Tuesday 22nd May 2018

Jaguar iPace eTrophy on the move!

With the road car currently being launched, progress is being made with the race car too...

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There's considerable intrigue on PH around the imminent arrival of the Jaguar I-Pace, given it finally appears to provide a credible alternative to the Tesla luxury EV monopoly. That it's a Jaguar, with a very distinctive design to boot, will only have helped its cause.

With the road car being launched to the world's media as we speak, we'll know soon enough just whether Jag has hit the mark with its electric debut. Don't forget, however, that there's a motorsport programme to consider as well. Announced at the Frankfurt show last year, the I-Pace eTrophy will support Formula E from the end of 2018. And with that date not all that far away in the grand scheme of things, now is our first chance to see the eTrophy racer actually move.

It was driven at Berlin as part of the weekend's Formula E event, CEO of the sport Alejandro Agag completing five laps of the Templehof circuit - look, there's a video and everything. Agag said of the drive: "I had a lot of fun - it was incredible."

While we still don't have any more specification details about the I-Pace eTrophy yet, progress is clearly being made pretty briskly. With the road car due and the race car launch just a few months away, this is a huge year for electrified Jaguars. Does the eTrophy make Formula E more appealing to you? Would you buy a seat if you could? In fact, would you buy a roadgoing I-Pace if you could? Plenty to discuss...

 

[Maldini35]

It’s the future, I want to like it, I really do, but I just can’t summon up any enthusiasm.

Just seems so soulless.

[Butter Face]

iThis and eThat.

What a world we live in

[J4CKO]

"eTrophy", sort of sounds like its withering and wasting away.

[unsprung]

Maldini35 said:

It’s the future, I want to like it, I really do, but I just can’t summon up any enthusiasm.

Just seems so soulless.

+1

[RacerMike]

unsprung said:

Maldini35 said:

It’s the future, I want to like it, I really do, but I just can’t summon up any enthusiasm.

Just seems so soulless.

+1

Try driving one, then say it’s souless. You might be surprised.

[untakenname]

Needs to have a decent soundtrack to be soulful imo.

[vz-r_dave]

RacerMike said:

unsprung said:

Maldini35 said:

It’s the future, I want to like it, I really do, but I just can’t summon up any enthusiasm.

Just seems so soulless.

+1

Try driving one, then say it’s souless. You might be surprised.

Whilst soulless on their own I think it might be quite a soulful affair listening to these things crashing into each other. Honestly believe that tin tops will be fun to watch, appreciate Formula E had to kick things off but its one of the dullest forms of racing out there.

Bring on the iPace trophie and the carnage!

[Baldchap]

As a Tesla owner this is exciting stuff. The future is bright. If manufacturers can get EVs down to 'normal' car weight (which I'm sure they will, it's early days in the grand scheme of things), then they'll be phenomenal things both on and off track.

Charging isn't an issue for most people, (even if they think it is prior to owning one) and supercapacitors will make it even less so. The performance that EVs are capable of right now points towards a very brisk future indeed...

[vz-r_dave]

Baldchap said:

As a Tesla owner this is exciting stuff. The future is bright. If manufacturers can get EVs down to 'normal' car weight (which I'm sure they will, it's early days in the grand scheme of things), then they'll be phenomenal things both on and off track.

Charging isn't an issue for most people, (even if they think it is prior to owning one) and supercapacitors will make it even less so. The performance that EVs are capable of right now points towards a very brisk future indeed...

Charging is an issue for most city dwellers who dont have a drive way or their own parking space.

The future is bright but very very quiet unfortunately

[Baldchap]

vz-r_dave said:

Charging is an issue for most city dwellers who dont have a drive way or their own parking space.

The future is bright but very very quiet unfortunately

Most people don't have a petrol station either. As the tech matures neither charging times nor infrastructure availability will be an issue.

[vz-r_dave]

Baldchap said:

vz-r_dave said:

Charging is an issue for most city dwellers who dont have a drive way or their own parking space.

The future is bright but very very quiet unfortunately

Most people don't have a petrol station either. As the tech matures neither charging times nor infrastructure availability will be an issue.

Have you ever lived in a city :/ You're stating that charging isn't an issue for most when it clearly is. Of course in the future this will change but you weren't talking future tense....

[Roncee]

Surely it can drive itself with 0% room for human error?

[RacerMike]

Roncee said:

Surely it can drive itself with 0% room for human error?

Eh? Assume that's tongue in cheek? Or are you genuinely assuming that all electric cars drive themselves?!

[Markytee]

Saw an I-Pace today on the A165 heading towards Bridlington. Looked over one in the local dealership a few weeks ago and it looked ....very normal, but in a good way, certainly will consider one. But still doesn’t make your ears prick up like a V10

[unpc]

untakenname said:

Needs to have a decent soundtrack to be soulful imo.

When most SUVs are powered by 4 cylinder diesels I think I'd rather take the silent option thanks.

[SydneyBridge]

unpc said:

untakenname said:

Needs to have a decent soundtrack to be soulful imo.

When most SUVs are powered by 4 cylinder diesels I think I'd rather take the silent option thanks.

This is the issue for me - the noise, or lack of

if they could make an electric motor a bit throaty and sound like a v8, I would be for it.. near silent racing is just a but strange, however good the actual racing

Same for the electric Jag e-type- Why?????? no noise.... no way!

[I 8 a 4RE]

It's a good thing there was some background music to drown away the noise of perpetual catastrophic understeer.

Unless these cars start to slide about on real race tracks ... I am not even going to consider ignoring the lack of a beautiful engine noise.

It baffles me that people waste their time on this.
Yes, absolutely common commuter vehicles (4 cylinder diesels) should be replaced by electric, but don't shove this fake-racing with car swaps and nothing but 90 degree corners and hairpins on narrow 'street circuits' down the throat of Joe Public, you are doing more harm than good.

[DS240]

That just looked big, heavy and slow with ponderous handling and severe understeer. (Appreciate it’s an early run on a dusty circuit)

I want to be excited by electric racing but so far it’s not very entertaining. Tried to follow formula e, but it is just dull and slow. I won’t even bother watching this one make jag racing.

I love the idea of running an electric road car though. I would snap up something like an i3 if only it was a bit more practical. I love the fresh, ground up new design of the i3. Just 10-20% bigger would be perfect... and around 25-30k new. I live somewhere an electric car would make complete sense, but price and selection is limiting factor.

The likes of the Zoe where you rent the battery makes no sense. The battery rent would be more than the monthly petrol spend.

[mpx14]

As others have pointed out racing is supposed to be exciting. So there is not much in the way of noise, which considering its electric is to be expected, but with the flexibility afforded by the new tech/components, handling should be amazing.

This chronic understeer is very off-putting on any performance oriented vehicle.

[FWDRacer]

J4CKO said:

"eTrophy", sort of sounds like its withering and wasting away.

Not if you overlay a Yorkshire accent, it isn't.