discarded before the creative team settled on two key themes – comfort and indulgence. The large, cossetting, individual rear seats are perhaps the best example of that indulgence, for they represent a move away from a conventional bench-type seat. Ian Callum explains the significance:

“You could describe the Concept Eight as quite a selfish car. Just look at those rear seats. They've been split so that you can only carry two people… but they will be looked after very well.”

The Concept Eight's exterior appearance has also been given considerable thought – and nowhere is that more apparent than its roof. The lightweight aluminium skin that stretches across the car's upper surface has been replaced with a single, full-length piece of darkened glass to provide an even greater feeling of spaciousness within. Around the edges of the glass panel a strip of LED lighting provides an ambient red glow that equates with the mood lighting that you might find in a fashionable bar.

“That warm red glow will be visible from the roof as well as from the centre console and under the front seats,” explains Ian Callum. “This sort of effect is something I would love to use on production cars in the future. The way people have employed these lighting techniques in other modern venues – uplighting, diffused lighting and so on – that is something I would like to have in our cars. And why red? Because it is a bit cheeky…”