Sunday 16th July 2017

Jaguar E-Pace revealed

What comes after F-Pace? A smaller, sportier E-Pace, of course!

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Jaguar's second foray into the SUV market is here and it is said to be - no surprise, really - brimming with connectivity. Apparently the most connected and intelligent vehicle in its class, it is an SUV for the Facebook generation. 4G Wi-Fi connectivity for eight devices, five USB ports and four 12V charging points see to that. And there's an inventive gadget to keep pedestrians safe. Oh yes, and a clever all-wheel drive system if you're actually interested in the car bit of it. 

Like an F-Pace that's been in a really neat crash

Those familiar with JLR products will know that Ingenium updates have swept across the range recently, and the E-Pace is no different. The E-Pace and E-Pace R-Dynamic are available in S, SE and HSE with a trio of diesel engines and two petrol engines mated to either a nine-speed ZF automatic or a six-speed manual, all emitting less than 190g/km of CO2. The diesel variants are a D150 available as a 2WD manual, AWD manual or AWD auto, the AWD D180 in either auto or manual guise and the D240, which is only available as an AWD auto.   

More powerful petrol variants - the P250 and P300 - are also available, as all-wheel drive automatics. R-Dynamic models can be distinguished by the deeper air intakes in the front bumper, body-coloured sills and satin chrome detailing.

The all-wheel drive systems in the E-Pace also come in two variants: Standard Driveline, a permanent AWD fitted to the D150, D180 and P250, and then Active Driveline, which is for the most powerful diesel and petrol variants. This system is similar to that seen in the Ford Focus RS, allowing for all the engine torque to be sent to the rear axle in extreme conditions; the regular Active Driveline split will see the E-Pace with a slight rearward torque bias. This is achieved through two independent electronically controlled wet-plate clutches which distribute up to 100 per cent of the torque to either rear wheel in 0.1sec. 

So small you can park it in your house, apparently

For those with a need to go sideways, Jaguar is playing ball - by allowing for power-on oversteer to maintain a controlled drift. Well, apparently... But if that isn't your thing and you would rather peacefully mooch around the lanes looking for a perfect picnic spot, the E-Pace is just as capable. Fitted with All Surface Progress control (ASPC) it enables the driver to cruise up to 18mph in automatic models. Consider this your crawler gear or low-range.

At 4,395mm long, the E-Pace is 44mm shorter than a BMW X1 and 25mm longer than a Range Rove Evoque but with more luggage capacity than both at 577 litres versus the BMW's 505 litres and Evoque's 420 litres. From the exterior, the E-Pace is recognisably a modern Jaguar, with the designers taking cues from the F-Type - look at those rear lights - but elsewhere too. The Leica camera was said to be an inspiration (look at the rotary dials on lower dashboard), as was wildlife (see the Jaguar cub graphic in lower part of windscreen) and Gestalt theory (the front console mats and seat labels on the HSE show a Jaguar print at certain angles). And you thought it just looked like a small F-Pace...

Familiar from other Jags, then made better

There are plenty of structural elements that have been taken from the F-Pace and the Range Rover Velar including the integral link rear suspension that frees up space inside the cabin. Up front, new suspension with front lightweight hollow-cast aluminium knuckles is said to provide additional camber for improved turn in. It also includes a specially tuned front subframe which is said to improve structural rigidity. The optional Adaptive Dynamic suspension is available featuring a triple tube design with an externally mounted hydraulic valve that controls the damping. When linked with the Configurable Dynamics System, it will monitor the vehicle movements every two milliseconds and calculates the damping force needed every 10 milliseconds as well as reading the driver inputs to pre-emptively load the suspension ahead of cornering.

And that pedestrian safety gadget? Well, if the driver is travelling between 16 and 31mph and the car detects a collision with a pedestrian, the bonnet will lift and an airbag will deploy to cover the base of the windscreen.

Inside, it is a familiar place for Jaguar customers - the F-Type style wraparound cockpit makes its way to the E-Pace, along with the passenger grab handle at the edge of the dash. The 10-inch Touch Pro infotainment helps reduce the number of hard switches, intended to give a cleaner, more minimalist interior feel. The infotainment system can be upgraded to the optional 12.3-inch HD virtual interactive Driver Display combined with a full-colour head-up display. 

You thought 'flipping' cars was now about residuals...

As with other recent JLR products, the vehicle can be equipped with a gesture tailgate and an activity key. There will be a First Edition as well, in either D180 or P250 guise and available in Caldera Red (unique to the First Edition), Yulong White or Santorini Black.

Furthermore, as has also become the way with recent JLR launches, there's a silly stunt involved. Remember The Man with the Golden Gun? Remember the corkscrew jump, with the AMC Hornet X? Jaguar has done it again, with an E-Pace, at E-Pace. The effort cannot be faulted. And they are both red cars, after all...

The SUV is to be produced in Austria by Magna Steyr, while Chinese cars will be produced at a facility in Changshu. Prices will start at £28,000.

 

[HorneyMX5]

I strangely like it. Somehow, to my eyes, the current design language works better on this than he bigger f
-pace.

If I was in the market for a small SUV this car would be very hard to ignore.