MODERN DRIVE
Jaguar’s return to a manually-shifted six-cylinder two-seat coupe came late in the day, but the rare F-Type V6S is worth seeking out as we discovered
AT MIGHT not surprise you toddiscoverthat photographing cars on location for magazines often isn’t plain sailing, especially where classics are concerned. A smoky exhaust spoiling the snapper’s efforts, coupled with a dodgy battery which means you daren’t risk turning the engine off... a radio aerial which won’t retract or on one memorable occasion a wisp of smoke curling from the engine bay of an XJR-S as the ignition system expired.
In contrast, photographing modern cars is a delight; everything works and there’s nothing out of place to spoil the glamour of the finished image. Which is why we found ourselves laughing as we tried to create a rear shot of the F-Type you see here, without the door handles in their extended position or the mirrors folded back. Cue much juggling of remote key and camera in order to capture the car with the mirrors extended but not the door handles, laughing all the while about first world problems.
The photographer’s objection to the car having its handles out has a serious point though in that the F-Type is such a tightly wrought piece of design that the slightest detail spoiling its lines sticks out like a sore thumb.
I’ve always thought the car was at its best in coupe form, the convertible inevitably looking a little fussier and in turn at its best in Rhodium Silver, which is exactly what we have here, courtesy of owner Jason Marshall.
Visit any of the regular Jaguar enthusiast gatherings and you’ll see that the F-Type is one of the more commonly modified Jaguar models, a showroom-stock example being a rare beast. This one however, is exactly as it left Castle Bromwich back in 2016 and for that reason you could be forgiven for wondering exactly why we’ve devoted six pages to it.
You’ll need to peer through the window to find the answer, which comes in the shape of an unfamiliar ornament sprouting from the central tunnel and an extra pedal in the footwell, all of which means that this is one of the very few manual F-Types to be made.
As launched in 2013, the F-Type coupe was initially offered in either V8 or V6 flavours, the supercharged 3-litre V6 available in 340PS or 380PS ‘S’ form. Like the XK and XK8 before it, Jaguar’s sports car for the modern era was initially offered in automatic-only form, using the eight-speed ZF box, a conventional torque converter automatic which offers commendably fast shifts – if not quite as snappy as a DSG-style box – combined with suitable refinement.
In 2015 though, a ZF six-speed manual was introduced as an option, using the transmission also found in turbocharged six-cylinder BMWs. The manual option co
