Review: 2021 Jaguar F-Pace

The latest (and refreshed) version of Jaguar’s ground-breaking crossover.

Review and interior photos by Tom Sedens. Full exterior photos were provided. There are always more photos at the end of my reviews.

Pricing: 2021 Jaguar F-Pace

Base price (P400 AWD R-Dynamic S trim): $73,650

Options: $1,500 Convenience Pack; $2,300 Premium Upgrade Interior Pack; $2,400 22-inch rims; $850 metallic paint; $450 gloss black roof rails; $550 black exterior pack; $200 privacy glass; $450 heated windshield; $100 front fog lights; $200 headlight washers; $1,850 16-way heated/ventilated front seats; $500 folding/heated rear seats; $700 Windsor leather interior; $400 satin charcoal ash veneer; $100 powered roof blind; $950 Meridian sound system; $550 interactive driver display; $1,550 adaptive cruise control; $350 park assist

Price as tested: $89,600 (without A/C tax or freight/PDI)

 

Exterior

I remember seeing my first F-Pace years ago and thinking “Wow!” Now, as with most fresh, new styling, even with the refresh for 2021, the shape isn’t as exciting as it used to be when it first came out, but it’s still a great-looking modern crossover. I liked the optional black trim and the burly integrated exhaust tips. Its flowing lines, aggressive grille and massive 22-inch rims make for an athletic stance.

The R-Dynamic trim is an aesthetic thing, upgrading the door cladding, grille and bumpers. LED lighting can be found all the way around.

 

Interior/Tech/Convenience

The first thing you’ll notice when getting into the F-Pace is the build quality and the choice of gorgeous materials. There is a mix of open-pore wood and metal trim pieces and stitched leather panels on the dash and doors. Not only are the materials lovely, the contrast in colours is stunning as well. To top it all off, there is an alcantara headliner from the A-pillars all the way to the far recesses of the back. I looked for them – there appear to be no hard plastic surfaces anywhere you can touch. That’s very impressive!

The beautifully upholstered and perforated leather seats are heated, ventilated, very comfortable and reasonably-well bolstered for sporty driving. Both driver and passenger seats have three memory settings.

Jaguar has mounted the large 11.4-inch touchscreen such that it does not stick up over the dash – that’s an interesting change from most manufacturers these days. The screen looks fantastic and is very responsive. It handles your navigation, phone and vehicle settings, as well as the excellent Meridian sound system which has beautiful speaker grilles. The volume can be controlled via a little barrel-shaped rotary button on the centre console.

The gloss black sections of the dual-zone climate control panel are fingerprint magnets as you’ll see in the picture. But the overall cabin design is very nice and clean.

There’s plenty of driver assistance technology from blind-spot detection, a back-up camera, collision warning and braking and lane departure warning and plenty more – it all works quite nicely.

 

Rear Seats

The two-tone interior goes all the way back, so passengers in the rear will enjoy the styling as well. The two outboard passengers will be happy with comfortable, heated seats and plenty of head- and leg-room.

There is seating for three, but the middle position is narrow and raised, straddles a huge floor tunnel and also has to contend with a centre console that comes way too far back. So suffice it to say whoever sits there is not going to be happy. Let’s say it’s a rear seat designed for two.

The rear of the aforementioned console is home to adjustable air vents as well as two USB-Cs and a 12V plug. The middle seatback folds down to become an armrest with two cupholders and the massive panoramic sunroof extends over the rear seats, making the space nice and airy.

If you’re transporting little people, there are two sets of ISOFIX anchors for child seats.

 

Storage

Below the screen is a wireless charging mat for smartphones. On the console behind the gear selector is a nice scrolling lid that hides away the dual cupholders and a 12V plug, as well as a tiny bin. The armrest lid pops up to reveal a smallish but deep bin with USB-A, USB-C and 12V plugs.

There is a pass-through storage under the centre console – the surfaces are completely rubberized which is nice as it will keep your stuff from rattling around or sliding away.

Pop the powered liftgate to access the large 755L trunk. It has a nice high load floor, a 12V plug for accessories and convenient bag hooks. There’s a hard parcel shelf that flips up along with the trunk lid and hides the contents of your trunk from prying eyes.

If you need more cargo space, the rear seats split 60/40 and fold down giving you 1804L of room.

 

Under the Hood

Lurking under the shapely hood is a 3L turbocharged and supercharged inline-6 with a mild hybrid assist system putting out 395 HP and 406 lb.ft of torque, the latter available at a low 2,000 RPM. That power is routed through an 8-speed automatic transmission to all four corners via an all-wheel drive system.

Fuel economy is rated at 13.3/10 L/100 km (city/highway).

 

The Drive

The F-Pace 400 has no shortage of power. Off the line, it pulls hard reaching 100 km/h in 5.4 seconds. Even at highway speeds, accessing extra power to pass is quick and effortless. An added bonus – whenever you’re on the gas pedal with some urgency, the engine note is absolutely intoxicating!

The transmission is smooth and intelligent, generally feeling like it’s in the right gear for the current driving situation. You can choose a Sport mode, and you can shift gears manually using paddle shifters.

You can also use a central dial to select different driving modes – your choices are Eco, Rain/Ice/Snow, Comfort and Dynamic. Hilariously, there is also a crawl/hill-descent mode for the many, many F-Paces that will be taken off road.

The suspension feels as though it is tuned more toward the sport side of the spectrum. The result is that the F-Pace’s handling is very good, and even with a bit of body lean, it handles corners and curves with surprising athleticism and ease. The trade-off is that I found the ride to be firmer than expected – I could feel most expansion cracks and road imperfections in the vehicle, and found myself actively dodging even the smallest potholes because of this.

Braking is powerful (this R-Dynamic trim gets upgraded binders) and easy to modulate, and visibility out of the vehicle is quite good.

If you tow stuff, this combination can tow up to 2,400 kg (5,280 lb).

 

Nitpicks

I was surprised to find that the rear seats did not adjust at all – they don’t recline nor slide fore and aft.

I also was taken aback by the things that my review vehicle had that are considered options, considering many entry-level vehicles now include these things as standard equipment – like adaptive cruise control. Or other things that really should come as standard equipment at $74,000 – like heated rear seats.

 

The Verdict

Sorry readers – I know my WAF (Wife Approval Factor) section is a big hit – I’ve received many emails from readers saying it’s what they scroll to first and if she likes the vehicle, they’ll read about it. This time I can’t offer you her opinion as she did not drive the vehicle with me.

So where does the F-Pace fit in? Well, for starters you can certainly get a cheaper version, but you’ll also be giving up many of the goodies, in particular the juicy powertrain and some of the aesthetic stuff too.

In this price range, the F-Pace is going up against many heavy hitters in a massively competitive category, so you’ll need to decide what matters most to you. It certainly is a great-looking crossover that offers plenty of luxury, technology, comfort and utility to compete with the best of them. And hey, if you want to step up to the next level, there’s always the fire-breathing and very-nearly-insane 550-horsepower SVR as well.

Of note, I drove and reviewed a 2021, but there is no difference between the 2021 and 2022 F-Pace, only the model year.

Disclosure:  Vehicle was provided by Jaguar Edmonton.

If you enjoyed this review, feel free to check out my other vehicle reviews under the car reviews tab at the top of my blog.