Jaguar F-Pace 2022
By Ian Strachan.
The eye-catching F-PACE was Jaguar’s first ever SUV. Now it’s just got better with the addition of a plug-in hybrid which helps fuel consumption and can give you up to 53 miles of electric motoring.
This award-winning car has created a sector all of its own – the practical luxury sports car. Unlike a lot of practical and roomy cars, this one is fun to drive.
Don’t be fooled by its off-roader looks. This is not a Land Rover, and doesn’t pretend to be, although the version I tested had all-wheel drive. It’s every bit as sporty as its companions in the Jaguar stable, with exhilarating performance. But it has bags of room inside and lots of practical features. It quickly picked up Car of the Year and Compact SUV of the Year accolades.
Despite being an SUV it still has sleek lines and classy design cues worthy of the Jaguar badge.
My test vehicle was the F-Pace P400e R-Dynamic HSE, powered by a smooth but gutsy two litre petrol unit backed up by a 105kw electric motor. It delivers smooth, fast acceleration and great high-speed cruising. Despite being an SUV this is a Jaguar how Jaguars used to be, and is obviously superbly made.
The 2.0 litre, 404 horsepower unit is excellent. This is a big car, but its aluminium construction makes it a featherweight – easy for this engine to propel while still being quiet, refined and responsive.
Married to a silky-smooth automatic gearbox this unit will propel you from 0 to 60 in just five seconds and has a top speed, where allowed, of 149 mph.
Ride and handling is as smooth as you’d expect from a Jaguar, and the F-PACE benefits from excellent suspension which absorbs bumps well and improves overall handling and dynamics. Automatic vehicle response responds to driving conditions.
The interior of the F-PACE is the ultimate in subtle style and its here that you know you’re in a Jaguar. Classy without being showy. The sumptuous leather front seats have eight-way electronic control with memory function to get the perfect position. The rear seats have a useful 40:20:40 split, and will fold flat to increase load space.
Specification levels are high on the R-Dynamic HSE spec which I tested and include 19-inch alloys, satellite navigation with touchscreen control, cruise control with speed limiter, front and rear parking aids with 3D surround camera, traffic sign recognition, lane departure warning, automatic stop/start, keyless entry and ignition, DAB radio with Bluetooth and Apply CarPlay, voice control, roof rails, heated front screen and steering wheel, dual zone climate control and rain sensing wipers
My test car also came with a sliding panoramic roof (£1,600), a black exterior pack (£740), suede headlining (£600), privacy glass (£415) and wireless charge (£300), as well as metallic paint (£740).
The F-PACE isn’t cheap – you wouldn’t expect it to be. The 2.0 litre P400e automatic 4wd version in R-Dynamic HSE trim which I tested comes at £64,490 on the road, but the options added another £4,000 to that.
But this really is a superb car. With a high quality British-made vehicle like this available who would even want to consider anything else?
