It’s always risky when a company or organisation tries something new. Just ask the FA about Sam Allardyce.
There’s an old adage about starting a new venture or launching a new product. Get it right because you only get one chance to do something for the first time. Get it wrong and you could have well and truly scuppered everything.
So, when Jaguar – with all of its sporting heritage – decided to launch a 4x4 SUV, there was a certain degree of moustache twitching among the ventilated driving-glove brigade.
Thankfully for Jaguar, it got it right. In fact, it would have been difficult to have got it more right. I suppose at this point you’re probably thinking that Jaguar has just popped over to its next-door stablemate and borrowed a lot of bits and pieces from Land Rover, then dropped a shiny new body onto some tried and tested oily bits. Wrong. OK, there will have been a flow of intelligence, but most of the kit under the F-Pace was created specifically for the F-Type.
Crucially, it had to be better than the benchmark for this type of car at this type of price: the Porsche Macan. Well, here’s the good news for Jag fans. It is.
Prices start at a shade over £35k for the 2.0-litre diesel model. If you want AWD, add a couple of grand. Want an auto ’box (it’s brilliant – ultra smooth, eight-speed – go for it), sling another £2,000 on the table. All three models will hit 60mph in around 8.5 seconds. Top speed is 129mph. Economy is a not unreasonable 54mpg. The 2.0 litre diesel sounds a bit agricultural at low speeds but, once on the move, it’s refined and responsive.
However, when it comes to a hunky 4x4, you can’t beat a bit of grunt. There are a pair of 3.0-litre F-Pace models available both costing £52,300. You can either have a 295bhp V6 turbodiesel or a 375bhp supercharged V6 petrol. The petrol model is seriously quick – 0-60mph in a shade over five seconds. The diesel isn’t far behind, but the big difference, as you’d expect, is at the pump with the diesel managing 47mpg while the petrol limps to 31mpg – and it’s considerably worse in town.
The low-end pulling power of the 3.0-litre turbodiesel is hugely appealing and probably suits the F-Pace best of all, but there is something about the V6 S petrol F-Pace that wins you over. It has a wonderful growl from the exhaust when you want some but also adds a huge sense of refinement to an already very refined car. It’s great to drive, massive fun and surprisingly practical. If you can absorb the fuel and tax bills, then the petrol version is worth a serious look.
The interior is a perfect example of style and function. The seats are brilliant – both supportive and comfortable. Every F-Pace gets sat nav, DAB radio, USB socket, and Bluetooth connectivity as standard – and just about everything is electrically operated.
There’s loads of room, too. A lot of big cars are surprisingly cramped in the back; not so with the F-Pace. This will be a perfect family car. The boot is roomy and there is a full range of accessories for carrying bikes, skis, luggage boxes and the rest.
And yes, it will scramble over rough ground. Okay, it won’t be a mountain goat, but it’ll pull a horse box over a wet field or reverse a boat into a lake.
The Jaguar F-Pace is a brilliant achievement. Bearing in mind that this is Jaguar’s first attempt at an SUV, future models should be utterly mesmerising. If you are in the market for this type of car, begin your road tests with a Jaguar F-Pace. It is the new watermark that all others need to aspire to.
From £35,092. For more information, visit jaguar.co.uk
