The world domination of the SUV continues apace – or E-Pace, in this instance – with a new Jaguar off-road-alike that slots below the F-Pace both physically and alphabetically.
Rather than stealing sales from the larger car Jag reckons the E-Pace will bring new, younger customers through the door – and there are certainly enough of them; compact crossovers like this made up 40% of global SUV sales in 2016, and that number is only expected to increase.
It was inevitable, therefore, that the E-Pace would come along sooner or later. Premium rivals like the BMW X1 and Audi Q3 have been ploughing this particular furrow for years – and even sister-brand Land Rover is at it with the Discovery Sport and Range Rover Evoque.
Enough with the farming metaphors, what’s the Jaguar E-Pace like to drive?
Unsurprisingly it sits on the same platform as those JLR relatives (a chassis that can trace its heritage to the previous Ford Mondeo) but the E-Pace is more about sporting performance than off-road ability.
It’s powered exclusively by 2.0-litre, four-cylinder Ingenium engines ranging from a 148bhp diesel to a 296bhp petrol as used in the F-Type, although the latter’s soundtrack is a bit more business-like in the E-Pace.
