Behind the wheel Jaguar E-Pace

JAGUAR – and for all that Land Rover, as they are inextricably entwined – has been gaining ground in the premier sector. The kidney-shaped grille of BMW and the four rings of Audi are everywhere but Jaguar Land Rover has made inroads to their double-force dominance and my recent drive in the new Jaguar E-Pace convinces me these cars are the new “must haves”.

Alas, the E-Pace is built in Austria by Magna Steyr, the company that is currently working on Jaguar’s electric i-Pace, so it can’t claim a British passport. My model made a bold statement, especially in its fire engine red paintwork.

It is, of course, of the compact SUV species and lies below the Jaguar F-Pace in terms of size but, if a component comparison were to be made, it shares a lot with the Land Rover Discovery Sport.

Despite being labelled a compact car it is far from being minuscule in size and from both the outside and inside it feels a solid, perhaps even heavy, car.

Flared wheel arches, a stylish rear end that brags an exhaust cannon in each corner and a swooping roofline, plus a sporty, bulbous honeycombed grille complete with Jaguar logo, all give this model more than sufficient credentials to sit on any drive and keep up with the Joneses.

The E-Pace starts at around £29,000, however, my car is one of the First Edition models that are fully kitted out and have a specification list with features that start from the outer edges.

This cabin is in the premium class with stitched leather covering the seats and deep dashboard, panoramic fixed sunroof and a steering wheel with far too many functions for me to learn in an afternoon.

However, it is not a difficult car to get to know and essential controls are all easy to use and accessible.

The E-Pace has dropped the familiar rotary gear selector, a familiar feature in recent Jaguars, in favour of the pistolgrip variety. This model has a nine-speed automatic transmission that’s linked to a two-litre turbocharged petrol engine with an output of 250ps.

The first part of my drive covered around 80 miles of motorway and I had selected “comfort” from the control in the centre console for this part of the journey. Later in other circumstances I changed this to ECO or dynamic. With snow, ice and rain temporarily absent from our weather system I did not need the special mode that dealt with such hazards.

I was impressed by the smooth drive and general impression of being in a car of some quality. Adjusting the driver’s seat upwards, I was happier with the driving position, it

Although billed as a compact SUV, and boasting a swooping roofline, the Jaguar E-Pace offers plenty of passenger space