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The Fast Fat Cat
What Have We Got?
There is a lot to like about the F-Pace S. For a start it is a car of creature comforts and quite honestly meets Jaguars ethos of Space, Grace and Pace. In that I mean it’s got space for 5 and a boot to accommodate luggage. Grace to carry you effortlessly along from A to B and Pace because when and where you can, it’ll hurtle itself down the road with a phenomenal howl from the superchargers.
Driving
Back to the howling. It’s very noticeable and I like that. A shove on the go pedal and the 380 horse of the 2999cc Ingenium will drop down several gears of the 8-speed auto gearbox and slingshot you down the road.
If this isn’t what you need then you’ll be surprised to discover that you can potter it along like a Honda Jazz on pension collection day. There are novices for this amount of power.
Ride and handling are also pleasant. The ride is more on the jiggly side and then even more so in Dynamic mode. It’s not however intrusive even with its 22” wheels and thin band Pirelli Zero rubber.
Climb Inside
Here lays my problem. The inside is a mixture of hits and misses. My main gripe is the dashboard layout. While some will like familiarity within their cars from the same brand, I for one do not. If I am to pay out more for a car that sits up the range then I want it to reflect that and be different. The dashboard is identical with that of its saloon sibling the XF.
This then includes the blue dashboard lighting. This again causes me some issues. The doors and dashboard have neon lighting set within them and on the S they were red. Thankfully someone at Jaguar has designed software that allows you to change the colours. Red with the blue wasn’t easy on my eyes. The white or blue seemed to work better.
What did work well for me was the driving position and visibility. It was incredibly easy to see out of and this helps with navigating you and the behemoth Jaguar where you have to. The SUV style body allowing for even easier parking thanks in part to its cut of tail.
Living With It
Quality wise it isn’t up to the likes of Mercedes or Audi. That said they seem to be stepping down at times with their products so I won’t be losing any sleep over that. The tactility of the inside is ok, Door armrests lack some padding for bony prominences.
With a combined mpg of 31.7, you’ll also be able to stretch your legs more often than in a Nissan Micra. I say that because you won’t get that. You’ll be having too much fun driving it. At most during my week l saw 16 – 18mpg and the tank was empty in 248 miles.
Is It Any Good?
I liked the F-Pace. There are few SUV’s that l rave about because it’s a genre that l personally find stunted. They are high sided vehicles with altered dynamics and this results in fussy handling. The F-Pace S seems to have stopped me in my tracks on this.
The F-Pace is also incredibly easy to drive and for something so powerful, it’s nice to be able to relax if going hell-for-leather isn’t what you want after a day of mind-numbing meetings.
Now if only l could get more than 248 miles from a tank of fuel I’d be extra smitten with it alas fun comes at a price. A high price too but you can’t take it with you.
Love
Engine noise
Choice of ambient lighting
Easy to drive
Loathe
Trim tactility
Expensive options
You need the options
The Lowdown
Car – Jaguar F-Pace S 3.0 V6 AWD
Price – £71,505 (as tested)
MPG – 31.7 mpg (combined)
Power – 0-62mph – 5.1 seconds
Top Speed – 155 mph