Jaguar I-Pace review: All-electric £60,000 SUV is the game-changer that will convince you to plug in
The Sun on Sunday's Motoring Editor Nick Francis is among the first journalists on the planet to try the new Jaguar SUV that's due to launch later this year
“GAME CHANGER” is an over-used term.
The discovery of penicillin was a game-changer.
So was the cut loaf. And the invention of the internet.
But lactose-free milk? Not a game-changer. Neither is Bitcoin. And the film La La Land changed nothing other than my opinion of the once-cool Ryan Gosling. If you want to see what a game-changer looks like, have a look at these photos.
This is the Jaguar I-Pace — and I am lucky enough to be one of the first journalists on the planet to drive it.
Let me tell you now, it’s the car that will convince you to go electric. You don’t want to buy an EV because you’re worried it won’t have a long enough range, right? The I-Pace will manage 300 miles per charge, we’re assured.
You worry EVs are slow and sluggish. The I-Pace thumps out 0-62mph in four seconds. So far EVs tend to be small and impractical for big families, but the I-Pace is an SUV that can hold five and a load of junk in the boot.
The cherry on the top is the fact it looks as fit as a butcher’s dog.
In the frozen wastelands of Arjeplog in Sweden — a yawning expanse of iced-over lakes and snow-coated highways — Jaguar has been punishing the I-Pace with cold-weather testing. That’s where I headed to drive through snowdrifts, spending as much time going sideways as possible.
I still can’t comment on how it will behave on roads. But I can assure you the I-Pace has all the fizz and excitement of a petrol-powered sports car.
Key facts: Jaguar iPace
Price: £60,000 (estimated)
Engine: Two electric motors, producing a total of 294kW
Economy: 300 mile range on a single charge (claimed)
0-62mph: 4 seconds
Top speed: Unknown
Length: 4.6 metres
Its firm footedness, even with traction control dialled back, was staggering, especially considering I was driving on 10ft-thick ice. That’s partly thanks to an almost exactly 50/50 weight distribution, achieved by running the 90kWh battery along the entire bottom of the car, starting at the A pillar and ending at the C pillar.
All that weight on its belly means the I-Pace has a very low centre of gravity, which equals faster lap times and safer handling. Jaguar knows battery range anxiety and lack of charging points are the biggest factors in putting people off making the switch to electric.
And even though the claimed 300 miles is healthy for an EV, it has introduced cool tech which will soothe long-journey nerves.
Although tight-lipped on what the system will be called, Jag says the I-Pace will calculate whether you can get to and from your destination without charging.
That means you’ll never get somewhere only to find you can’t reach a charging station. Jaguar announced this week the I-Pace will charge in 45 minutes on a rapid charge setting. The EV race is charging up. It is a new and uncharted market.
Audi is readying to launch a solid rival — the E-Tron Quattro — and an all-electric Mini is currently in its testing phase, launching in 2019.
A motoring press officer’s job is not always an easy one. Even when it’s a dog of a car they have to convince the room, and themselves, it isn’t an ugly bag of spanners.
all you need to know about electric cars
The Jaguar press officers have no such problem here. The British brand has secured an early advantage with the I-Pace .
I’ll leave you with a fun fact. I searched for all the times I’ve ever used “game-changer” in this column.
I used it once before — last May, writing about the Jaguar I-Pace.