This sunny Sunday morning I completed my first B road test in my newly acquired 2016 F-Type 340 Coupe. Setting out on a route that I have done hundreds of times in various cars over the last 15 years I quickly realised that the concerns I’d always had about the long bonnet had disappeared during ordinary use over the last few days. Similarly, the fact that the car is 2.5” wider than my 911 had become a ‘non-issue’. There’s nowhere near as much glass in the Jaguar but all-round visibility is good – even when the rear spoiler is deployed and half fills the rear view mirror!
7 miles from my house the roads open up which nicely coincides with engines being fully up to temperature which means the fun can begin. Despite an early start I knew from experience that I’d be sharing roads with a mixture of tractors, cyclists, homicidal van drivers and kamikaze bikers so it was never going to be a track type test where the limits of performance can be sought out. It was however going to be a true test of the sort of real world driving that I spend so much of my spare time enjoying.
In recent years three-quarters of these drives have been done in 911s but I’ve also done many ragging a GT86, steering a surprisingly capable A250 Mercedes hatchback and man-handling a 5 litre XF. Unsurprisingly making a comparison of the new steed to previous chariots is inevitable and something I was most looking forward to doing.
Early on it was obvious that the soft suspension set up and heavily assisted brakes would demand my attention in the twisties but it was great to realise just how well bumpy sections of road were dealt with. Some parts of my regular route provide opportunities for experimentation. Most of the journey was done in ‘D’ but some sections cry out for high revs and paddle shifting. In both modes the F-Type rose to the task admirably even though 5-6-7-8 were surplus to requirements. 340 bhp is well beyond what’s required to have safe fun but I much prefer using just 70% of those available over the 100% needed in a lesser car.
In my 2 hour, 94 mile drive it was the combination of power, handling and braking capability that most surprised me. I had expected the car to be quick but not as good all-round as it actually is. It’s not what I’d call a ‘sports car’ in the way an Elise, Cayman or even a 911 could be described but it’s not a GT either. I’d say it falls somewhere between the two, which is perfect for me. The fact that it also looks so drop-dead-gorgeous is a very big bonus and means I’m truly overjoyed that I now own one.
A long time ago I established that my 473 bhp 911 (997) Turbo was the perfect car for me as the vast torque and 5 speed automatic box suited my relaxed driving style when pushing on, whether it be on UK B roads or German autobahns, but at 17 years old and with 96k miles showing I wanted something to take over providing my weekly ‘fix’ so that I could save the old girl for more special occasions. It hasn’t taken me long to realise that the Jaguar may end up being used for a lot more things than I intended.
7 miles from my house the roads open up which nicely coincides with engines being fully up to temperature which means the fun can begin. Despite an early start I knew from experience that I’d be sharing roads with a mixture of tractors, cyclists, homicidal van drivers and kamikaze bikers so it was never going to be a track type test where the limits of performance can be sought out. It was however going to be a true test of the sort of real world driving that I spend so much of my spare time enjoying.
In recent years three-quarters of these drives have been done in 911s but I’ve also done many ragging a GT86, steering a surprisingly capable A250 Mercedes hatchback and man-handling a 5 litre XF. Unsurprisingly making a comparison of the new steed to previous chariots is inevitable and something I was most looking forward to doing.
Early on it was obvious that the soft suspension set up and heavily assisted brakes would demand my attention in the twisties but it was great to realise just how well bumpy sections of road were dealt with. Some parts of my regular route provide opportunities for experimentation. Most of the journey was done in ‘D’ but some sections cry out for high revs and paddle shifting. In both modes the F-Type rose to the task admirably even though 5-6-7-8 were surplus to requirements. 340 bhp is well beyond what’s required to have safe fun but I much prefer using just 70% of those available over the 100% needed in a lesser car.
In my 2 hour, 94 mile drive it was the combination of power, handling and braking capability that most surprised me. I had expected the car to be quick but not as good all-round as it actually is. It’s not what I’d call a ‘sports car’ in the way an Elise, Cayman or even a 911 could be described but it’s not a GT either. I’d say it falls somewhere between the two, which is perfect for me. The fact that it also looks so drop-dead-gorgeous is a very big bonus and means I’m truly overjoyed that I now own one.
A long time ago I established that my 473 bhp 911 (997) Turbo was the perfect car for me as the vast torque and 5 speed automatic box suited my relaxed driving style when pushing on, whether it be on UK B roads or German autobahns, but at 17 years old and with 96k miles showing I wanted something to take over providing my weekly ‘fix’ so that I could save the old girl for more special occasions. It hasn’t taken me long to realise that the Jaguar may end up being used for a lot more things than I intended.
