News : Jaguar F-Pace breaks cover at Frankfurt

Jaguar F-Pace
Jaguar F-Pace in Frankfurt (Photograph: Ben Samuelson)

The wraps have finally come off the Jaguar F-Pace at Frankfurt after months of pre-launch build-up – and the Audi Q5/BMW X3 rival looks set to make quite a splash if its good looks and warm media reaction to its kissing cousin, the XE, are anything to go by.

The F-Pace is the latest new model from the Jaguar stable in a busy year, following the launches of the XE and XF.  Designed, engineered and manufactured in Britain, these new models are the result of a £1.5bn investment that has accelerated Jaguar Land Rover’s world leadership in lightweight technology.

It’s built alongside the Jaguar XE at Solihull, which is more closely associated with Land Rover. An investment of £120m has seen the factory has been expanded in order to make room for the vital new model. However, the question is whether Jaguar’s latest off-roader will step on the toes of its sisters, the Evoque and the Discovery Sport – although this more road-focused offering is likely to attract new buyers to Jaguar, rather than Land Rover fans. Well, that’s the plan, anyway.

More relevantly, does the F-Pace’s arrival take the pressure off Jaguar Land Rover to launch the XE Sportbrake at the earliest opportunity? It’s undoubtedly going to be Jaguar’s biggest-selling car globally, as the growth of the SUV market has been unparalleled in recent years – especially in growing markets, such as China and India.

It’s close in size to the BMW X3 at 4731mm in length, and the entry-level 178bhp version comes with a six-speed manual gearbox driving the rear wheels. The F-Pace will be available from £34,170, and follows the Jaguar XE, Range Rover Evoque, Discovery Sport and Jaguar XF in adopting the award-winning Ingenium engine. Manufactured at the company’s £500m Engine Manufacturing Centre, near Wolverhampton, which celebrates its first anniversary next month, the four-cylinder diesel engine in the F-Pace achieves 57.7mpg and CO2 emissions of 129g/km.

This would make the F-Pace the most economical car in its class – and usefully quick with a 0-60mph time of 8.5sec and a 130mph top speed. It will be interesting to see how many buyers pay extra to have the F-Pace with four-wheel drive. From launch, Jaguar will offer one petrol and two diesel engines, rear and all-wheel drive and five trim levels, and will largely mirror the XE, albeit at a higher price point.

Speaking at the Frankfurt Motor Show, Jaguar Land Rover’s CEO, Dr. Ralf Speth, said: We are pushing the boundaries in design, engineering and manufacturing to deliver outstanding cars. Our investment in the development of the F-Pace; its industry leading architecture and the UK plants which support its manufacture provides a clear signal that Jaguar Land Rover is committed to Britain and advancing the skills and capability of the industry.’

The Jaguar F-Pace will go on sale worldwide in early 2016.

Gallery

 

Mike Humble

46 Comments

  1. I think the F-pace looks stunning, and will be an enormous hit around the world, more so than the XE and XF.

    At first I was worried it would be a rehashed Evoque or RRS, but from reading the spec it feels very different, a performance on road vehicle with 4wd for extra traction and grip.

    This is a real BMW and Porsche basher 🙂

  2. Just what the world needs, yet another pointless SUV, even more pointless when the company already owns the top end SUV market

      • I can see both points of view – The F-Pace is mightily impressive as is the company itself. They’ve made a great example of what the market now demands in huge volumes. It is a business, they’ve got to produce to market demand. A Jaguar SUV rather than just leaving things as Jaguar = luxury saloon and Land Rover = off roader just shows how the market has changed.
        Part of me though does say “just what the hell has happened” when JLR can’t stick to the divide outlined above.

        • But this isn’t designed to go off road.

          Land Rover products are designed to be unbeatable off road, even if their drivers never go anywhere worse than a slippery field.

          This isn’t designed to go off road, but is a crossover like the Q5, X3, X5, Cayenne, Macan, various Lexuses etc. It’s a taller saloon with SUV type styling, but engineered to drive like a performance saloon

          90% of the people who’ll buy this would have bought one of these rivals rather than a LR product

          • That might be true, but Jaguar did was spending a lot of money creating a car to compete with the Range Rover Evoque and Discovery Sport.
            JLR shouldn’t focus in competing with other brands instead of allowing their brands to compete with themselves?
            I think it would be smarter to invest all that money in creating better cars or in a XE Coupe.

          • That might be true, but what Jaguar did was spending a lot of money creating a car to compete with the Range Rover Evoque and Discovery Sport.
            JLR shouldn’t focus in competing with other brands instead of allowing their brands to compete with themselves?
            I think it would be smarter to invest all that money in creating better cars or in a XE Coupe.

          • This is meant to be a reply to jaoa.slr!

            Sporty SUVs are selling in massive numbers now, far more than coupes and roadsters. That’s what the market wants, hence BMW letting the Z4 wither, and the coupes turning into 5 door hatchbacks!

          • maestrowoff – I was saying “see your point” in response to your comment on my comment !!

          • It’s complicated this, as twice I’d had to reply to myself in order to reply to other people 🙂

      • Thought they already were, in the form of the LR line up? oh sorry of course not, those actually work off road, so they have to make an SUV that is hopeless of road to compete with the equally hopeless German SUVs rather than rise above it

  3. That is a stunning colour! Would love to see it extended to other Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles sooner rather than later.

    Anyone know what this shade of blue is officially called?

    • Well, it looks to me like the utterly tasteless blue that they first used on the XFR ! However, on the plus side, the shape itself looks quite attractive for a Chelsea tractor . It was only last Saturday, looking at a new Volvo equivalent, that it occurred to me that such vehicles don’t have to look like the back end of a bus, even though most do – Volvo and Jaguar provide a refreshing change

    • Caesium Blue (not a standard colour, just for the limited edition launch models). The 14 standard colours are a bit meh (would have liked a metallic Pastel Green / Alpine Green)

      • Thank you for this, Anon, it is much appreciated. This colour name will definitely be one I will remember with much fondness because I simply love this colour!

  4. I think this must be one of the few times where I prefer the production version of something, to the concept. Well done Jaguar!

  5. good to see JLR entering different markets, I seem to remember Audi, Bmw, Mercedes, Volvo all being renowned for their saloons (and estates), they got on to the suv bandwagon pretty quickly, why should n’t jaguar !

  6. Its nice – although the wood inserts on the doors look a bit Mercedes.

    I really hope it sells well – presumably it will ‘displace’ some sales from the Evoque (but hopefully it will be more successful in taking sales off BMW / Lexus etc). These cars all look very similar though (in particular the planned 2017 Volvo XC60).

    This picture from the website is priceless in demonstrating their target market though:

    http://www.jaguar.co.uk/Images/InControl_Touch_Pro_Still_STORY1_desktop_910x600_tcm91-186218_desktop_910x600.jpg?v=9

  7. The rear end is a nice design. Shame it doesn’t have the exaggerated haunches of the prototype. It’s a nice looking car though.

    The interior is, like most modern Jaguars, a little too bland and ordinary for my liking. It’s a shame the dash is the same basic unit as fitted to the XE – I had hoped for better.

    But that said, this may help to keep the firm profitable. Which is a good thing.

    I don’t like SUV’s, I don’t like modern Jaguars design direction and I am not convinced by their strategy long term but I hope this does well.

    Variety is always good!

  8. Another great design by JLR in my view. 3 Q5’s on my street alone, all black and 2 litre petrol or diesel. Surely anyone would rather have the F-Pace, and if it helps Jaguar fund more sports cars and saloons then all the better.

  9. Jaguar launch a pick up truck next to appeal to wealthy Texans, anyone else heartily sick of these ugly slabs that pass as cars these days? It might be technically advanced and will probably sell well, but to me it’s not a Jaguar.
    Jaguar is about sports cars and fast, refined luxury saloons, not caving in to the latest fashion that will probably be gone in a few years time.

    • I actually agree, Glenn. I personally think they are devaluing the brand and losing sight of their main values.

      I think they did need to modernise their styling and marketing without a shadow of a doubt. But there’s a difference between taking a slightly more modern approach to what you’ve always done best and wholesale copying your market rivals in an attempt to replicate their success.

      The problem that will eventually surface for Jaguar is that people are actually quite happy with buying cars from the German brands, as they have done so for so many years though. Along comes Jaguar and says ” hey look, our cars are now just like the Germans too” but people are already buying cars with these qualities from brands they already trust. Jaguar is not offering anything unique or compelling over and above the German brands. Therefore people are less likely to switch from what they are used to and move to Jaguar.

      The first generation XF was a great example. Although the exterior styling now looks a little generic, it still drove like a Jaguar and had an interior quite unlike any rival car. The Jaguar character was very much there, but it was a modern car rather than a retro one. It was something different to the German rivals and as a result, it did extremely well.

      Then there’s the F type. One look at that exterior and you immediately think Jaguar. It is rich with retro cues but it is entirely modern.

      The same sadly can’t be said of the new XF, the XE or this new SUV.

      But anyway, time will in evitably tell. You have to be a little careful with criticising Jaguars strategy as in my experience, any time you do that around Jaguar enthusiasts you get a barrage of abuse. This is a shame, as I think it is likely that the majority of people who are concerned about Jaguars design direction are probably those who care for the brand the most.

      • But this doesn’t look like the German brands. It looks far swoopier and more athletic.
        And it’s a strange logic to say that because BMW, Mercedes, Audi and Porsche are making a killing selling performance SUVs that Jaguar shouldn’t try and produce a rival, and instead just stick to saloons, a DECLINING market, when large numbers of potential customers don’t want a saloon any more.

        • See, didn’t take long!

          I understand what you’re saying and at the same time, there is a wider context that it would be unintelligent to ignore.

          Jaguar have a sister brand, Land Rover, who already cater to that market. Why compete with yourself?

          Secondly, you are (quite appropriately) talking about the CURRENT market trends, where SUV’s are selling well. What I’m interested in is anticipating FUTURE customer needs and showing customers what they want. What happens when the SUV trend ends? When congestion, parking difficulties, fuel economy, emissions, tax etc, etc, begin to make SUV’s less and less attractive?

          Yes, get in on the market now, but use the brand in your portfolio that best caters to that market, i.e. Land Rover.

          There’s something else worrying too. Jaguar had built up a customer base for their SportBrake estate models. They have said they won’t be making any more estate cars. They want you to buy this SUV instead. By doing this they have stuck two fingers up at existing customers who are looking for a replacement estate car from Jaguar.

          Then there’s the fact that they have scrapped their Grand Tourer coupe model with no immediate replacement. Thereby sticking two fingers up at the customers who would like to replace their XK’s with a new luxury coupe from Jaguar.

          And finally we have the drastic toning down of the interiors on the latest models, moving towards more down market and sombre material choices and playing down the use of wood and leather. Thereby pissing off customers who previously bought Jaguars for their unique interior ambience and levels of luxury. Case in point, the new model XF versus the old model XF.

          When you look into the detail of Jaguars current strategy, there is an awful lot to be concerned about. They have done extremely well in coming back from the difficulties they had in the Ford era and do produce very, very good cars. But I remain concerned that they are simply trying to copy the German manufacturers and lack a clear strategy of their own.

          But, as I said in my last post, I could be completely wrong about all of this so please take my opinion with a pinch of salt.

  10. Fantastic vehicle that doesn’t go directly against LR products. Great on roads but not as good as a LR off road. However, surly you buy a car like this not only for its looks but for bad weather conditions. Therefore I really don’t see why anyone would buy the rear wheel drive version apart for just driving down a German Autobahn at a ridiculously high speed…. pointless.

  11. This is really in reply to Glenn and John H , with the sentiment of whose posts two or three earlier than this, I agree wholeheartedly. However, we live in an age of uniquely ugly cars, which seem to have got like that because for probably 95% of purchasers, buying a car is akin to buying a washing machine . It is the purchase of a purely functional object with no emotional input to the decision at all . Hence the vast majority of models now being produced reflect that situation . The days of lusting after a motor car which I imagine we all did in our youth , now seem to have gone – I look at what is available, and can see nothing that I feel I really must have

  12. This will sell very well, better than XE, XF.

    It will not take sales from Evoque/RR Sport

    Nobody was buying the GT coupes and Sportbrakes, sad but true.

    This will provide funding for a wider spread of models if it does well. I think it will be the best selling Jaguar for a very long time, possibly ever.

    That title currently sits with the X type I think with 370,000 sales

  13. Let’s nail this sibling rival issue shall we? In what ways does an F-Pace compete with a Land Rover? Yes it’s an SUV, but in style it is more in the Audi Q5 / Porsche Macan mould than a rugged off roader like a Land Rover. Simply in terms of price and size, it bridges the gap between the Discovery Sport and Range Rover Sport. I predict that Jaguar will shift all of these that they can make, as will Land Rover their vehicles, so what’s the problem? The market for road-biased SUVs is booming, and JLR management would have been foolish to ignore it. I welcome the added choice that the F-Pace brings, my only complaint would be that Jaguar limits UK sales of the wonderful V6 diesel to the sporty “S” trim and doesn’t offer the more luxurious “Portfolio” trim with its lighter interior colours. Other markets are not so restricted. So please stop this whinging and rejoice that Jaguar has designed yet another beautifully styled vehicle that will help to ensure the company’s continued prosperity.

  14. @ Christopher Storey, it’s sad but true, and I suppose Jaguar has to appear relevant and if it helps expand the brand, it could help their other products.
    Also it’s the final nail in the coffin of the company’s previous obsession with the sixties.
    Yet, I suppose most cars now are as reliable as washing machines, the only maintenance they need is a service once a year, and the old argument that you only bought quality if you bought a very expensive car is long gone. Even something as cheap as a Dacia now is unlikely to give any trouble for years as long as it’s serviced. Cars now have to sell on whatever trend is fashionable( crossovers and city cars are big news) and how many gadgets they have.

  15. The California EPA have found VW/Audi diesel cars manufactured 2009 to 2015 have a software fiddle in the form of an algorithm in the ECU for the purpose of cheating around “real world” controls of diesel exhaust Nox and other pollutants

    http://www.rt.com/usa/315913-vw-notice-emissions-cheat/

    It affects nearly half a million vehicles and and VW/Audi could be heavily fined to the tune of $300 million. I hope our dear chums at JLR are playing the game and not fiddling with their Ingenium ECus

      • The admission is hitting VW/Audi hard, VW/Audi shares opened with a 20% drop this morning. Professor Winterkorn of the VW board is facing the pointy-end of the sword, some pundits suggest he may have to resign.

        Observers of vehicle emissions have often surmised such cheat tricks are incorporated into vehicle operation software at the ECU level.

        Who else is playing the same trick?

        This event is God’s gift to the Environmental Lobby!

  16. If this thread was around 30 years ago and we were discussing cars that appealed to wealthier buyers, the Jaguar XJ would be a popular choice, along with Rover SD1s and bigger German cars, for the company director market. Those with families and dogs, or who had an antique business, would plump for Volvo estate cars and the yuppies of the time would want Porsches and more upmarket hot hatches like the Volkswagen GTI. Four wheel drive then usually meant Range Rovers, mostly the preserve of the country set, and Land Rovers and the growing numbers of Japanese cars, that mostly appealed to farmers.

  17. Awful lot of B***sh*t spouted on here about Jaguar heritage and “stealing” sales from Land Rover! Fact of the matter is that SUVs are the trend, my biggest concern is when that is no longer the fashion and JLR get battered for only producing that style of vehicle! Face facts people! Jaguar needs this vehicle to lift the brand from being only 1/5 of JLR’s output – lets face it, if the market moves back to saloons then bet your bottom dollar we will see a Range Rover limousine based on the XJ!
    You all post here and pontificate about what Jaguar should or shouldn’t build but as far as I am concerned as long as they make what people want and show a profit I don’t give a flying f**k what they do…… as long as it keeps people in work in the UK. Just as an aside, I taught myself to drive,aged 14yrs, in a series II Landie, loved it to bits, drove a Defender many years later, felt like a tractor, still loved it. However, given a large enough lottery win would buy a Defender (to go with the country estate I will buy), A Bentley (Pre VW – naturally), RR Corniche (The Shadow based one – of course), A new Range Rover (£80,000+ worth of off-roading heaven, like taking the Downton Abbey Drawing Room down Mont Blanc for a laugh), an Ariel Atom V8 (Just for the hell of it), Triumph GT6 (poor mans E-Type and all round gorgeous looking car)……. Just realised I’m getting carried away here!! Anyways up, Jaguar…… Build what sells!! not what any real ale drinking, beardy looking twats on here thinks you should build…. live long and prosper JLR!

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