Jaguar E-Pace D200 R-Dynamic SE

Our time with this posh family SUV is at an end, so how did it score as a partner for work and play?

- John Bradshaw

I CHOSE MY JAGUAR E-Pace because, after a run of SUVs that put practicality ahead of pleasure, I fancied switching those two qualities around. I still wanted an SUV for the high-riding visibility and rough-road capabilities they tend to bring, but I also wanted it to indulge me on every journey, with the scope to let its hair down and entertain me on twisty roads.

Happily, the E-Pace did rather well when it came to the pleasure aspect of driving, making most journeys home from photography shoots something to relish. This is one Jaguar that does more than just collect admiring glances.

I wasn’t alone in enjoying it, either. When it took me, my wife, and a friend away for a day’s archery (one participates in such noble sports when one drives a Jaguar), the stylish, opulent E-Pace somehow made it just that bit more of an event. What’s more, the 40/20/40 split rear seat enabled it to swallow longbows and quivers of arrows for the three of us, together with a huge coolbox, while still providing space for an adult archer in each of the back seats.