Jaguar Land Rover’s Project Vector Autonomous Platform To Start UK Trials In 2021

Say hello to Project Vector, Jaguar Land Rover’s new self-driving concept that’s part of the company’s Destination Zero mission.

What’s Destination Zero, you ask? JLR describes it as the drive for “a future of zero emissions, zero accidents and zero congestion – through its products, services and across its facilities.” Project Vector will play a role in achieving that, as it’s an ‘autonomy-ready’ platform for future smart city infrastructures, designed to deliver services for private and shared mobility needs.

As you can see, Project Vector looks unlike any other product from the Jaguar and Land Rover lineups and that’s because it’s from a different breed. JLR’s vision of an autonomous, electric, connected future for urban mobility is said to offer “unparalleled interior space and flexibility in vehicle configuration.”

Measuring just four meters (157.5 inches) in length, Project Vector is a compact, flexible, multi-use EV designed for the city. It packages all its battery and drivetrain components into a flat floor, thus enabling a variety of uses. The roomy cabin allows various seating configurations: for private and shared use, as well as last-mile delivery vehicle.

“Future urban travel will be a composite of owned and shared vehicles, access to ride hailing and on-demand services as well as public transport. Our vision shows the vehicle as a flexible part of the urban mobility network that can be adapted for different purposes,” said Dr. Tim Leverton, Project Director.

JLR intends to collaborate with Coventry City Council and the West Midlands Combined Authority to plan a mobility service from late 2021. That’s when Project Vector will start a pilot program as a living laboratory for future mobility on the streets of Coventry.

“Through this project, we are collaborating with the brightest minds in academia, supply chain and digital services, to create connected, integrated mobility systems – the fundamental building blocks for Destination Zero,” said Jaguar Land Rover CEO Prof Sir Ralf Speth. “Project Vector is precisely the brave and innovative leap forward needed to deliver on our mission,” he added.