Editor Walton Is Driven Around a Stage of the Wales Rally Gb in an F-pace 3.0 S to Performance Experience the Thrill of This Car’s Massive and Formidable Grip.
Jaguar’s Art of the Performance Tour visited several locations across the UK and Europe throughout 2016 (as it will during 2017) to allow existing Jaguar customers and future buyers to experience the company’s range. Although the XE, XF and F-TYPE were all available to be driven, the F-PACE took centre stage. As the SUV is a brand-new type of Jaguar, the company is keen to demonstrate what it is capable of, through both an on-road drive and then a high-speed lap of a rally course with a professional driver at the wheel.
I am invited to the tour’s final event of 2016, at Cholmondeley Castle in Cheshire.
Its grounds play host to a 1.8km stage of the Wales Rally GB, so it’s a genuine test for the car. I’m not sure this is what George James, the forth Earl of Cholmondeley, had in mind when he commissioned local architect William Turner of Whitchurch to design a small, gothic villa in 1801, but it’s a superb location.
After a road drive in a 2.0-litre diesel F-PACE, which reminds me of the car’s refinement, speed and good handling [see test drive JW, September 2016, p30], I return to Cholmondeley for a passenger ride around the rally stage – not in a humble 2.0-litre, or even the 3.0 diesel, but a top-of-the-range 3.0 S. With the same 380PS (275bhp) supercharged 3.0-litre V6 as the F-TYPE S, it offers an impressive performance for such a big car. Top speed is a limited 155mph, while 62mph is reached in just 5.5 seconds, a mere 0.4 slower than the F-TYPE S with AWD.
This story is from the March 2017 edition of Jaguar World Monthly.
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This story is from the March 2017 edition of Jaguar World Monthly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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