Jaguar F-TYPE 2018 Review

What’s it all about?

The turbocharged four-cylinder Jaguar F-TYPE joined its supercharged six and eight-cylinder counterparts locally in late 2017. The 2.0-litre ‘i4’ line-up brings a lower entry price and increased variety to the now five-year-old, 32 variant Jaguar F-TYPE sportscar range, and is likewise available in Coupe and Convertible body-styles.

Producing 221kW/400Nm, Jaguar's F-TYPE is powered by Jaguar Land Rover’s newest Ingenium engine and is mated exclusively to an eight-speed ZF automatic transmission. The four-variant, four-cylinder range comprises both standard and R-Dynamic trim grades; all are rear-wheel drive.

Jaguar says the four-cylinder F-TYPE arrived as a precursor to a face-lifted model range that went on sale late last year. Key visual differences include redesigned bumpers and LED headlights, the i4 range further differentiated by a single, centrally-set exhaust outlet.

How much will it cost?

Jaguar lists the four-cylinder F-TYPE range from $107,300 (plus on-road costs). That’s the price for the F-TYPE Coupe, the R-Dynamic variant on test upping the list price to $114,812 (plus ORCs). Convertible variants ask $126,000 and $133,800 (plus ORCs) respectively.

Twelve paint colours are available with metallic hues ranging in price from $2950 to $5910. The Jaguar F-TYPE is also available with myriad options, our test vehicle fettled to the tune of $35,190 (see below).

Standard equipment for the F-TYPE i4 comprises heated door mirrors, xenon headlights, 18-inch alloy wheels, grained leather/suede-cloth upholstery, six-way electric seat adjustment, a leather-bound steering wheel and electric steering column adjustment. R-Dynamic models gain a dual-mode exhaust, LED headlights and 19-inch alloy wheels.

Driver-assist technology now includes autonomous emergency braking, lane departure and assist technology, and a driver condition monitor. The F-TYPE is yet to undergo ANCAP or EuroNCAP crash testing.

Jaguar offers a three-year/100,000km warranty on all F-TYPE variants. Servicing is included free for five years or 130,000km (whichever comes first) with service intervals set at 12 months or 26,000km.

Why should/shouldn’t I buy it?

In day to day running the Ingenium engine can feel a little coarse. It’s not particularly smooth at idle and at middling speeds feels constrained by a transmission doing its best to screw down economy numbers. It also sounds bloody awful – hollow, and dry, with none of the passion of its six and eight-cylinder siblings.

Get off the throttle and the exhaust pops and crackles try desperately to recall the theatre of the i4’s larger displacement brethren. But in truth it sounds a little contrived.

Prod the throttle harder and it suddenly comes alive. The engine sings at higher rpm, the transmission livens and the exhaust note becomes part-way decent. Use Sport and Dynamic modes together – or better yet the paddle shifts – and the F-TYPE i4 is a surprisingly energetic performer.

Perhaps the most noticeable upside of the F-TYPE i4 comes from its chassis. The steering is responsive, the body taut, and the handling fluid – and wonderfully communicative. The lighter nose (-52kg) helps sharpen corner entry to a point where it feels you’re driving a far smaller car. On the right bit of road it’s a great car to thread along quickly.

On smaller diameter wheels we think it’d be even better again – the 19-inchers here a touch rough in quelling interference from poorly maintained country back roads.

When is it available in Australia?

The four-cylinder F-TYPE Coupe and Convertible range went on sale in Australia in August 2017. It was followed soon afterwards by updated six and eight-cylinder variants.

The 2018 F-TYPE range adopted subtle styling and equipment updates, importantly adding autonomous emergency braking as standard.

Who will it appeal to?

The obvious answer, perhaps, is those chasing the look and feel of an F-TYPE without the performance. Say, someone wanting that classically-styled coupe that’s also efficient in everyday running, or that second car that won’t break the bank yet still looks the part in the driveway. Unless you start ticking option boxes…

But realistically this is a car that can be thought of as a dynamic and fun-to-drive weekend car, too. It mightn’t have the cubic capacity and histrionics of its dearer siblings, but it does perform far better than the numbers would have you expect.

That said, it is a difficult car to live with. Legacy F-TYPE vision and practicality issues remain with the four-cylinder model. If you’re thinking it’ll carry the bags for a weekend away or a set of club to the golf course, think again. This is a car made for driving’s sake, and little else.

Where does it fit?

Perhaps obviously enough, the four-cylinder F-TYPE sits at the lower end of the F-TYPE price scale… but not by much. Just $14,200 separates the entry-spec F-TYPE from its more potent supercharged V6 sibling, which delivers 29kW/50Nm more via a six-speed manual transmission.

Less obvious is the closing of the price gap between the F-TYPE and the Porsche Boxster and Cayman (from $113,100 plus ORCs) – now also powered by a four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine.

The Jaguar F-TYPE might have size on its size when compared to Porsche’s entry-level sports cars, and offers the same power rating. But with 20Nm more torque we’d wager the performance gap is negligible.

Relative to the asking price, the F-TYPE might also be compared to any number of European Coupe and Convertible rivals, though if it were our money we’d be looking quite seriously at the Audi TT S quattro (from $100,855 plus ORCs) or BMW M2 Pure (from $90,210 plus ORCs).

So, what do we think?

This is the sort of car you really want to like, but would have a hard time justifying given both its lack of practicality, and its price proximity to both its more powerful siblings and some pretty tantalising rivals.

We also think the option pricing is a little cheeky with respect to its list price – and given what is now available as standard on far ‘lesser’ mainstream rivals. In short, it’s a harder sell than it could, or in many respects deserves to be.

2018 Jaguar F-TYPE R-Dynamic Coupe pricing and specifications:
Price: $114,812 (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) | 8.0L/100km (as tested)
CO2: 163g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: N/A