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V6 Sound File
V8 Sound File
Both engines sound great.
This is Jaguar's first proper two-seat sports car since the legendary E-type, considered one of the most beautiful cars of all time despite it having such a mismatch of track width to body girth it looked like a 300-pound man wearing 30-inch waist pants.
Pitched midway between the Porsche Boxster and 911 but with a starting sticker of $69,000, much closer to the little guy in price, the F-type is the most driver-focused Jag since the XJ220 supercar. It launches this summer as a soft-top roadster with a choice of two V6 engines and a V8, all supercharged. A coupe, plus F-type R and RS models, will come later.
Remember the days before steering feel took a vow of silence and went off to live as a monk in that Tibetan retreat? Jaguar does. It helps that the F-type uses hydraulic assistance, but beyond that, Jag's engineers seem to have a great understanding of how important that fingertip connection really is. The gearing-quick, but not too quick-and the way the weight builds up away from center, is spot on.
Turn-in is excellent for a front-engined car, and the great chassis balance means you can really push the rear in the dry. But do yourself a favor and leave the ESP on in the wet, particularly in the V8. It's an animal. Just listen to it!
My favorite detail is how the hidden central air vents rise and fall from the dash-top as needed-pointless, but cool(ing) all the same. On the other hand, the lack of a manual-transmission option isn't. And the ZF eight-speed auto, though talk-show-host-smooth when cruising, isn't as snappy as a Porsche PDK dual clutch 'box when you're on it.
The spectre of the F-type's famous ancestor-and its German opposition-looms large, but this is a great sports car by any measure, with a tight structure and properly engaging, playful handling. Even the basic 335-hp car will hit 60 mph in 5.1 seconds, but the V6 is a little short on charisma: The ride on passive dampers is firm, and the puny 18-inch wheels recall the E-type wheel-to-arch mismatch. Spending another $12,000 on the V6 S remedies most of those problems and adds a limited-slip differential, while a jump in boost pressure releases an extra 40 horsepower, chopping 0.3 seconds from the sprint time.
However, almost half of all US F-type buyers will likely shell out a further $11,000 to upgrade from the mid-range V6 S to the $92,000, 488-hp V8 S, signified by its quad exhaust pipes. Smart choice. Movie star looks, 4.2 seconds to 60 mph, a supercar soundtrack, and all for $20,000 less than the 100-hp-weaker 911 C2S convertible. This F-type deserves to make Jaguar cool all over again.
BASE PRICE V6 $69,000; V6 S $81,000; V8 S $92,000
ENGINE 335-hp V6; 375-hp V6; 488-hp V8
EPA HWY 28 mpg; 27 mpg; 23 mpg
Pitched midway between the Porsche Boxster and 911 but with a starting sticker of $69,000, much closer to the little guy in price, the F-type is the most driver-focused Jag since the XJ220 supercar. It launches this summer as a soft-top roadster with a choice of two V6 engines and a V8, all supercharged. A coupe, plus F-type R and RS models, will come later.
Remember the days before steering feel took a vow of silence and went off to live as a monk in that Tibetan retreat? Jaguar does. It helps that the F-type uses hydraulic assistance, but beyond that, Jag's engineers seem to have a great understanding of how important that fingertip connection really is. The gearing-quick, but not too quick-and the way the weight builds up away from center, is spot on.
Turn-in is excellent for a front-engined car, and the great chassis balance means you can really push the rear in the dry. But do yourself a favor and leave the ESP on in the wet, particularly in the V8. It's an animal. Just listen to it!
My favorite detail is how the hidden central air vents rise and fall from the dash-top as needed-pointless, but cool(ing) all the same. On the other hand, the lack of a manual-transmission option isn't. And the ZF eight-speed auto, though talk-show-host-smooth when cruising, isn't as snappy as a Porsche PDK dual clutch 'box when you're on it.
The spectre of the F-type's famous ancestor-and its German opposition-looms large, but this is a great sports car by any measure, with a tight structure and properly engaging, playful handling. Even the basic 335-hp car will hit 60 mph in 5.1 seconds, but the V6 is a little short on charisma: The ride on passive dampers is firm, and the puny 18-inch wheels recall the E-type wheel-to-arch mismatch. Spending another $12,000 on the V6 S remedies most of those problems and adds a limited-slip differential, while a jump in boost pressure releases an extra 40 horsepower, chopping 0.3 seconds from the sprint time.
However, almost half of all US F-type buyers will likely shell out a further $11,000 to upgrade from the mid-range V6 S to the $92,000, 488-hp V8 S, signified by its quad exhaust pipes. Smart choice. Movie star looks, 4.2 seconds to 60 mph, a supercar soundtrack, and all for $20,000 less than the 100-hp-weaker 911 C2S convertible. This F-type deserves to make Jaguar cool all over again.
BASE PRICE V6 $69,000; V6 S $81,000; V8 S $92,000
ENGINE 335-hp V6; 375-hp V6; 488-hp V8
EPA HWY 28 mpg; 27 mpg; 23 mpg
V6 Sound File
V8 Sound File
Both engines sound great.
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