Goodbye
Easier said than done, but Jaguar has cracked it.
When the Jaguar F-Pace SVR arrived at CAR, it was fresh from a strong showing against the Porsche Taycan 4S Cross Turismo and M3 Touring. And as I write this, it’s backed up those solid first impressions with almost 6000 miles and seven months as a highly polished daily driver.
This would largely have been true too of a pre-facelift model. The most obvious change is the Pivi Pro infotainment. It’s a big improvement: clear graphics, a logical menu structure and easy access to key functions via voice control. I learnt not to ignore the sat-nav’s re-routing suggestions. It knows best.
The ride can fidget in town and on heavily cambered B-roads, especially as all SVRs now come as standard on 22- inch alloys (it rides on coils, not air springs), but the Jag really gets into its stride with some speed under its wheels. The steering is fast-paced and lightish, the handling a clever mix of surefooted and playful.
But what defines the SVR driving experience above all else is its 5.0-litre supercharged V8. The AJ-V8 is descended from the 290bhp 4.0-litre that debuted in the XK8 in 1996, and is often dismissed as long in the tooth.
I love it, though – there’s a gorgeous thudding soundtrack, endless pe
