Skip to main content

Can VR improve experience of buying a car? Jaguar Land Rover thinks so

Jaguar Land Rover VR Experience
Shopping for a car can be an exhausting experience, but Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) thinks a little virtual reality can make it less of an ordeal.

The British automaker is experimenting with virtual reality as a way to let customers “see” new cars without having to physically open the door and plop down behind the wheel. Before the end of the month, JLR plans to ship “Virtual Reality Experience” kits to its U.S. dealers, who will use them to show customers the company’s new models.

Customers will be able to strap on a VR headset and take a virtual tour of a car, even before it goes on sale, JLR says. The program will render a life-size model of any JLR vehicle, including 360-degree views of the interior. It will also include “animations” to showcase specific technical highlights of the vehicle.

“The VR Experience will … help retailers to break the ice with customers and inject even more fun into the process of buying our vehicles,” said Andy Goss, JLR’s sales operations director. Jaguar Land Rover is putting a lot of faith in VR to make what many people consider an arduous task more enjoyable. Consumers routinely criticize the carbuying experience in surveys.

JLR will offer the VR Experience at more than 1,500 retailers in 85 markets, encompassing 20 different languages. It tested the system during the U.K. launch of the Jaguar F-Pace, the brand’s first SUV. JLR plans to implement VR with each new vehicle launch, beginning with the 2018 Land Rover Discovery.

JLR isn’t the first carmaker to try to connect to customers via VR. Volvo has experimented with using VR at dealerships, and Cadillac is reportedly considering something similar. Ford, which uses VR for vehicle-development purposes, launched a VR app last year as a promotional tool for things like its Le Mans race program.

Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
These new NASA EVs will drive astronauts part way to the moon (sort of)
NASA's new crew transportation electric vehicles.

Three specially designed, fully electric, environmentally friendly crew transportation vehicles for Artemis missions arrived at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida this week. The zero-emission vehicles, which will carry astronauts to Launch Complex 39B for Artemis missions, were delivered by Canoo Technologies of Torrance, California. NASA/Isaac Watson

NASA has shown off a trio of new all-electric vehicles that will shuttle the next generation of lunar astronauts to the launchpad at the Kennedy Space Center.

Read more
5 upcoming EVs I’m excited for, from luxury SUVs to budget champions
Lotus Eletre

Almost every major automaker has released an EV by now -- or plans to soon -- and makers like Ford and Kia already have a variety to choose from. But if you haven't found one that's right for you yet, hang tight. There are dozens of announced electric car models that have yet to come out, and it's clear that the future of EVs is bright.

From longer range to lower prices, the next batch of EVs gives us plenty to get excited about. Here are five upcoming EVs that we can't wait to drive.
Volvo EX30

Read more
Tesla shows off first Cybertruck after two years of delays
The first Cybertruck built at Tesla's Giga Texas facility.

The first Cybertruck built at Tesla's Giga Texas facility. Tesla

Tesla has shown off the first Cybertruck to roll off the production line at its new Gigafactory plant in Austin, Texas.

Read more