RE: Jaguar F-Pace: Review

RE: Jaguar F-Pace: Review

Author
Discussion

Cobnapint

8,597 posts

150 months

Wednesday 13th April 2016
quotequote all
spyker138 said:
Looks nice, but the interior is really inferior, especially for a Jag! The new Volvos are really much more what a Jaguar should be like in terms of quality. For example the rear door shuts in the F-Pace really are naff plastic panels, not even painted metal. Horrid.
This is what I don't get about JLR - they still, in certain areas, use plastics that hark back to the days of the Maestro and Montego.

It's not as though plastic is an expensive material in the first place, so why ruin a supposedly quality product for the sake of a few quid..?

I shall mosey on down to my local dealership today in an attempt to prove my point.

Cobnapint

8,597 posts

150 months

Wednesday 13th April 2016
quotequote all
Right, mosey completed. I had a sit in the lot, and finally the F-Pace.

One thing that is common across the range are the door handles. It's a two piece affair with a small ridge where the two bits meet, just where you put your fingers on the inner face - not a good start. It's not the most robust of plastics and the small ridge makes it feel light weight and unfinished.

The interior isn't bad looking, but sticking the window buttons on top of the door card seems a bit daft.

The main buttons on the dash are good quality, as are the interior door release handles, but JLR seem to have been at the cheap plastic shop for everything else you are likely to touch.

The black door entry kick plates have got 'scratch me' written all over them, the overhead sunglasses holder is low rent, the electric seat controls - ditto, and similar for the glove compartment release and rear load area floor lifting handle. All cheap plastic.

The gear shift paddles, considering what abuse they may get, feel flimsy in operation and I wondered if a January nights worth of hard frost might see one actually snap off upon first pull.

The electric handbrake switch is also very poor, not what you'd expect for something costing this much.

And an old favourite from last century, there's a good offering of taped wiring loom on display in the spare wheel well.

I've no idea how this thing drives, but on looks (which I found a bit of an anticlimax in the flesh) and interior quality - the Macan has absolutely nothing to worry about.

fezst

234 posts

123 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Cobnapint said:
Right, mosey completed. I had a sit in the lot, and finally the F-Pace.

One thing that is common across the range are the door handles. It's a two piece affair with a small ridge where the two bits meet, just where you put your fingers on the inner face - not a good start. It's not the most robust of plastics and the small ridge makes it feel light weight and unfinished.

The interior isn't bad looking, but sticking the window buttons on top of the door card seems a bit daft.

The main buttons on the dash are good quality, as are the interior door release handles, but JLR seem to have been at the cheap plastic shop for everything else you are likely to touch.

The black door entry kick plates have got 'scratch me' written all over them, the overhead sunglasses holder is low rent, the electric seat controls - ditto, and similar for the glove compartment release and rear load area floor lifting handle. All cheap plastic.

The gear shift paddles, considering what abuse they may get, feel flimsy in operation and I wondered if a January nights worth of hard frost might see one actually snap off upon first pull.

The electric handbrake switch is also very poor, not what you'd expect for something costing this much.

And an old favourite from last century, there's a good offering of taped wiring loom on display in the spare wheel well.

I've no idea how this thing drives, but on looks (which I found a bit of an anticlimax in the flesh) and interior quality - the Macan has absolutely nothing to worry about.
It's a shame the Macan looks bloody awful.

unpc

2,831 posts

212 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
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Exposed harnesses in the wheel well. Oh the humanity...

Sheepshanks

32,538 posts

118 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
spyker138 said:
Still cannot understand why they are so much cheaper here in the USA - you guys are getting ripped off. Still, I suppose it's worth what people are willing to pay.
Yep, and it's even more odd with the dollar being pretty strong at the moment. Plus, also odd, residuals will be higher in the US than in the UK - so you'll be able to lease one for buttons.

silent ninja

863 posts

99 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Cobnapint said:
Right, mosey completed. I had a sit in the lot, and finally the F-Pace.

One thing that is common across the range are the door handles. It's a two piece affair with a small ridge where the two bits meet, just where you put your fingers on the inner face - not a good start. It's not the most robust of plastics and the small ridge makes it feel light weight and unfinished.

The interior isn't bad looking, but sticking the window buttons on top of the door card seems a bit daft.

The main buttons on the dash are good quality, as are the interior door release handles, but JLR seem to have been at the cheap plastic shop for everything else you are likely to touch.

The black door entry kick plates have got 'scratch me' written all over them, the overhead sunglasses holder is low rent, the electric seat controls - ditto, and similar for the glove compartment release and rear load area floor lifting handle. All cheap plastic.

The gear shift paddles, considering what abuse they may get, feel flimsy in operation and I wondered if a January nights worth of hard frost might see one actually snap off upon first pull.

The electric handbrake switch is also very poor, not what you'd expect for something costing this much.

And an old favourite from last century, there's a good offering of taped wiring loom on display in the spare wheel well.

I've no idea how this thing drives, but on looks (which I found a bit of an anticlimax in the flesh) and interior quality - the Macan has absolutely nothing to worry about.
The Macan has a very strong whiff of Audi Q3 about it (not surprising, same platform). From the side and rear especially. The front of the Macan just looks imbalanced. Those small lights look odd on an SUV, and that grill... When looking at a new car, aesthetics come top of my list, followed by performance. The F Pace looks prettier by far. Jag need to sort their interiors out though I agree. They're perfectly good, just lagging behind the Germans.

Cupramax

10,469 posts

251 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
silent ninja said:
The Macan has a very strong whiff of Audi Q3 about it (not surprising, same platform). From the side and rear especially. The front of the Macan just looks imbalanced. Those small lights look odd on an SUV, and that grill... When looking at a new car, aesthetics come top of my list, followed by performance. The F Pace looks prettier by far. Jag need to sort their interiors out though I agree. They're perfectly good, just lagging behind the Germans.
surprising as its a Q5 underneath wink

Sheepshanks

32,538 posts

118 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Cupramax said:
silent ninja said:
The Macan has a very strong whiff of Audi Q3 about it (not surprising, same platform).
surprising as its a Q5 underneath wink
Yes - the engines in Q3 and Q5 point in different directions!

MrML

768 posts

206 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Cobnapint said:
This is what I don't get about JLR - they still, in certain areas, use plastics that hark back to the days of the Maestro and Montego.

It's not as though plastic is an expensive material in the first place, so why ruin a supposedly quality product for the sake of a few quid..?

I shall mosey on down to my local dealership today in an attempt to prove my point.
Sooooo.... you went all the way down to the dealership to 'prove your point' and guess what? you convinced yourself you were right...

What about the multiple switches (and huge selection of blanks if you haven't paid for every option) either side of the gear-lever in the Macan, or worse still the rotary type switches that adjust the driving modes? You honestly think these are better quality plastic? Admittedly you can get a nice leather dashboard topper in the Macan but it's a £2k plus option!

The Audi is better if all you care about is 'nice switches' but drive them back to back & there's no comparison - personally I'm glad JLR spent the money on quality suspension and chassis tuning, but each to their own and all that...


Cobnapint

8,597 posts

150 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
MrML said:
Cobnapint said:
This is what I don't get about JLR - they still, in certain areas, use plastics that hark back to the days of the Maestro and Montego.

It's not as though plastic is an expensive material in the first place, so why ruin a supposedly quality product for the sake of a few quid..?

I shall mosey on down to my local dealership today in an attempt to prove my point.
Sooooo.... you went all the way down to the dealership to 'prove your point' and guess what? you convinced yourself you were right...

What about the multiple switches (and huge selection of blanks if you haven't paid for every option) either side of the gear-lever in the Macan, or worse still the rotary type switches that adjust the driving modes? You honestly think these are better quality plastic? Admittedly you can get a nice leather dashboard topper in the Macan but it's a £2k plus option!

The Audi is better if all you care about is 'nice switches'..
Not quite. I'd witnessed the poor plaggy on the JLR stand several years ago and wanted to see if anything had changed.

It hasn't.

DonkeyApple

54,934 posts

168 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
MrML said:
Cobnapint said:
This is what I don't get about JLR - they still, in certain areas, use plastics that hark back to the days of the Maestro and Montego.

It's not as though plastic is an expensive material in the first place, so why ruin a supposedly quality product for the sake of a few quid..?

I shall mosey on down to my local dealership today in an attempt to prove my point.
Sooooo.... you went all the way down to the dealership to 'prove your point' and guess what? you convinced yourself you were right...

What about the multiple switches (and huge selection of blanks if you haven't paid for every option) either side of the gear-lever in the Macan, or worse still the rotary type switches that adjust the driving modes? You honestly think these are better quality plastic? Admittedly you can get a nice leather dashboard topper in the Macan but it's a £2k plus option!

The Audi is better if all you care about is 'nice switches' but drive them back to back & there's no comparison - personally I'm glad JLR spent the money on quality suspension and chassis tuning, but each to their own and all that...
They aren't 'blanks'. They are individual, daily reminders that you are an inferior, poverty stricken piece of filth, held in contempt by superior Porsche beings who have all the buttons.

silent ninja

863 posts

99 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Cupramax said:
surprising as its a Q5 underneath wink
Haha good call, yes Q5...although Q3 and Q5 look like similar. The Macan has a strong resemblance to it's cousin, the Q5 IMO. Not saying whether that's good or bad but it's there. The F Pace has it's own signature jaguar look

spyker138

930 posts

223 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
Not sure you can ever fill all the blanks - even 911 Turbo S optioned up seems to have blanks. It's a turn off at that price but I could live with it in a Macan maybe. Of course totally unnecessary - none of my cars have blanks at all, although a couple have buttons that don't seem to do anything anymore.

DonkeyApple

54,934 posts

168 months

Thursday 14th April 2016
quotequote all
spyker138 said:
Not sure you can ever fill all the blanks - even 911 Turbo S optioned up seems to have blanks. It's a turn off at that price but I could live with it in a Macan maybe. Of course totally unnecessary - none of my cars have blanks at all, although a couple have buttons that don't seem to do anything anymore.
It's probably cunning psychology so that whatever model you buy, every time you drive it the suggestion is there that you are poorer than possibly the other chap in the same car next to you. smile