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In 2020, Jaguar launched a much improved version of their smallest SUV, the E-PACE. Like the earlier version, it aimed to give buyers another, very interesting option in the growing segment for premium-badged compact SUVs. But delivered its proposition in much smarter packaging.
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History
The E-PACE was the small Jaguar SUV that was supposed to push the brand's sales to a whole new level. Launched in 2017, it certainly opened up a fresh conquest segment for the company, but three years into production hadn't been quite as successful as the marketeers had hoped. The 2021 model year though, bought this heavily revised version.
The name suggests an electric connection - misleadingly as it turns out. Back in 2020 Jaguar had another SUV - the battery-powered I-PACE - to provide that. But the E-PACE did gain a pretty significant degree of electrification in this improved form, thanks to the completely fresh 'Premium Transverse Architecture' platform that allowed it to offer mild hybrid petrol and diesel units, plus a freshly added PHEV plug-in variant. There was also a thoroughly upgraded interior with vastly improved media tech. And subtle changes outside to round things off.
Like the original E-PACE, this updated version shared just about all its engineering with its JLR cousin and arguably closest rival, the Range Rover Evoque. But where that car was launched to an established bank of loyal customers, the E-PACE had to carve out a complete fresh niche for itself - which didn't prove to be easy. Firstly because the brand had to import it from a production line in Austria, so pricing was inevitably of the premium sort. And secondly because the fluid handling reviewers and customers expected from a Jaguar was originally hobbled by steel underpinnings so weighty that they made early versions of this car heavier than the brand's bigger F-PACE SUV in the next class up. Which then of course blighted running costs and efficiency too.
In 2020 at the launch of this revised model, the brand claimed that the 'PTA' platform and associated engineering of this revised model would make a huge difference to both these issues. To some extent it did, but sales were still slow. A base P160 petrol variant was added in 2020; and the top P300e PHEV was replaced by a P270e variant in 2024. All E-PACE sales ceased finally when Jaguar pulled out of the new car market at the end of 2024.
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What you get
Where rival brands merely shrink larger models to create more compact SUVs, Jaguar opted to create something quite different with the E-PACE. This, according to the Coventry company, was always 'the sportscar of its class'. It certainly has much more of a purposeful look than most of its rivals from this era, especially in facelifted form. And that's all thanks to what the designers claimed was inspiration borrowed from their F-TYPE sportscar.
Which is appropriate because though, by and large, buyers of compact SUVs aren't especially bothered if their cars don't drive in a particularly sporting manner, they do like them to look sporty - as this one certainly does at the front, where the changes made to this updated model were subtle but significant. The new LED headlamps gained a more distinctive 'Double J' Daytime Running Light signature above base trim; and they flank a smarter grille with diamond detailing. Further down, there's a revised lower aperture incorporating a more distinctive blade element. Most variants also featured animated directional indicators - and virtually all featured the brand's 'R-Dynamic' styling package, primarily identifiable at the front by a less cluttered finish for the huge corner cut-outs.
At the side, if you happen to be familiar with Jaguar's mid-sized F-PACE SUV, the reduction in size of this E-PACE will be particularly obvious. Approach from the rear and you'll find the taut surfaces and the muscular haunches fusing with the sharp lines of smarter I-PACE-inspired LED light clusters that incorporate a 'race circuit chicane' illuminated graphic and also gain animated directional indicators. It's all very different from this model's F-PACE stablemate - as is what lies beneath. In place of the sophisticated aluminium structure of that larger SUV, the E-PACE used the steel-based underpinnings the same as those found in compact Land Rover models like the Range Rover Evoque and the Discovery Sport.
Inside, as part of this update, the ambiance was smartened with nicer materials and enhanced screen connectivity. You sit a little higher than in most rivals and F-TYPE sportscar references include the way that the driver's zone arches round you, designated by double-stitching that flows across the instrument binnacle and down into the unusual grab handle that frames the left hand side of the centre stack. The three-spoke dished steering wheel's also recognisable from the F-TYPE too, which was one of many redesigned features in this much improved model's cabin. The others include the more tactile gear lever with its smart 'cricket ball' stitching and a classier shiny black finish for the round ventilation dials just above.
Despite all of that though, what an earlier E-PACE owner would be most likely to notice first about this enhanced interior is its significant step forward in media evolution. A more sophisticated central 11.4-inch 'Pivi Pro' screen brought things more up to date and could complemented by a (usually optional) 12.3-inch 'Interactive Driver Display' instrument binnacle screen. There's plenty of storage space too - between the seats, at the bottom of the centre stack and in the large glovebox or the big door bins.
When it's time to take a seat in the rear, the swept-back roof line suggests that headroom in the back might be at something of a premium, but in the event, rear seat head room is actually quite good - and will be even if your E-PACE features an optional panoramic glass roof. The cabin will feel pretty cramped if you have to fit in a third occupant, but that's par for the course in this segment and you do at least get a noticeably low centre transmission tunnel, plus neat little rear C-pillar mini-windows let in a bit of extra light.
As for the boot, well the hatch rises to reveal one of the largest luggage compartments in the compact SUV segment, offering a 577-litre capacity that can easily swallow a folded buggy, a full set of golf clubs sideways or six flight suitcases. When everything's folded, your floor area will be almost flat, freeing up 1,234-litres of total capacity.
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What to look for
There were plenty of happy E-PACE customers in our ownership survey - but also quite a few with issues, so choose with care. A number seem to have been experiencing transmission issues. In these cases, the first problem apparently arises while driving, when the car can kick itself out of gear, then doesn't allow the driver to put it back into gear, so a tow is required. The second problem seems to be centred around a delay, possibly between the engine and the gearbox. When the car is put into gear, there is a lapse of a few seconds before the vehicle moves. When it does decide to move forward, it jumps or leaps.
We've also come across issues with throttle pedal sensitivity and a lack of feel; drivers of cars affected report that even the slightest movement of their foot when traversing tarmac bumps causes jerky acceleration and deceleration; look for this on your test drive. In other cases, owners have reported random engine shut downs, forcing the car into 'limp' mode. Jaguar put out a software patch to try and fix this problem. And the company was forced to put out a recall concerning the 2.0-litre petrol powerplant because it was discovered that the fuel rail end caps could leak, which might result in fuel leaking into the engine bay.
Other E-PACE owners have reported issues with their metalised windscreens. The windscreens contain metal oxide to help block UV rays protecting the vehicle's cabin, keeping it cooler and cutting down on glare. But it turns out that these metalised windscreens are also blocking radio waves, GPS signals, toll transponders, and even cell phones. Some E-PACE owners have had to consider installing external transmitters and receivers to deal with this problem.
With the PHEV version, make sure the charging lead isn't damaged; and that the car charges as it should. Check all these things on your test drive - and look out for scuffed alloy wheels that could be pricey to fix. Obviously, insist on a full service history.
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Replacement parts
(approx based on a 2017 Jaguar E-PACE P300e) A Jaguar oil filter is in the £21 bracket. An air filter is in the £10-£35 bracket and a pollen filter costs typically between £9 and £11. Front brake pads sit in the £60-£87 bracket; rears will sit in the £45-£63 bracket. Front brake discs sit in the £50-£115 bracket; rear discs are about £34-£79. An alternator is in the £1,045-£1245 bracket. A genuine Jaguar starter motor is around £550, but 12V starter motors start in the £130-£165 bracket.
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On the road
So what might the 'Jaguar' of premium compact SUVs be like? You might wonder. After all, an eclectic combination of ingredients were used in creating this E-PACE model. Most of its underpinnings are derived from smaller Land Rovers, which means the need for a steel platform rather than the lighter aluminium structure used in the brand's larger F-PACE SUV. But that platform was embellished with this revised model, incorporating the company's electrified 'PTA' 'Premium Transverse Architecture' chassis, which made possible the installation of a fresh range of mild hybrid petrol and diesel engines, also shared with the Evoque and the Discovery Sport.
The base D165 diesel unit isn't electrified and comes only in manual front-driven form. Otherwise though, all E-PACEs have automatic transmission and four driven wheels. If you want an MHEV diesel, there are four cylinder 2.0-litre D165 and D200 options, those figures designating output. A typical D200 AWD auto variant manages 43.4mpg on the combined cycle and 171g/km of CO2, an unspectacular showing by class standards that's clearly affected by this Jaguar's quite hefty 1.8-tonne kerb weight.
There are also four petrol engines to consider - two mainstream options (the P200 and the P250) and beyond that a P300 Sport performance model which gets a more sophisticated 'Active Driveline' 4WD system with an active rear axle that can vary torque between the rear wheels at speed through the turns. That only leaves the priciest P300e Plug-in hybrid variant (replaced at the end of production by a mechanically very similar P270e model), which uses a three cylinder 1.5-litre PHEV petrol/electric plug-in powerplant paired with an 8-speed auto gearbox. This combination's boosted with a 109PS electric motor powered by a 15kWh battery pack that when charged can offer up to 34 miles of driving range.
Whatever powerplant you prefer, it worth finding a car whose original owner specified the optional Jaguar 'Adaptive Dynamics' variable damping system, which was well worth paying extra for; without it, there's no way of influencing the improved but still occasionally rather over-firm ride. This works through the various settings of the 'Jaguar Drive Control' driving modes system, which allows you to tweak steering response, throttle feel and gearshift timings. In this revised model, the steering was a little more feelsome and highway refinement improved too. Inevitably, off road prowess isn't to Land Rover standards but there's decent ground clearance and all 4WD models can to up to 1.8-tonnes.
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Overall
Even though it sold poorly, the E-PACE was ultimately one of the most significant cars that Jaguar ever made. The first to be manufactured outside the UK. The first to attack the volume part of the SUV market. And the car tasked with pushing the brand's global annual sales beyond the 250,000 mark for the first time. It attracted a whole new generation of customers to the company's showrooms and we can see why, combining as it did dynamic Jaguar body language with the fashionable practicality of a compact SUV.
The brand reckoned that this car 'energised' its segment - and to some extent it did. Yes, if you judge it as a Jaguar, there are questions to ask here. If though, you analyse this model's merit as a compact SUV, you'll find there's lots to like.
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