Oh, how we don’t envy Jaguar’s new design director Julian Thomson. Improving anything styled by Ian Callum would be difficult at the best of times, but the F-Type – in coupé form especially – was already a fantastic-looking thing.
Welcome then, to the facelifted version. There are of course the obligatory new headlights – which now look angrier than ever – but there’s also a longer and lower-reaching bonnet, as well as a slightly larger grille, new side vents and a new rear light signature. It’s a far more aggressive design for Jag’s sports car, but we get the feeling it’ll be a polarising update.
The coupé’d F-Type first appeared towards the end of 2013 – a good while after we’d seen the convertible. This time, though, Jag has left us with just a single image of the roofless version. We’ll bring you more as we get them – but you’ll want the coupé anyway because that gorgeous, sloping roofline remains.
What has been dropped is both the V6 engine and the manual gearbox. Booo. Jag previously offered eight (yes, eight) different engine and drivetrain options, though, so we’re not surprised to see the range simplified. Your options are now as follows…
The base F-Type will still be the 296bhp turbocharged four-cylinder, which is available only in rear-wheel drive flavour, but the next step up from that will now be a supercharged 5.0-litre V8 producing 444bhp and a hefty 580Nmof torque. Lovely. Like all new F-Types, that engine can only be paired with an upgraded version of the old eight-speed automatic gearbox, but this one can be had with either rear- or all-wheel drive.
Until we hear word of a new full-fat SVR (fingers crossed), the top of the F-Type range will be the R. Again, there’s the 5.0-litre supercharged V8, but here it produces the same numbers as the old SVR – 567bhp and 700Nm of torque. Underneath, the R also gets an uprated chassis with new springs, dampers and anti-roll bars, and there’ll be the option of carbon ceramic brakes that save 21kg. This is all good news.
Want some more numbers? The four-cylinder manages 0-100kph in 5.7 seconds and features a mid-mounted single-exit exhaust. The new mid-range V8 does the sprint in 4.6 seconds (whether in rear- or all-wheel drive) and tops out at 185kph, whilst the R reaches 100kph in 3.7 seconds and is electronically limited to 299kph. V8-engined cars still get the quad-exit exhausts at either side of the rear bumper too.
Inside, the F-Type’s dash layout had resisted ageing extremely well, so things remain remarkably similar here. The main update is a 12.3-inch screen that comes as standard in place of the old analogue dials. Don’t worry, though, Jag says the rev-counter is still front and centre.
That’s about all we’ve got on the thing so far, other than word that prices will start at £54,060 (approx. RM291,922), or around £2,000 (approx. RM10,800) more than the current range. Worth it?
