Purchasing help and how to identify F-type options from pictures?

[itsajaaaag]

Greetings lads, I hope everyone is enjoying the summer.

I live in Central Europe and I'm preparing to buy a used F-type Convertible up to 70.000 euros, pre face-lift model (with old headlights), so pre-2020 I believe, correct me if I'm wrong.

I've never owned a JLR car so I've no idea how to separate the cars according to year and its updates as well as trim levels. I've only heard of one trim level - R-Dynamic. My goal is to get the most updated version I can get for the money. My questions are two:

1. Which production year saw the most significant changes which I really shouldn't miss out on? For example, I'm looking for advice such as "get the 2018 production year because they upgraded the car with Android Auto / Apple Carplay that year". This is just an example, I've no idea actually if they did any updates in 2018 production year but modern infotainment system is important to me. BTW, I've read Bosch system is harder to upgrade to Android Auto / Apple Carplay while Harman is easier? How do I distinguish them apart just looking at the ad pictures?

2. Where should I look for options and features in the ad pictures? Lots of sellers don't provide the list of options so I'd like to visually identify where all the important buttons/options are from the ad photos BEFORE visiting the dealer. I'm looking for an advice like "look for this button below the shift stick or that button left of the steering wheel".

I own a Lexus currently and I like the following options:

• Android Auto / Apple Carplay (this is a must)
• Head up display
• 360 camera
• radar cruise control
• full LED headlights (not HID xenon)
• matrix/multibeam headlights
• automatic main beam on/off
• blind spot warning
• lane departure assist with lane centering
• heated seats
• heated steering wheel
• cooled seats
• Mark levinson premium sound system

Are these options available on the 2017-2019 (pre face-lift) F-type? Are buttons for these options visible or are they hidden in the menus? If they are visible, please point me in the right direction as to where to locate these buttons from the pictures.

As for the engines, I'm leaning heavily towards the V8 unless you can persuade me otherwise. I've heard V6 is more nimble in the corners (I'm not a track guy but I live near the mountains) but I just can't ignore the intoxicating sound of the V8. BTW, can I know from pictures whether the car is RWD or AWD?

Looking forward to the advice, hopefully it will help somebody else as well. Cheers!

 

[SilverDreamMachine]

• Android Auto / Apple Carplay (this is a must) - YES - MY20 onwards (68/19 plated cars I believe)
• Head up display - NO
• 360 camera - NO - Rear Camera Only
• radar cruise control - NO - Standard Cruise Control only plus limiter
• full LED headlights (not HID xenon) - YES on later model years, easy to spot - big improvement on MY21 facelift cars
• matrix/multibeam headlights - YES, MY21 facelift car onwards - option on P450, standard on R, MY24 standard on all V8
• automatic main beam on/off - YES - not sure if standard - note that pre MY21 cars lights are not great on dipped beam
• blind spot warning - YES - option (rare)
• lane departure assist with lane centering - NO - Lane Departure Warning only
• heated seats - YES as an option, or as part of Climate Pack
• heated steering wheel - YES as an option, or as part of Climate Pack
• cooled seats - YES as an option on MY21 facelift cars onwards
• Mark levinson premium sound system - MERIDIAN SURROUND recommended

Options you need:
- 12 way seats
- Upgraded Windsor leather seats
- Apple CarPlay
- R Dynamic trim as a minimum
- InControl tracker

Plus
- Ideally a MY21 car with all of its improvements

 

[Moss]

IMHO, auto full beam should be banned. I found it dipping once (on a loan car) when approaching a junction, and the waiting vehicle thought I was flashing him to leave.

Rear view camera is really useful.

If you’re torn between V6 and V8 - you will never forgive yourself for not purchasing the bigger engine. Seek out something that was produced before the noise rules limiting the exhaust tune were introduced. They’re intoxicating.
“Nimbleness” between V6 & V8 is illusory - yes, you might have lighter front end but you’d otherwise not notice it.

Apple car play is useful, but not essential as it can be retro-fitted IIUC.

With your budget, I’d be looking hard for an SVR. Of course you’d expect I would say that.

 

[itsajaaaag]

Many thanks for your time answering my first question so thoroughly!

Is MY20 already face-lifted with those new narrow headlights? I don't like the new front end (looks too much like Audi) that's why I said I will only buy a pre face-lifted car.

So what's the situation with Android Auto in pre face-lifted cars?

Also, LED headlights existed on pre face-lifted models or just HID?

About the lane departure assist - I think I've read here that the steering wheel nudges towards the center when approaching the edge of the road. Is this true?

And now to my second question, how do I spot all these options from pictures? Some example pictures would be most welcome so I (and perhaps someone else) could learn.

@Moss Don't know about the prices in UK but 70.000 eur BARELY gets you a 2017 R in Europe.

Are there differences in difficulty retrofitting Android Auto in different model years? How do I spot the "correct" infotainment model that is easy to retrofit from pictures?

 

[Anonymous]

Agree with you on the facelift headlights, makes the car look angry! I know thats popular these days but its not for me.
With your budget you could get an early v8 LC500 and that would tick all your boxes

 

[itsajaaaag]

You're right about the LC500 but those are even more expensive in the convertible form and out of our budget. Also, F-type strikes me as a more nimble sports car which I like compared to the bigger LC500.

With the new headlights the front end became more "generic", less distinguished IMO. And it completely changed the car's character you're right.

 

[Anonymous]

You've come to the right place if you want a good compromise of a sports car and a comfy GT car.
Your going to have to live without some of the high tech options though, get in one on a test drive and I'm sure you'll not be bothered about all that stuff.

 

[jagseven]

To get CarPlay/android auto in a pre-facelift car (cars built from around mid 2018 I think) you need to look for a car with the wider infotainment screen that doesn’t have buttons down the side

 

[Anonymous]

Heated steering wheel and cruise control


High end audio


Heated seats and heated windscreen


Active exhaust



You can get aftermarket carplay modules for all the infotainment systems however there are problems, It will kill the cars in-built satnav, that a big no from me as there are still big areas of the UK where there is no mobile phone reception and google maps won't work!
Also you can only have the audio from your phone OR from the car, So if you want the voice guidance from google maps you can't listen to the radio on your car.

 

[Anonymous]

Head unit.

Apple Car Play and Android Auto is only available on the wider screen with touch screen buttons at the bottom. Anything with physical buttons on the side is not capable.

That head unit came available on MY19 however Apple Car Play and Android Auto was only available when the Smart Phone Option was selected. Some dealers added the option for free via a software update which also later included SOTA (Software Updates over the Air).

MY20 and onwards it was standard however early MY20 needed an update to get SOTA working which includes stability updates for Bluetooth and Apple Car Play.

When your test driving check the head unit software. If v18 it will need a dealer to update it. If v19c or later then it can do Apple Car Play and SOTA but will need a SIM and a tickle of the computer at Jaguar to wake it up. V22a is the latest.

 

[scm]

• Android Auto / Apple Carplay (this is a must) - YES - MY20 onwards (68/19 plated cars I believe)

From MY18 cars with the 10" screen and no physical button down the sides.

• full LED headlights (not HID xenon) - YES on later model years, easy to spot - big improvement on MY21 facelift cars

I believe they were fitted (maybe as an option?) from MY18, I've got them.

• cooled seats - YES as an option on MY21 facelift cars onwards

I've got them on my MY18 so it was an option then, if not before.

 

[Anonymous]

MY19 for Apple Car Play, see my previous post.

My MY18 has LED. MY18 was a mini update/refresh launched with the 400 sport.

My poor MY18 spec has the newer thin performance seats which are neither heated nor cooled but it was an option for one or both.

I honestly think going out and test driving a few is the first thing to do.

 

[Moss]

Another small but probably significant point to consider - will the EU-market spec will be identical to the UK-market cars?

 

[Anonymous]

Back then the UK market was the EU market.

 

[Moss]

Back then the UK market was the EU market.

I’m sure my steering wheel has been on the right hand side for quite some time now

 

[MajorTom]

Just to clear up some possible confusion here. There's only one single generation of the F-Type (some people online talk about different generations) and there were two facelifts - one for MY18 and one for MY21. The biggest changes equipment wise came with the MY18 facelift. As mentioned, optional LED headlights, optional new thinner lighter and cooled performance seats etc were introduced then.

The only tech changes I can come to think of in the second MY21 facelift is the digital dash and matrix headlights. That facelift was mainly about exterior design tweaks - above all the front and headlights.

You should definitely aim for a car of MY18 and onwards to get the latest kit. There should be some continental, e.g. German and Austrian, spec sheets online. Get some of those and read up. That'll hopefully give you a clearer view of the different versions and options.

If you want a V8 get a V8 version but test drive and compare the V6S and V8 if you're unsure. I personally never thought that a V8 and AWD (which all the newer V8 F-Types have) is a good fit in the F-Type and would get something larger if I wanted a V8 but that's a matter of taste.

Anyhow you should find a decent MY18 - 20 car for that money. I'd focus on buying one with an approved warranty from a German or possibly Belgian JLR dealer. I'd avoid e.g. French and Italian dealers. Especially in Italy the cars tend to be treated like sh*t. If you get a car with extended/approved warranty from JLR be aware of that the warranty is quite limited.

When it comes to infotainment, if you get a car with the 8" screen the most common way to add CarPlay/Android Auto is with the kit from UAD. There are plenty of threads about that. From what I've seen installing the UAD kit does NOT disable the built in nav on MY18 cars and you can switch between them. I've had my F-Type for over two years now and initially intended to add the UAD kit but never bothered so far. The built in Touch Pro system works very well for me most of the time and I'm driving all over Europe all the time. I've used Apple CarPlay and Android Auto loads in other cars and am still a bit baffled by how limited and poorly integrated those solutions are, which is why I haven't bothered adding them yet. The built in system is way better integrated and in many cases more user friendly than CarPlay/Android Auto. I only run waze on my phone with audio warnings about cameras etc which you can't get through the built in system.

 

[MajorTom]

One more thing about spotting things in ad pictures on the continental market. Watch out for cars with orange indicator strips in the headlights. Those are US cars which I'd stay clear of.

As you may know, some guys, especially in the Baltics I believe, specialise in importing wrecked or flood damaged cars from the US, pimping them and selling them cheaply. I've seen some Polish and Romanian registered US F-Types so I guess they mainly sell over there, but I've also seen some advertised on the German market without mentioning anything about being imported from the US.

 

[Moss]

………I only run waze on my phone with audio warnings about cameras etc which you can't get through the built in system.

In my eyes - that’s the only real benefit of Apple Car Play and the helpful traffic alerts which Waze offers.
I’m guessing, but don’t the French gendarme get a bit miffed if you’re using speed camera warning devices?

It’s certainly not an option I’d upgrade to, but for those who want or need it - it’s out there.

 

[MajorTom]

………I only run waze on my phone with audio warnings about cameras etc which you can't get through the built in system.

In my eyes - that’s the only real benefit of Apple Car Play and the helpful traffic alerts which Waze offers.
I’m guessing, but don’t the French gendarme get a bit miffed if you’re using speed camera warning devices?

It’s certainly not an option I’d upgrade to, but for those who want or need it - it’s out there.

Exactly, that's the main benefit. And possibly voice control if you're into that, which the F-Type oddly enough never had. Apart from that I'm baffled by how clunky CarPlay still is after all these years. I just used it and Android Auto for several days in another car, and Android Auto is a bit more user friendly but still nowhere near as user friendly as the built in ICTP.

The built in system actually has some camera warnings too, but only for some fixed cameras. I usually stream Spotify music from my phone to the car and just keep the phone in the central cubby with Waze running as well so I get audio alerts about events on the road. You don't even have to have a route set in Waze, it's enough to just have the app up and running.

True, it's illegal to use speed camera warning devices in at least France and Germany but Waze is apparently fine and used by loads of people.

 

[itsajaaaag]

Big thanks to everyone, you've been very helpful. I hope to join you very soon and return the favour.

So I've learned that I need to buy a MY18 car with a bigger head unit without the side buttons in order to have Android Auto. But all head units with a smaller screen and buttons on the side can be retrofitted? BTW, I don't care if I lose the built-in navigation as I'm quite happy with Android Auto thing.

• full LED headlights (not HID xenon) - YES on later model years, easy to spot - big improvement on MY21 facelift cars

I believe they were fitted (maybe as an option?) from MY18, I've got them.

How do I tell apart the LED headlights from HID ones from the pictures? Would anyone be so kind and upload the picture of LED headlights?

Also, which seats are more comfortable? I'm quite a tall lad so lower back hurts on longer journeys if seats are not good.

And heated and cooled seats have a word "push" displayed on the button at all times?

Cheers!