Blue Steel!

What we like:

Striking good looks. Engine note from that V8. Drives well. Left-of-field offering makes it a little more unique. Price.

What we dislike:

Some rough edges (although the cabin has been improved upon). Slowest of the lot in its class. Fiddly infotainment interface.

V8 engines are going to get more difficult to come by, and that is a sad thing to hear. But for the moment, we can get to enjoy them for a little while more, before the rest of the world decides to take another Greta TURNberg on our beloved automobile manufacturers.

I mean like, HOW DARE YOU?!

Well anyway, the Ultra Blue coloured SUV we have here is Jaguar’s answer to both the apex M-badged X3 from BMW, the AMG-badged GLC from Mercedes, and Alfa Romeo’s stonking Stelvio Quadrifoglio. Perhaps a little late into the game here, the Jaguar F-Pace SVR is built by their Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) division; which also builds their F-Type SVR and XE SV Project 8 cars.

Visually, we like what Jaguar did with their high-performing F-Pace. Purpose-built scoops and ducts for improved airflow, for cooling and aerodynamics have been added to their SUV, and the car also sits on super-sized staggered 22” forged alloy wheels. Larger brake discs (395mm front and 396mm rear), are built in a two-piece construction, in-order to shave off some weight. Shaving off some, might be key to better performance, but this SVR-badged blue cat does weigh in at quite a hefty 2,070kg.

At the rear, chromed quad tailpipes glint in the sun, like a set of polished trophies; and are part of Jaguar’s Switchable Active Sports Exhaust system, which Jaguar says is 6.6kg lighter than the one found on the vanilla F-Pace.

While most of the interior bits and bobs remain the same as the 3.0 litre version; thankfully, Jaguar has for this car, done away with their fiddly rotary-style gear selector in favour of a conventional lever.

A 10-inch ‘Touch Pro’ infotainment system allows up to eight mobile devices to be connected through its WiFi network. Connectivity through Apple CarPlay and Android Auto is standard fare, and audio is provided through a premium Meridian Surround 17-Speaker sound system. As with the rest of the cars in the Jaguar stable, the infotainment can be a little fiddly to navigate through. As with most luxury brands, the F-Pace is equipped with a 12.3-inch HD instrument cluster for greater flexibility in its display.

Supportive bucket-style seats, designed to keep you in-place are available all around, are decked out in SVR logos. Jaguar has however, ensured that their go-quicker F-Pace is still able to accommodate four-and-a-half passengers, something which at times, manufacturers would compromise, while placing that huggy-huggy experience as a top priority. Cooling for your behind offered with the front seats is standard, and a massive sunroof completes the F-Pace’s luxury offerings.

A large 650 litre boot, complete with electric tailgate, and a wide boot mouth makes for easy loading and unloading. Rear seats fold flat in 40:20:40 fashion, producing as much as 1,740 litres of hauling room.

Something old… Something a little new… Something borrowed… In Something Blue… What in the blue hell do I mean?

Well you see, Jaguar’s SVR 5.0 Supercharged aluminium block V8 is built within the confines of a Ford engine plant… think of it as an engine factory… within an engine factory (this sure has some parallels with Rick and Morty’s simulation… within a simulation). Engine componentry is certainly borrowed from the blue oval; and in order to keep that V8 burbling, with is “left, right, left, left, right, left, right, right” firing sequence, Jaguar had decided to stick in an old-school cross-plane crankshaft.

The SVR V8 certainly produces some lovely numbers - 550ps and 680Nm at 2,500rpm. Mated to their 8-speed Quickshift transmission, built by ZF, and tuned by SVO for quicker response; the SVR Jag takes 4.3 seconds to reach 100km/h (Alfa Romeo’s Quadrifoglio-badged Stelvio clocks this in 3.8 seconds, and with two cylinders less). Acceleration is addictive, and is accompanied by a somewhat familiar soundtrack, reminiscent of classic car chases in movies, thanks to the SVR’S open exhaust flaps.

With some selective hooning around with that delicious V8, we averaged 10.3km/l, perhaps a little on the high side. We did mention selective hooning right? Brakes are progressive, and they work well; though if I were fussy, I would like a little more boosting at the front end. Handling is sorted via its SVO-tuned adaptive suspension, and all-important torque vectoring; the latter ensuring that you can flick this mighty Jag into the bends, almost as easily as a (much smaller) hot hatch. Exiting a bend brings heaps of enjoyment. 650Nm readily at the call of your right foot, great torque, comes with great responsibility… and great response.

Turning off the exhaust flaps tones the SVR SUV down, well enough for you to drive through quiet residential areas, but still with enough burble for your enjoyment. But in most other cases, you would want to leave them open for a full-flavoured experience.

The SVR-badged F-Pace is an engaging car to drive, though it is a little rough around the edges when it comes to build quality. Price-wise however, it is quite a bargain for what you will be getting.

At a dollar short of $389K*, the F-Pace is much cheaper than BMW’s M car and Mercedes’ AMG offerings, and is one of only two V8 offerings in the market.

*Accurate as at 29 Jan 2020

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