Jaguar F-Pace R-Dynamic SE (P400)

One of my favourite luxury SUV picks – This is the P400 SE trim of Jaguar’s larger SUV, and it’s now equipped with Jaguar Land Rover’s turbocharged inline six cylinder motor. For those who don’t know, the inline six engine is integral to Jaguar’s history. It's the motor that was the heart of one of the most iconic cars to ever be produced: the E-TYPE. I’ve had plenty of personal experience when it comes to build quality on Jaguar Land Rover products, being lucky enough that they have been my family’s car of choice for over a decade.

Over time, quality has been carefully improved, and here in the F-PACE, it’s close to peak build quality for the money.

Rivalling Lexus’ attention to detail, the Jaguar oozes luxury from the quality of its leather seats to its button presses and accuracy in stitching and embroidery.

The Jaguar F-PACE P400 SE is priced from $98,654 before on-roads, which will get you a bit more standard equipment and more importantly, this 400hp motor.

Our tester had a fair few options on it, including the 22 inch wheel and Pirelli tyre package, panoramic sunroof, Meridian sound system and the ‘Activity Watch Key’.

The total price including options and on-roads was $117,498 for this particular vehicle.

Recently, Jaguar and Land Rover have upped their warranty offering from 3 years to 5 years/unlimited kilometres; this also includes 5 years of roadside assistance. That’s a much needed improvement in peace of mind to help address the elephant in the room that is reliability.

I was lucky enough to experience the F-PACE with a Meridian audio system which was an optional extra, as it also housed active noise cancelling for added ride comfort. At any speed, the Jaguar dampened every element of exterior noise to the point where you really didn’t want to leave this cone of silence. There was a hint of engine noise emanating into the cabin in Comfort and Eco driving modes. However, in Sport mode the Jaguar made sure you knew you had 400hp under the bonnet, in the form of additional exhaust noise (both real and pumped in).

Front brakes measure in at 380mm and rear brakes come in at 325mm, providing plenty of stopping power for this SUV. Painted red brake callipers were optional and highlighted these sizeable brakes, helping bring a bit of dynamic colour to the exterior of this Jag.

With a claimed 0-100km/h time of 5.4 seconds, this isn’t a slow car by any means. Your school run just got a whole lot easier with this P400 motor, which is a 3.0L mild-hybrid, turbocharged inline six cylinder, and is also fitted with an electric supercharger. In short, it’s a complex but powerful motor. The complexity will be covered under your warranty, but what you will notice is the 294kW and 550Nm on tap. Peak kW can be accessed as soon as 5,500rpm and peak torque can be accessed as low as 2,000rpm.

The mild-hybrid system offers instant off-the-line acceleration, alongside better efficiency at highway speeds. You get the benefits of a hybrid for jumping off the start-line, without the additional weight of carrying around a large battery pack.

Fitted to the F-PACE is an 8-speed automatic transmission, similar to the one we tested in the Defender. Here, the transmission is more performance oriented, with the option to manually shift via steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters, which are some of the most rewarding and beautiful looking paddles I’ve seen in this segment.

From what I experienced, it not only drove like a Jag, but it provided a rewarding and compelling driving experience when pushed right to the knife’s edge. The F-PACE’s dynamic ability was phenomenal. This is where a more powerful motor is appreciated, to really highlight the ability this SUV has to settle into corners, and quickly pivot out of an apex and into the next section of road. You’re able to sit lower in the cabin, and really feel more in-tune with the machine, than some other SUVs. The F-PACE is the family car for those seeking performance and flavour in their drive.

At lower speeds, the F-PACE did occasionally feel a little busy over bumps and grooves in the road, which I put down to riding on 22-inch wheels. If you want a more dampened ride, I’d opt for either a 19-inch or maybe a 20-inch wheel for a dramatic difference from these 22’s.

Similar to what I experienced with the Land Rover Defender, this six-cylinder motor can be a little on the thirsty side. The claimed fuel efficiency is 8.7L/100km combined. In the city, I was seeing figures as high as 14L/100km, which led to me burning through half a tank of fuel in less than two days.

There’s been a dramatic overhaul in the name of quality and minimalism inside the Jag. Let’s start with the curved centre 11.4-inch touch display, which is certainly a statement piece. An ultra crispy, bright and well saturated display, it’s certainly a high quality display. The way Apple CarPlay is displayed generates a sense of satisfaction, as your phone’s display takes up all the screen real-estate unlike some other vehicles with larger infotainment displays. The infotainment’s UI is clean and easy to use, with an app layout that makes it simple to access an array of features. There are touch capacitive climate buttons below the screen, which I appreciate for their ability to reduce the number of buttons in the cabin. However, they have a tendency to be a little difficult to turn on and are a magnet for fingerprints. Some people will like these buttons, but for me, I wasn’t falling in love with this element of the cabin.

The Jaguar has a minimum boot space of 744L and a maximum boot space of 1804L. Rear seat comfort is experienced best on the outer seats, as they are bolstered and sunken into the rear bench for exceptional headroom, knee room and feet room. The middle seat suffers the most, with a very high transmission tunnel and raised seat, which makes it only suitable for small trips when carrying 5 people.

My only complaint about the long-term comfort was the pain I experienced with the embossed Jaguar logo in the front headrests! Anyone with short hair will feel this pouncing Jaguar logo rub against the back of your scalp, which creates a pain point for those who rest their head back on their seats.

Another issue for long-term comfort was the omission of heated seats and USB ports for the rear seats.

The USB issue can be sorted by purchasing a $15 12V adapter from Supercheap Auto, but the heated seats were sorely missed during the more harsh winter mornings. You would expect at this price point, these features would have been included.

The new F-PACE certainly represents the all-in-one family car. It can do it all, and more importantly, provide more than enough fun in the driving department.

I really do love this SUV, and would recommend it for those looking for a performance SUV, without the drama that AMG, SVR, M or even Audi’s S models can bring. It has 400hp, and is a little more conservative on fuel than more expensive performance V8 trims and rivals.

The P400 motor certainly is the highlight here, however you don’t necessarily need to opt for it if you don’t need all-out performance paired with your F-PACE. Diesel and four cylinder motor options for this SUV will allow you to save a little at the pump and leave more space in your wallet for additional options from that extensive list.

At the end of the day, the F-PACE has plenty of road presence, and is a fantastic example of a luxury performance SUV.

*Disclaimer - I work for ProductReview as their independent car and motorbike expert. I borrow new cars and motorbikes from manufacturers and owners to review. I am not paid or incentivised by these brands to post reviews. I write and create content to provide insight and information about any new or used vehicle I can get my hands on.