Jaguar F-TYPE 2.0 2019 Long-Term Test #3

It was a significant moment when Ian Callum stepped away from Jaguar recently.

The Scotsman who once designed Holden Commodore-based HSVs for a living has spent the last 20 years reclaiming Jaguar’s place at the heart of refined, elegant and sporting automotive design.

The F-TYPE was a key step along that road.

Released in 2013 it was Jaguar’s long overdue E-Type successor and a reminder the brand’s passionate heart was still beating strong despite the blind alleys the X-Type and S-Type sedans represented.

Speaking of heart, that’s what this F-TYPE variant is all about.

Since late 2017 the F-TYPE range has included a turbocharged 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine alongside the brawnier V6s and V8s. Branded Ingenium, this engine is designed and built in Britain and spreads across both Jaguar and sister SUV company Land Rover’s models.

Maybe there’s some concerns that a car with such million-mile-an-hour good looks should be fitted with an engine that makes merely 221kW and 400Nm.

But combined with rear-wheel drive and a not too porky 1525kg kerb weight, this entry-level F-TYPE has really enjoyable corner entry – and exit – abilities.

With less weight hanging over the front than its brethren, the F-TYPE 2.0 points in more eagerly and then hangs in there more determinedly on the way out.

The engine enjoyably aids further in this thanks to its behavioural traits. Unlike like a nat-atmo four-cylinder, it’s got plenty of torque – peak kicks in from just 1500rpm – so there’s no need for mass gear changes or sky-high revs.

Third gear, 3000rpm, hard on the throttle. Good times.

The engine sounds like it’s enjoying it too. There’s a barky beat that’s reminiscent of a five-cylinder and some enthusiastic crackle and bang on the over-run.

Would I rate it ahead of a Porsche Cayman for this sport of exuberance? No, but the F-TYPE is still fun and involving.

One of its most endearing traits is you don’t have to be travelling at crazy velocity to feel like you are tapping into this car’s potential. You sit so low down you feel in touch with what’s going on around you – the front tucking, the bum wiggling – and that helps makes acceleration feel faster than it is. Speaking of which, the 5.7sec 0-100km/h claim is pretty close to right.

Yes we know, not every bit of every drive is going to be a challenging series of curves. So the good news is the F-TYPE’s passive suspensions set-up is well-tuned to absorb bumpy roads as well as control the body in corners

The eight-speed automatic transmission can also be dialled back from aggressive and active to relaxed and calm, providing slurred shifts when the heat has been turned down.

Through all that fuel consumption wound up at 9.2L/100km, versus the 7.2L/100km claim.

So the F-TYPE is great to drive with a lot – or a little – enthusiasm and it looks a million bucks. So what’s not to like?

Well, it’s hard to imagine living with it day-to-day. Okay, okay, it’s a two-seat two-door sports car so you apply different expectations to it.

But even so it’s so difficult to see out of in any direction except straight ahead which turns any tight manoeuvring in car parks turns into a tense affair.

Then there’s the delicate exercise of stopping the nose from scraping on gutters and the like, something I failed to achieve more than once. Doh!

There’s very little storage space. Unless you’re a freelance motoring journalist you’ll struggle to squeeze your wallet into the mailbox slot door-pockets, the glovebox stores the manual and little else and the centre lidded bin is on the small side too.

And there’s the boot, or lack of it. Lift the lid and there’s a spare tyre and room for very little else.

A soft bag for an overnight trip away was jammed in, but the hard cover could not slot into position over the top. So instead, it bounced and wobbled around on bumps and obscured the already limited rear view.

And a gripe related to our car alone – I hope. The Apple CarPlay developed a glitch that wouldn’t allow people to hear me when I rang them or they rang me.

I can’t say I am enamoured with the pricing or equipment list either. Kenny G went through a lot of that in the first review, but to be paying well over $120,000 and still not have active cruise control is a bit of a stunner.

There is an upside to all this and that is the F-TYPE is just so cosy. You snuggle into a supportive single-pieces seat, power adjust the steering wheel to suit and feel right at home.

The way the air-con vents turn on is cool, the way the centre stack waterfalls into the centre console is elegant and there is a quality feel to the operation of dials and buttons.

Unlike Ian Callum, the F-TYPE 2.0 won’t be classified as an all-time great, but it is beautiful to look at and has a lighter and more carefree feel to it as a four-cylinder than its more powerful and sometimes all-wheel drive relations.

So Ian, thanks for the memories and good luck with your future projects. We’re glad you brought us the F-TYPE and even gladder it’s still such fun to drive.

How much does the 2019 Jaguar F-TYPE 2.0 cost?
Price: $123,848 (as tested, plus on-road costs)
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 221kW/400Nm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel: 7.2L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 163g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: TBA