The Jaguar F-type

The Jaguar F-type is a two-seated sports car, based on a shortened platform of the XK convertible, produced by Jaguar Cars from 2013. The car was launched initially as a soft-top convertible, with a coupe version expected to be launched in 2014.
Aesthetically, the F bears no family resemblance to Jaguar’s last great sports car, the E-type, allegedly endorsed by Enzo Ferrari as the most beautiful car ever created. The 2014 F looks more like a son of the C-type, the Jaguar racer that won LeMans in 1953. When you top a large front-mounted vee engine with a supercharger and intercooler, then add a layer of pedestrian protection, the result is chunky proportions. The high hood and beltline make the F-type look like it’s wearing a turtleneck. The cockpit respects both trendy and traditional design views. A touch screen flanked by eight buttons provides a full menu of navigation, car setup, and communication and entertainment programs. Substantial knobs and toggles operate the climate-control system. The polished and painted metal and the double-stitched yard goods that line the F-type are tastefully finished. Seats pirated from the XKR-S hug you in all the right places.
Soothing ride motions and polite manners, two traditional Jaguar virtues, are absent here. The F-type’s suspension is so taut and the body structure so rigid that every misaligned grain of pavement sends notice to the cabin, making this the roughest-riding Jaguar ever and a roadster ready for track day. There is no roll in the bends, no brake dive, and not a hint of squat during a full-bore leap forward. Jaguar’s earnest intention is confirmed by the lack of Comfort or Normal settings for the F’s adaptive dampers. This Porsche in a cat suit pounces on apexes and keeps all paws planted.
Jag engineers resisted the move to electrically assisted power steering, instilling the F-type’s fat-rimmed, leather-wrapped wheel with a slack-free, on-center connection, a useful rise in effort with increasing lock, and a ratio quick enough to deliver agile cornering response. Unfortunately, they neglected to finish the job with feedback. When the front end begins to slide at the adhesion limit, word of what’s going on at the tire patches arrives through the seat and to your ears, but no such message is telegraphed via the steering wheel.
The entry-level F-type uses Jaguar’s new 3.0-litre V6 supercharged petrol engine, good for 340HP at 6500 rpm, 0 to 100 km/h in 5.1 seconds, and a top speed of 259 km/h with maximum torque of 450NM at 3500-5000 rpm. In the middle comes the F-type S, with the same engine tuned for 370HP at 6500 rpm, a top speed of 275 km/h, and 0 to 100  km/h in 4.8 seconds with torque of 460 NM at 3500-5000 rpm. The top of the range model is the V8S, with Jaguar’s 5.0-litre, 488HP supercharged petrol engine. The 488HP is available at 6500 rpm with maximum torque of 625 NM available at 2500-5500 rpm. The layout is front-engined, rear-wheel-drive. The gearbox is an eight-speed automatic with paddle-shifters offering manual override. There is a mechanical limited-slip differential on the V6 and electronic limited-slip differential on the V8. The prices start from 52 000 euros. The average fuel consumption is about 13 litres/100km, it depends on the specific model. The following pictures are all the property of thecarconnection.com