By Frank S. Washington
DETROIT – The veterans at Jaguar must be basking in their accomplishments. They survived an ownership that had them caught I a time warp with products that were unimaginative and uninspiring.
But for the last decade all that has changed; Jaguar has been turning out stylish luxury performance vehicles – and then upgrading them.
This time we’re talking about the 2022 Jaguar F-Pace R Dynamic S. On this version the F-Pace are his new LED headlights, a new rear bumper and alloy room with a new split wheel design.
Central to the exterior design of F-PACE is a focus on lighting. Ultra-slim, all-LED quad headlights with “Double J Blade” daytime running light signatures flank the enlarged grille that features the heritage Jaguar logo-inspired ‘diamond’ detailing. Standard High Beam Assist uses the forward-facing camera to automatically switch between high and low beam4. At the rear, slimline lights feature the Jaguar double chicane graphic, first previewed on the all-electric I-PACE, to accentuate the width of the vehicle.
The bumper design and sculpted tailgate add even more sleek appearance.
At the heart of the interior of F-PACE is a centrally mounted, 11.4-inch curved-glass HD touchscreen cased in elegant magnesium alloy, which controls the intuitive Pivi Pro infotainment system.
1 Pivi Pro offers simplified menu structures that allow drivers to access or view common tasks from the home screen in two taps or less, standard Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™ integration, and the ability to connect two phones simultaneously via Bluetooth®.
Standard on F-PACE P250 is Pivi infotainment, which supports navigation functionality via the driver’s smartphone using Apple CarPlay® and Android Auto™.
The central screen, which is three times brighter and 48 percent larger than the previous 10-inch screen, complements a new, available 12.3-inch HD Interactive Driver Display6 with enhanced graphics and a configurable layout for full-screen navigation mapping with turn-by-turn instructions, digital dials, media, contact list or infotainment details.
Full-screen 3D mapping is available with additional overlays for elements ranging from turn-by-turn instructions to compass bearings and places of interest. Working in conjunction with the latest optional Head-up Display technology, F-PACE reduces added distraction.
But to us the heart of the F-PACE was the top of the line 3.0-liter I6 under the hood that was supercharged and turbocharged. It made 395 horsepower and 406 pounds-feet of torque. It was mated to an eight-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters.
It had electric power assisted steering, adaptive dynamics, JaguarDrive Control, all surface progress, torque vectoring and 19-inch wheels. The F-Pace was a driver utility.
It handled like a sport sedan, it was quiet, highly maneuverable and it could move when asked.
Our tester had a base price of $65,200 but add options like 14-way performance heated and cooled seats and the sticker climbed to $82,245. The 2022 Jaguar F-Pace R Dynamic S was worth every penny.
