Jaguar F-Type R P575 AWD 2020 UK first drive

The car’s styling overhaul is where much of the facelift budget has been spent, you’d imagine – and you’ll have your own take on its effectiveness. It split opinion at Autocar, with a small majority preferring the car’s new sleeker, suspiciously fashionable ‘liquid metal’ looks and Jaguar Jaguar I-Pace-style grille – but notable dissenters making their criticism known also. If the redesign’s job was to draw your attention to the car afresh, though, you’d call it a pretty clear success; if anything, perhaps too great a success.

That’s because the car’s cabin’s mostly as it was, and the driving experience hasn’t changed much either. We’ll get to the latter in due course. As for the former, there are some new trims materials dotted about (I liked the matt black interior doorpulls of our test car, but others didn’t); there’s a new digital instrument cluster; and, among a handful of other changes, there’s a new 10in central infotainment system that adds smartphone mirroring and over-the-air software update capability.

The F-Type remains a strict two-seater and a pretty compact-feeling one at that, although its credentials as a long-striding GT car or a daily-driver would be strong. Occupant space is a little bit limited; not so much that a 6ft 3in driver couldn’t get perfectly comfortable, although if I’d been in need of another couple of inches of either legroom or headroom, I might not have been so comfy. Our test car had bucket-style seats with fixed ‘integrated’-style head restraints, but they were pretty thickly padded, had adjustable cushions and were comfortable over long distance. Boot space is good in the case of the coupe, although access to it is via a slimmish hatchback aperture.  

Following neighbour Aston Martin’s lead, Jaguar has added a ‘quiet start’ mode to the F-Type R; sort of. Switch the car into ‘dynamic’ driving mode, or activate the exhaust’s noisy mode, before hitting the starter button and you’ll get an engine startup routine with all the audible blood and thunder that we’ve come to expect from JLR’s Bridgend-built 5.0-litre supercharged V8. Leave both well alone and you get a more reserved throat-clearance act which might allow you to escape the wrath of your family and neighbours when leaving home early in the morning.

Plenty of sports car buyers instinctively gravitate towards the top-of-the-line option, and this F-Type won’t disappoint them for overall usability or excitement. The car mixes the richness, refinement, high-speed stability and comfort of a fast GT with the driver reward of something smaller and more purposeful quite skilfully – and it’s that blend that a front-mounted engine allows it to deliver better than most differently configured rivals.

It’ll be interesting to find out whether this full-house F-Type is the pick of the facelifted range for those who don’t necessarily need the biggest and braggiest option, though, or whether that’s the new mid-range, rear-drive V8 model. The ‘R’’s handling accuracy and drivability might have been improved a little, but it remains a bit of a brute.