Jaguar F-Type 2014 Car Auto Review

Today is going to be a good day, we’re driving along my favorite roads in the Peak District, in the glorious Jaguar F-Type convertible. I grew up driving super-minis and hot hatches around here, but none of their engines sounded anywhere near as good as the 3.0-liter supercharged V6 fitted in this F-Type S. And while a convertible might not quite suit the weather today, it means you can hear every rumble and pop from the active sports exhaust, which unbelievably gets even louder if you press this button. In fact, there’s plenty to keep your attention in here, from the aviation grade switch to cycle through winter, normal and competition driving modes, the pulsing starter button and the air vents which sink into the dash without a trace when you don’t need them.

The steering wheel is just the right size, and the paddles are easy to reach, but feel a bit more plastic than we might have hoped. While we’re finding faults, the infotainment system works well, but the touch-screen’s graphics look just a bit dated. Like all two-seat roadsters, the cabin is snug, but the F-Type doesn’t feel as claustrophobic as some rivals. The 911 Cabriolet is more practical though, as it has small rear seats for kids or a few bags of shopping. You won’t buy an F-Type convertible for its boot, but for trips away its 200-liter capacity and awkward shape will mean careful packing is a necessity. On the plus side, it stays the same when you fold down the roof, which neatly raises again in 12 seconds at speeds up to 30mph.

You’ll need it lowered to experience what this beautiful successor to the legendary Jaguar E-Type is all about. With 375bhp, this V6 S sits above the 335bhp V6 and below the omnipotent 488bhp V8 and can reach 62mph in a scant 4.8 seconds. And you know what, on these roads I’m happy to admit that just under 400bhp is plenty of power to scare the local sheep and probably myself as well. It’s the one we’d go for in Britain, where our roads are of the narrow and bumpy variety. The steering is really quick to respond and the adaptive damping that’s so great at filtering out lumpy tarmac, tightens up in corners to keep the car flat. Because this is an S, we’ve also got a limited slip differential to improve traction out of corners, where the F-Type can be rather playful. In Dynamic mode the eight-speed ‘Quick-shift’ automatic gearbox only adds to the excitement as lunges of acceleration are briefly interrupted with rapports from the exhaust.

So, the F-Type Convertible might not be the most practical of cars, but somehow if we had the 70 grand needed to buy one, we doubt that would stop us. In every other way the F-Type is easy to live with, it’s small enough to park anywhere and thread through traffic, surprisingly comfortable and this one returns 32mpg. But really, on a test drive, it’s the noise which sells this car and the £350 optional Active Sports Exhaust has to be one of the easiest option boxes to tick of all time. I mean, just listen to the noise it makes. And the great thing is, you don’t even have to be driving flat-out, because its brassy notes permeate through the soft top at anything over walking speed.