Extended test: Jaguar F-Pace SVR 2022 review

2022 Jaguar F-Pace SVR specifications

Model 21-reg Jaguar F-Pace SVR 5.0 V8 550PS AWD AUTO
Price From £77,665 OTR
Price as tested (with options) £96,365 OTR
Cost options fitted SVO Premium Palette Chalk Blue £8,500; Light Oyster Semi-Aniline £1,100; Leather Performance seats with Light Oyster/Ebony Interior; Meridian™ Surround Sound System £420; Four-zone Climate Control £1,040; Air Quality Sensor £60; Loadspace partition net £215; Wireless device charging with phone signal booster £300; Lockable cooled glovebox £60; Privacy Glass £415; Solar attenuating windscreen £480; 22” Style 5081, forged, 5 split-spoke alloys in Satin Technical Grey with contrast Diamond Turned finish £800; Head-up Display £830; Sliding panoramic roof £1,600; Additional Power Sockets £80; Pixel LED headlights with signature DRL £1,300; Activity Key £325; Carbon Fibre Trim Finisher £1,175
Engine 5,000cc supercharged V8
Transmission 8-speed automatic by ZF, all-wheel drive
Power output 542bhp
Torque 516 lb ft
Kerb weight (EU) 2,133kg
Max trailer weight (braked / unbraked) 2,000kg / 750kg
Dimensions Length 4,747mm; width (folded mirrors) 2,071mm; height 1,664mm
Boot capacity (second row in place / folded) 619 litres / 1,662 litres
Top speed 178mph
Acceleration 0-62mph: 4.0sec
Official consumption (WLTP) 23.5mpg combined
CO2 emissions 275g/km combined
Road tax £15 for first year; £480 for years two-five; £145 thereafter
BIK tax rate (2022/23) 31%
Insurance group TBC

Test details

Test period June – November 2022
Starting mileage 2,268 miles

Test updates

July 14, 2022 What is the Jaguar F-Pace SVR?
September 1, 2022 Appreciating the more serene aspects of the Jaguar F-Pace SVR
October 4, 2022 Likes and don’t likes after three months with the SVR
November 6, 2022 Enjoying a dying breed
December 2, 2022 Final report: Curiosity for the cat

July 14, 2022: What is the Jaguar F-Pace SVR?

Jaguar F-Pace SVR long-term review by David Green

I have only been in my current home for a short period of time but good luck to my neighbours trying to guess my personality from my choice of car.

For the last six months I have been driving a grey Volvo XC90 plug-in hybrid. Very sensible, very calm. Now, in an apparent volte-face, I have ditched my sane Swedish wagon and opted for something very loud, both aurally and in colour, with four shiny exhausts exiting the rear.

May I introduce the Jaguar F-Pace SVR, my new extended test car. Not that the curtain twitchers next door would realise that; having thought they had the measure of me with my choice of safety-conscious, full-sipping practical transport, I have turned the tables with a supercharged V8 beast that immediately takes the crown as the most raucous car in the street.

In my neighbours’ eyes, I am clearly in possession of multiple personalities or going through some kind of hard-hitting, rapid-onset mid-life crisis.

I care not, though, as in my brief time with it so far I have come to really like this car.

It’s certainly not painted in my first choice of colour; something I’ve found myself telling this to anyone I meet, such as family, friends, other motorists at traffic lights….

That’s the lottery of motoring press cars. Their purpose in life is to attract attention and the F-Pace in SVO Premium Palette Chalk Blue is a winner on this front.

But a few weeks in, I am over the initial shock and growing more comfortable with its particular shade of blue. In my head it is closer to the Gulf sponsorship livery blue that has graced some of my favourite racing cars such as the Porsche 917. I have idly wondered more than once whether Jaguar would mind if applied an orange stripe and roundel on the bonnet and door to complete the look.

This car, to my mind, epitomises the Special Vehicle Operations division of Jaguar Land Rover. Yes, you could send your Rangie in for an exclusive paint application in a palette not available to the run-of-the-mill customer; you could even bulletproof your Disco with their guiding hand, no doubt. Yet, surely, the best use of their time is to take a practical SUV and add a healthy dose of optional fire and brimstone.

The F-Pace SVR even trumps the in-house hooligan Range Rover Sport SVR for sheer bonkers performance. There is something incredibly pleasurable (some would say childish) about seemingly bending the laws of physics as you throw a two-ton vehicle into a roundabout and accelerate out of it like you’re exiting the La Rascasse. It certainly gees me up more than an espresso shot in the morning.

Mind you, I may not have got quite so excited about being the custodian of a 542bhp, 5-litre brute had I known that fuel costs were going to rocket quite so much this year. You can almost put a price on every over-exuberant dash off the line. That squirt probably cost £2.56, I tell myself. But I never regret it.

Of course, these cars are dinosaurs looking at the meteor hurtling towards them. Not much longer for this world (well, Europe, at least), but my feeling is now we have established the direction of travel and electrification is an inevitability, not an option, these cars that represent the last great hurrah for a supercharged internal combustion engine can be enjoyed guilt-free for the brief time we have left with them. That’s my excuse anyway.

I will tell you more during my tenure about how it is to live with, the important stuff like running costs and load capacity. Yet for this first month behind the wheel, I had to blow off some steam and just talk about what a riot this car is in every sense.

Next month, I’ll try some drive modes other than ‘Dynamic’, not press the loud exhaust button and consider this car with a calmer, more discerning eye. My neighbours will be delighted.

Mileage today 3,371 miles
Distance since start 1,133 miles
Indicated long term consumption 21.5mpg

If you’d like to ask me a question about the Jaguar F-Pace SVR, please comment below. We try to check comments every week.

September 1, 2022: Appreciating the more serene aspects of the Jaguar F-Pace SVR

A month in and I have calmed down just enough to appreciate aspects of the SVR other than raw power and speed.

The F-Pace has now been around for six years, but Ian Callum’s award-winning design has aged well. The 2017 World Car of the Year and the World Car Design of the Year winner at the New York Auto Show is easy on the eye, disguising its size better than some of its rivals.

With the SVR embellishments, it’s more aggressive looking, but maybe that’s offset by the special order SVR colour scheme. And while the jury may still be out in my mind, I have had lots of ‘nice colour mate’ comments – and most seem genuine.

Negotiating the width restrictor recently at the Marlow Suspension Bridge – surely one of the narrowest around, or at least it felt like it with a crowd of pedestrians watching on – I heard one loud voice shout ‘I love the colour of your car.’ I looked up to see it was Chris Evans, so I guess that’s a celebrity endorsement of the paint scheme whether I asked for it or not.

Talking of width restrictors, I feel this car demands more of your attention as the car is fitted with 22” wheels which look great in a mixture of gloss black and grey, but an inch left or right in the wrong direction would spoil them in a grating instant.

I have found something in the F-Paces box of tricks that’s a great help for this. The 3D Surround Camera I thought may be a bit gimmicky, but I find myself using this a lot in these circumstances or car parks with tight spaces.

Select the left side rear three-quarter camera and you can see where the left front wheel is in relation to the wall or barrier – very handy in a high vehicle when you can’t see what’s lurking at ground level at the near side.

“I heard one loud voice shout ‘I love the colour of your car.’ I looked up to see it was Chris Evans”

As an everyday SUV, it works well. You get a reminder of the potential of the engine every time you fire it up with the rich rumble of the exhaust note. However, it can be driven sedately when you wish to.

For the last few weeks, I have had some longer trips to make and I am getting to see another side of this car. On a recent trip from London to Somerset, I managed just over 34mpg in Eco mode, which while not winning any awards, is not bad for a 5-litre SUV weighing just over 2,000kgs.

The ride is firm given its performance focus but not unsettling unless you are on the poorest of road surfaces.

The SVR comes with ‘Performance’ seats. They are beautifully finished with Light Oyster semi-aniline leather with a quilted pattern and although they are not thickly padded they are comfortable on long trips.

They are heated and, mercifully in the scorching summer we’ve just had, cooled. With that and the four-zone climate control, the inside of the F-Pace is a haven for whatever the British weather decides to throw at us.

A sliding panoramic roof is also a welcome option. Even at £1,600, I think it’s worth it for the way it opens up the interior and lets the light flood in.

Fast and furious month, followed by a calm and luxurious month. I wonder what next month will bring?

October 4, 2022: Likes and don’t likes after three months with the SVR

Month three of car ownership often comes with some shortfalls arising after the honeymoon period is over. For the F-Pace SVR, there is a shortlist emerging of things I would improve.

For instance, my last test car had a close and lock button on the tailgate. This was a handy option when carrying shopping from the back of the car. I miss this on the F-Pace and it’s probably something you should expect on a car built in 2022.

Also on my list of gripes, the collision warning is overly sensitive and intrusive … and unless I am missing something, it’s not easy to shut off. I have delved into the submenus to no avail. Handy when parallel parking, not so when you are slowly approaching another car at traffic lights. One for the ‘annoying’ column.

**The collision warning sensors on the Jaguar F-Pace SVR are a little overzealous**

Month three is also probably a good time to tackle a question that is popping up quite a lot, namely: what is the point of these high-powered, ultra-fast SUVs? The argument goes something like, “If you want an SUV, get an economical one; if you want a fast car, buy a sports car.”

I would tend to agree on the whole, and in the past I would certainly opt for, say, a diesel G Wagon over the bling AMG version. The petrol-powered version just seems excessive.

However, against my better judgement I have come to enjoy the breadth of this car’s abilities. On a family day out, I find myself loading the car to the max and pootling idly along in the slow lane in Eco mode, happy to enjoy the luxury and elevated driving position. Yet, when I have to get across the country on my own, I have found myself looking forward to jumping into the SVR, engaging Dynamic mode and basically driving it like I stole it (even if I obviously don’t exploit the car’s 178mph top speed).

This Jekyll and Hyde nature to the car is appealing, especially if circumstances determine you are a one-car household. Admittedly an expensive one-car household, at almost £100,000 to buy as optioned on this model. You find yourself appreciating the engineering brains that have allowed this car to challenge the laws of physics.

The solo driving days I look forward to are always accompanied by a music selection, and the Jaguar’s Meridian stereo is more than up for the job. The sound is crisp and clear, with a deep bass that doesn’t distort even at high volume. It doesn’t quite reach the heady heights of my personal benchmark, the Bentley Naim system, but it is very good nonetheless.

And if you get bored of singing along to the playlist, the sound of this car’s exhaust, especially with the loud button pressed, produces a glorious soundtrack all of its own.

November 6, 2022: Enjoying a dying breed

Jaguar F-Pace SVR shoot with David Green

The F-Pace has always been one of the sportier SUVs and this apex F-Pace, the SVR, turns the wick right up. Yet it’s remarkably versatile. It is a purring kitten when you want it to be and a ferocious big cat when prodded.

Jaguar and the Special Vehicle Operations department have raided the parts bin and used what they learnt with the special edition XE Project 8 super saloon to give this car a character I have come to appreciate. Steering is weighted perfectly and I like the sharp throttle response, not to mention the addictive sound the engine emits.

You can also play with the drivetrain and damping if you delve into the submenu settings. It can get a bit geeky but also rewarding to find to best set-up for a particular drive.

The tech is mostly excellent. I have found the AHBA (Auto High Beam Assist) system on the car to be effective, especially on country roads. Like its rivals’ systems, it adapts the beam to mask oncoming traffic and signs, but it seems to work very well on this car and you can relax with it on, with no fear of dazzling other drivers.

The adaptive cruise control and lane assist systems, on the other hand, are not as alert as others I have used (namely Volvos) and can be a little slow to react.

As you will have gathered from my earlier reports, I am an admirer of the revamped interior of the F-Pace.

A particular upgrade over the original F-Pace is the infotainment system which now gets the new Pivi Pro set up that is on par with the latest Land Rovers. The 11.4in touchscreen is intuitive with crisp graphics and supports both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The £300 optional wireless device charging (with phone signal booster) has been regularly used while I have had this car and is becoming a ‘must have’ option on a new car in my opinion. This SVR also comes with 12.3 inch digital instrumentation and a clear and easy-to-read head-up display.

Overall the F-Pace SVR manages the trick of being both luxurious and sporty – it feels like a grand tourer with a bit more space and a higher stance. I’m sure it will get me out of trouble in a muddy spot but in reality, this car works best on smooth sweeping roads covering vast distances in comfort. Besides this car is far too pretty for any serious off-road hardships.

Driving long distances does come at a price, though, especially these days with war and inflation pushing fuel costs into a realm previously unseen. I have tried to keep this in mind when reviewing the SVRs fuel consumption, but the £135 plus refills every 350 miles approx. does start to hurt.

Jaguar has struggled with its saloons of late, and despite the relative success of the F-Type, it’s been the Pace models that have flown the flag for the manufacturer as we transition into the brave new world of electric-only vehicles from 2025. It may not quite be like the golden days of ‘race on Sunday, sell on Monday,’ but Jaguar will be hoping these sporty SUVs will keep the brand in the front of people’s minds before we see the new raft of electric offerings.

December 2, 2022 Final report: Curiosity for the cat

David Green drives the Jaguar F-Pace SVR review - exterior cornering shot

My last month with the Jaguar and we have become firm friends. I have to admit to being slightly sceptical when this bright blue, fire-breathing SUV was initially dropped off at my door, but it’s become a welcome sight. I have got to know its wild side, but also appreciate its more practical qualities.

I have found throughout my time with the car, there is a duality to almost every aspect of the car. It has been bearable on fuel economy and then on occasion, not so tolerable. It’s felt hard and fast, but also luxurious and comforting.

Yet, my interpretation at any one time is more down to my personality or my particular mood when driving the car than anything else. Select drive and potter about and it will do as it’s told. Select manual, turn everything up including the exhausts and it will oblige with an array of tools and tricks that will set your hair on fire.

Giving the Jaguar F-Pace SVR its final clean before I hand it back, I found reminders of what we have been through together over the last five months. The sweet wrapper under the seat from a fairly energetic solo cross-country drive; detritus in the boot from visits to the garden centre. It’s been a weekend sports car enjoyed solely for the act of driving, as well as a minivan used for the most mundane everyday tasks.

Build quality has been faultless with nothing breaking or not working during my time with the car.

Should you buy one? As always, it’s down to the needs of the buyer. If you just need an SUV to carry kids, bikes and groceries, I would give it a miss. If you’re looking for thrills on a daily basis and don’t need the extra space that often, bypass the Jaguar and buy a lightweight sports car. But as I said earlier in my tenure, if you only have room for one car in your life and you need a load-lugger and have a penchant for the higher stance of an SUV over an estate car, and if you want to have some fun in an extraordinarily quick vehicle, the Jaguar F-Pace SVR is worth some serious consideration.

I found it a little less obvious a purchase than say a BMW X5M of a Range Rover Sport SVR. Despite its outward displays of power and potential speed – quad exhausts, aggressive bodywork – it’s still a bit of a Q car where if you know, you know.

Strangers who have approached me while I have had this car (and there have been a lot) fall into two distinct categories. The first is those who have no idea what it is or were unfamiliar with this particular flavour of F-Pace; this group would be genuinely inquisitive and want to know all I could tell them, even if it was in the time it took the traffic lights to turn green. And then there were those ‘in the know’ who were keen to signal to me that they knew. The comments would range from “that thing’s unbelievable” to “wicked car mate” to a simple “naughty”.

Most of my neighbours will probably not shed a tear to see it go, but one local asked me where the car had gone after not seeing it for a few days. “That’s a shame,” he said, “Got to be my favourite car I’ve seen in a long time.” I know what he means. I’ll miss my naughty car.

This extended test has now ended.