Uploaded August 2021 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
With the New Labour Government of 1997 and its youthful new Prime Minister, Tony Blair, the UK was undergoing a “Cool Britannia” transformation of identity. Britpop and The Spice Girls were sparking a renewed pride in being British as the country hurtled towards a new millennium and possibly a bright new future. It was into this atmosphere that Jaguar, under Ford’s stewardship, launched its new mid-size luxury car, the S-Type, a car that didn’t look forward, but backwards to Jaguars storied past. 8 years later the S-Type, and Ford’s ownership had disappeared, replaced by the modern, forward-looking XF. Why did Jaguar choose the retro-modern looks of the S-Type, was it any good, and did it spark a resurgence in the brand to make it a competitor with Germany’s finest, as Ford had wanted?
Music: "Classique" by Francis Preve, and "Staycation" by Corbyn Kites. Listen to both through the YouTube audio library.
If you'd like to support what I do, and get early access to advert-free videos and exclusive channel updates, please consider supporting the channel from just $1 or 80p a month: patreon.com/bigcar
Support me using Paypal: paypal.com/paypalme/bigcartv
Big Car merch: teespring.com/stores/bigcartv
Twitter: twitter.com/bigcartv
My second channel - Little Car: youtube.com/littlecar
Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cool_Britannia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_Mark_2
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_S-Type_(1963)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_S-Type_(1999)
motortrend.com/reviews/2000-jaguar-s-type-2
motortrend.com/reviews/jaguar-s-type-40
theguardian.com/business/2000/nov/22/thatcher.politics1
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-two
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-three
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-four
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-five
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Motor_Company
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_DEW_platform
aronline.co.uk/cars/rover/75/feature-retro-rover-vs-retro-jaguar
motortrend.com/reviews/jaguar-stype-r
autoweek.com/news/a2036871/ford-sells-jaguar-and-land-rover-23-billion-ford-will-supply-powertrains-technology
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browns_Lane_plant
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_Figaro
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gutbrod_Superior
raycee1234.blogspot.com/2012/12/jaguar-production-by-model.html
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8121056.stm
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/761794.stm
cbsnews.com/news/ford-sells-jaguar-land-rover-for-17b
#bigcar
With the New Labour Government of 1997 and its youthful new Prime Minister, Tony Blair, the UK was undergoing a “Cool Britannia” transformation of identity. Britpop and The Spice Girls were sparking a renewed pride in being British as the country hurtled towards a new millennium and possibly a bright new future. It was into this atmosphere that Jaguar, under Ford’s stewardship, launched its new mid-size luxury car, the S-Type, a car that didn’t look forward, but backwards to Jaguars storied past. 8 years later the S-Type, and Ford’s ownership had disappeared, replaced by the modern, forward-looking XF. Why did Jaguar choose the retro-modern looks of the S-Type, was it any good, and did it spark a resurgence in the brand to make it a competitor with Germany’s finest, as Ford had wanted?
Music: "Classique" by Francis Preve, and "Staycation" by Corbyn Kites. Listen to both through the YouTube audio library.
If you'd like to support what I do, and get early access to advert-free videos and exclusive channel updates, please consider supporting the channel from just $1 or 80p a month: patreon.com/bigcar
Support me using Paypal: paypal.com/paypalme/bigcartv
Big Car merch: teespring.com/stores/bigcartv
Twitter: twitter.com/bigcartv
My second channel - Little Car: youtube.com/littlecar
Sources:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cool_Britannia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_Mark_2
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_S-Type_(1963)
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jaguar_S-Type_(1999)
motortrend.com/reviews/2000-jaguar-s-type-2
motortrend.com/reviews/jaguar-s-type-40
theguardian.com/business/2000/nov/22/thatcher.politics1
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-two
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-three
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-four
aronline.co.uk/cars/jaguar/jaguar-in-the-1990s/history-jaguar-1990s-%e2%80%93-part-five
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Motor_Company
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_DEW_platform
aronline.co.uk/cars/rover/75/feature-retro-rover-vs-retro-jaguar
motortrend.com/reviews/jaguar-stype-r
autoweek.com/news/a2036871/ford-sells-jaguar-and-land-rover-23-billion-ford-will-supply-powertrains-technology
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysler
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Browns_Lane_plant
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nissan_Figaro
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gutbrod_Superior
raycee1234.blogspot.com/2012/12/jaguar-production-by-model.html
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8121056.stm
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/761794.stm
cbsnews.com/news/ford-sells-jaguar-land-rover-for-17b
#bigcar
