By ROB HULL, MOTORING EDITOR
Jaguar's last ever petrol car came off the assembly line at the brand's Midlands factory on Friday (19 December) ahead of its daring switch to all-electric vehicles next year.
The final Jaguar model with a combustion engine under its bonnet is an £80,000 high-performance F-Pace SVR SUV finished in black paint, according to the Jaguar Enthusiasts' Club, which was in attendance as the Solihull factory officially signed off its last petrol model.
Under the bonnet is a burbling 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol engine - a stark contrast to the first 'new Jaguar' that will debut next year, which is a near-silent four-door GT that will cost almost twice as much, with a quoted £120,000 to £140,000 starting price.
While parent group JLR made no official announcement of the event, the Jaguar Enthusiasts' Club says the final model is being gifted to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust in Gaydon, where it will be retained as a museum piece.
The club said Friday was a 'quiet, historic full stop' for Jaguar's 90-year relationship with the internal combustion engine.
Images show the Solihull workforce gathered in numbers to pay salute to the final petrol Jag in an atmosphere described as 'proud, emotional, and unmistakably upbeat'.
Last petrol Jag EVER: This black F-Pace SUV is the final Jaguar off the Solihull assembly line with an internal combustion engine under its bonnet
Jaguar officially wound-up outputs of existing models for UK customers last year.
Production of the XE and XF saloons, and F-Type sports car - all of which were built at the Castle Bromwich site near Birmingham, ended in May 2024.
UK allocation of the E-Pace SUV and I-Pace EV - the brand's first all-electric model - sold out last year, though outputs have continued in 2025 at its production partner's factory in Graz, Austria.
Outputs of the F-Pace SUV have too continued throughout this year at Solihull, though only for overseas markets. A spokesperson for the brand confirmed UK-spec production terminated in November 2024.
However, stock of zero-mileage Jaguars has still been available in showrooms, with the car maker registering 1,725 sales between January and the end of November.
The final SVR model to come off the Solihull assembly line on Friday is a right-hand-drive car, suggesting it would be a UK-specification F-Pace.
Commenting on the enthusiasts' club's Facebook post about the event, one person posted: 'I think this is the end of JLR. EVs will not replace the ICE [internal combustion engine] for years.
Another said: 'As a Jaguar enthusiast and owner of several over the years I really hope the owners [Tata Motors] know what they are doing.'
One individual with close ties to the brand added: 'As a JLR employee engaged in the new EMA and an F-Pace owner I have such mixed feelings about this, sad to see the demise of such a fantastic vehicle that certainly had the potential to continue as a revised and updated model but also excited at what the future holds in our new electrified journey.'
We have approached Jaguar for comment.
Jaguar's managing director Rawdon Glover told Daily Mail last week: 'We remain 100 per cent committed to a pure-electric future and have entered the final stage in the development of our new all-electric Jaguar GT.'
He went on to explain how the company - despite its monumental rebrand and ditching of iconic Jag logos - will not be turning its back on heritage and will continue to 'embrace its history' as part of a 'balancing act moving forward'.
Under the bonnet of the last petrol Jag is a burbling 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol engine - a stark contrast to the near-silent powertrain of its forthcoming electric four-door GT
The Jaguar Enthusaists' Club attended the event on Friday and said it was a 'quiet, historic full stop' for Jaguar's 90-year relationship with the internal combustion engine. The final F-Pace pictured flanked by a 1937 Jaguar SS (right) and a 2014 diesel Jaguar XE (left)
Images show the Solihull workforce gathered in numbers to pay salute to the final petrol Jag in an atmosphere described as 'proud, emotional, and unmistakably upbeat'
While parent group JLR made no official announcement of the event, the Jaguar Enthusiasts' Club says the final model is being gifted to the Jaguar Daimler Heritage Trust in Gaydon, where it will be retained as a museum piece
The final petrol model built in the UK now draws a definitive line in the sand for the company's transition to becoming a luxury electric car maker from next year and the arrival of the new four-door GT, which is heavily based on its polarising Type 00 concept revealed last year.
Currently unnamed, the car is expected to debut in summer 2026, with first deliveries arriving in 2027.
Daily Mail and This is Money has already seen the production car in the flesh, as well as taking a passenger ride with vehicle engineer director Matt Becker at the wheel.
With approximately 1,000 horsepower, a tri-motor setup and clever chassis and suspension systems, it's being billed as the 'most refined, intuitive and engaging Jaguar ever'. You can read our full report here.
While Jaguar's decision to become an electric-only brand dates back to an announcement in 2021, rival premium brands - namely Mercedes-Benz and Volvo - have since backtracked on their own EV commitments in response to slower-than-expected demand for battery-powered cars.
The first 'new Jaguar': Daily Mail and This is Money earlier this month took a passenger ride in the forthcoming 4-door GT that's due to kickstart Jaguar's electric rebrand from next year
Daily Mail Motoring Editor, Rob Hull (right), pictured with Matt Becker, JLR's vehicle engineer director, the man in charge of honing the new EV so that it drives like a 'true Jaguar'
Jaguar's bold decision also comes in the wake of recent news that the European Union will water down its electric car targets, with confirmation last week that it has proposed to lift the 2035 ban on sales on new petrol and diesel cars, opening the door for them to remain on sale if they can run on CO2-cutting synthetic e-fuels.
The last combustion engine Jaguar off the production line closes the curtain on what has been an eventful calendar year for the British marque.
In July, it was confirmed that JLR boss Adrian Mardell would be retiring and was replaced as CEO at the end of November by PB Balaji, who has been parachuted into the hot seat from parent company Tata Motors.
And at the end of August, the company was hit by a crippling cyberattack forcing its factories worldwide to pause production for five weeks as its global system were safely rebooted.
A JLR insider told us earlier this month that it is still working with UK law enforcement to understand who was behind the breach and what information has been taken.
Further controversy has recently followed with the reported immediate departure of design chief Gerry McGovern, who has penned two decades of JLR models, at the beginning of December.
The company, however, has since issued an official statement saying that reports it has 'terminated his employment' are 'untrue', though has not confirmed whether he remains employed.
