Motoring: Jaguar looks to set the F-Pace at Frankfurt

WITH the Frankfurt Motor Show just a fortnight away, the eyes of the motoring world are shifting focus and trying to identify which cars are likely to have the biggest impact.

One of the most anticipated vehicles making its debut at the show will be Jaguar’s new crossover, the F-Pace.

Jaguar Land Rover will be keen that the vehicle creates the right impression and launching it in the back yard of its fiercest rivals is a bold statement and an indication of the expectations Jaguar has for the new vehicle.

JLR insiders are already predicting great things for the vehicle – with one senior manager claiming the vehicle is one of the most exciting product launches in his career with the company.

The company is keeping the full details of the vehicle under wraps until the show but it has already teased potential buyers with some of its likely features – such as its all-wheel-drive system.

In some ways the vehicle’s off-road credentials will have to better those of its stable mate if the car is to be taken seriously as a true all-rounder.

Given the Big Cat’s sporting heritage, the F-Pace cannot afford to be a lumbering lump on the road. It is therefore being offered with a torque-on-demand system that will deliver power to the driver as and when required.

Jaguar engineers, led by sports car development expert and Chief Engineer Mike Cross, have therefore striven to create a completely new set of vehicle dynamics aided by double wishbone front and integral link rear suspension systems. These have then been tested in some of the most severe environments known to man.

When it goes on sale next year the vehicle will be available with chassis dynamics technology adapted from the F-Type sports car and unrivalled in its class.

“We haven’t made any compromises or exceptions: the new F-Pace must be a true Jaguar and deliver the Jaguar dynamics DNA,” said Cross succinctly.

“We’ve tested ride and handling to extremities in all environments and in all conditions, and the result is that the new F-Pace is as engaging and rewarding to drive as it is going to be enjoyable to own. As soon as you get into the vehicle you know immediately that it’s a great place to be.”

The F-Pace, which is being produced alongside the Jaguar XE on a new production line at JLR’s Solihull plant, is being manufactured using Jaguar’s Lightweight Aluminium Architecture.

When this process was used to construct the new generation Range Rover and Range Rover Sport it succeeded in trimming 430kg off the weight of its predecessor and resulted in a much more dynamic vehicle.

While the F-Pace has no basis for comparison, the lightweight production techniques should ensure the vehicle is nimble and agile enough to give a satisfying on-road experience.

Or as Jaguar puts it: “This will enable the new performance crossover to handle with precision and control, yet without sacrificing ride comfort”. 

The sophisticated double wishbone front suspension and integral link rear suspension are said to provide the best possible starting point for the dynamic performance; making the car responsive but capable of tackling even the harshest of road surfaces with ease.

The vehicle’s Electric Power-Assisted Steering system ensures that everything between the steering wheel rim and the tyre contact patch is calibrated to the point of optimum grip. The system is already being used to full effect on the F-Type, XE, and new XF.

To make development and testing even more efficient, the Vehicle Integrity team’s subjective assessments are fed back into the computer-aided engineering (CAE) tools used by Jaguar’s Vehicle Dynamics CAE team. This improves the vehicle and therefore delivers even better simulation results.

Jaguar said this constant stream of data ensured the vehicle was continuously updated, with the tuning and assessment processes being optimised for best performance.