Jaguar F-type Your guide to buying this gorgeouslooking, great-sounding British sports car for just £25,000
94 May 2020 BUYING GUIDE It looks gorgeous and makes a great noise, but is Jaguar’s sports car a sensible used buy? In production 2014-present Price from £25,000 Our favourite 3.0 V6 S 380 ‘Performance ranges from plentiful in the 2.0-litre F-type to bon
IT’S FAIR TO say that expectations were sky high when the Jaguar F-type first arrived in 2013. This, after all, was the much-delayed spiritual successor to the legendary E-type.
Launched first in convertible form and followed a year later by this hard-top coupé version, the two-seat F-type is a brilliantly proportioned piece of design. Indeed, some would say the coupé is even more of a head-turner than the convertible, and it’s certainly more practical, thanks to a boot that has enough room for a couple of soft suitcases rather than just a toothbrush and flannel.
So handsome was it that it required only minor revisions during its 2017 facelift, although a more major styling refresh has just taken place, with Jaguar also updating the technology inside and tweaking the engine line-up.
But in the world of sports cars, you need more than just good looks. Fortunately, the F-type is offered with a wide range of powerful petrol engines to push it along with real verve.
Entry-level models were initially powered by a supercharged 3.0-litre V6 in 335bhp form, or 375bhp in the V6 S, but a 296bhp 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine was added to the line-up in 2017 to take up that mantle.
Speed freaks can get their kicks in the 542bhp supercharged 5.0-litre V8 R, which places the F-type firmly in the supercar category for performance. And if the F-type R still has you yearning for more noise and pace, a 567bhp SVR version has been offered since 2016 that’s the first Jaguar since the 1990s XJ220 supercar to have a top speed of more than 200mph.
Even the cheapest F-types are packed with
RIVALS Fast and relatively practical, but a little short on delicacy.
The interior is suitably driverfocused, with a central grab handle that divides it into two distinct zones. As well as plenty of room for two tall adults, you’ll find a logical layout of the controls, a low, comfortable driving position and theatrical touches such as air vents that rise from the top of the dash on electric motors. However, the quality of the materials isn’t as high as you’d expect of such a pricey car and the infotainment system is a bit fiddly to use and slow to respond to inputs.
HOW MUCH WILL IT COST?