Jaguar I-PACE - Loving the Style... Still a Little Anxious

Four and a half years ago when I was offered the opportunity to review the Jaguar I-PACE, I jumped at it. I figured it might be the only chance I get - did these people not realise I didn't know anything about cars? That I was a mere tech reviewer, who was more likely to be distracted by how the reversing camera works than how fast the car can accelerate?

It was one of the most expensive cars I'd ever sat in, let alone driven, and as such I was completely mesmerised by a host of "luxury" features I would later discover were mostly commonplace with other vehicles in this league (ie: way, way, way out of mine).

The hook was the "E" bit of this particular EV. Remember, this was March, 2019. Nowadays it's not uncommon to be surrounded by full-electric, PHEV or hybrid cars at any given set of traffic lights but back then, if you saw a car like the I-PACE on your commute it might be worthy of a mention at the family dinner table once you got home.

How quickly everything's changed. 

And how surprised was I when Jaguar invited me back for another go?

In a classic bit of "If it ain't broke..." reasoning, the latest Jaguar I-PACE doesn't look dramatically different from the one I took around the block four years ago. These things are entirely subjective, obviously, but I think I could mount a pretty convincing argument that as EVs go, the I-PACE is still one of the best looking on the road.

This is because my personal taste leans towards cars that look like cars - not like something from a 1970s sci-fi vision of how cars might look in the year 2000. For too long too many carmakers have decided to make their EVs look "ultra-modern" instead of just cool - unusual curves, spoilers and odd-shaped doors and windows seem to be compulsory for some reason.

I get that reducing drag improves battery life - but good aerodynamics have always been a crucial part of automotive design.

The I-PACE is an EV exception here. Yes, there are both front and rear spoilers but they're not at all in-your-face and this battery-powered Jag doesn't look so wildly different from many of the other models.

This theme follows through to the interior design - most conspicuously notable with the continued absence of any kind of oversized tablet screen, jammed into the central console. Again, this seems to be a "feature" most other EV manufacturers have deemed mandatory - even more conventional, ICE-powered cars often have stupidly large, ugly screens sticking up out of the dashboard these days. I don't like the way they look. I don't like the space they take up. I don't like the general detritus that tends to accumulate within their unsightly nooks and crannies. And I don't like how much more difficult they make it to keep your console and windscreen clean.

The I-PACE doesn't have a dumb, giant screen like that. It has three much more subtle ones instead.

The smallest screen is part of the climate and seat-temperature control system, situated between the gear controls (a vertical row of clearly labelled push buttons) on one side and the driving mode controls (a vertical row of clearly labelled push buttons) on the other. Like most aspects of the I-PACE, the temperature of both the air and the seats can be adjusted using a very intuitive combination of on-screen touch commands and physical push-pull dials. There's even an MAX AC button which is just the ticket if you're getting into an extremely hot or far-too-chilly car. After I'd been parked in the hot sun the other day, running MAX AC for just a minute or so cooled things to my preferred temp immediately.

Alternatively, I could have used the Go I-PACE app to "pre-condition" the car from my phone - unfortunately, as I don't own the I-PACE, it's paired with somebody else's phone, so I couldn't give the app a try.

The main or "upper" screen is set flush into the dashboard and is quite tweakable. There's a large selection of widgets you can choose to display on the home screen - everything from media controls and navigation to a summary of how your driving style is affecting power efficiency. This is another thing too many EV designs are seemingly obsessed with; are you about to run out of battery? Think about it; running out of petrol is a real hassle too, yet how many ICE cars have a massive fuel gauge taking up most of a TV-sized screen in the middle of the dash? That's why the I-PACE lets you decide whether you want to see that info or not. In fact, you can turn the whole main display off if you want. I love that.

I also appreciate the way you can choose between light and dark modes - just like on your phone. And it goes without saying the I-PACE offers full Apple Carplay or Android Auto connectivity - with a wireless charging pad for your phone tucked inconspicuously underneath the main controls.

The third display is where you'd find the speedometer on most conventional cars. This is also surprisingly customisable. Using the conveniently-placed thumbwheel control on the left side of the steering wheel, you can choose two dials or just one, then select which information panels you prefer. Navigation? Media? Battery stats? Nothing at all? Up to you.

Like many other clever cars, the I-PACE also offers a heads-up display, projected onto the windscreen in front of the driver. This can also be customised slightly, adding media details and navigation commands if you like. HUD systems like this should be mandatory on all vehicles - if you ask me, being able to watch your speed while you watch the road is a big safety upgrade.

Not all safety features are welcome though. The I-PACE makes a mellow yet all-too-audible beeping noise as soon as you put it into reverse. This is to do with EU safety regulations apparently and it can't be deactivated. Perhaps not a big issue for most people but when I leave for my breakfast radio job at 3:15AM each morning, I'm more popular when I don't wake everybody else up just by backing out of my garage.

Reversing and parking generally is aided by an excellent rear camera and an overhead graphic representation of any potential collisions as spotted by the I-PACE's collection of built-in proximity detectors. And when it comes to looking backwards, there's one more tech trick which might just be my favourite.

The I-PACE looks cool but the rear window is not the most practical. It's rather small and if you have a couple of passengers in the back seats, chances are they'll be obstructing what you can see in the interior rear view mirror anyway. That's why Jaguar came up with the Clearsight rear view mirror - flicking it up activates the external camera built into the back of the radio aerial module on the roof. This feed is then displayed on the mirror in bright, crystal clarity - completely free of any obstructions at all. Again, a feature I'd like to see on any car, not just this one.

The seats are adjustable in just about any way you can imagine - not just temperature-wise as already discussed. Again, the controls a quite instinctual; a common sense combo of a horizontal bar for height, a vertical bar to move forward or back and a four-way remote-control-like button to adjust your lumbar configuration. Once you've got everything just right, this setup can be saved to one of the memory buttons on the driver's door - just like a favourite station on the radio.

Of course, the radio is operated via the main touch screen or thumb controls on the steering wheel - again this is very organic. Forget balance and fader sliders - just use the on-screen graphic to place the sound exactly where you want in the cabin.

The I-PACE is connected to the mobile network via its own sim - this means the car's software can keep itself up-to-date and the on-board navigation should always be current too. Although I found Jaguar's map system worked well and looked good on all the displays, I soon reverted to Apple Maps via Carplay because the I-PACE's voice control leaves something to be desired. It never understood my navigation instructions and I'd have to end up typing them in on-screen. Boring. Siri seems to understand me so much better.

As for the driving experience? Well, what would I know? One thing that definitely hasn't changed since 2019 is I still don't know anything about cars. It accelerates way faster than I need it to and can drive at far higher speeds than I dare to. However, I still can't say I'm cured of my range anxiety. EVs have been around for a while now, yet when I get in to find I can only drive 380kms or so on 100% charge - that doesn't seem particularly impressive.

I'm also still somewhat unconvinced by the current state of charging technology - admittedly I don't have a fast-charger installed in my house which meant I really had to keep it plugged into the mains supply whenever I wasn't driving it in order to keep it topped up. This proved relatively expensive - adding as much as $10 a day to my usual household power consumption due to the fact I wasn't able to make use of the I-PACE's scheduled charging options at low-rate times. A fast charge of cheaper power would definitely make more sense and I suppose if I could afford a $129,000.00 car, I could probably afford a high-capacity charger to go with it.

That being said, I never even came close to running out of juice while going about my daily (70km+) commute or other regular driving activities.

In every way, the I-PACE is still an absolute pleasure to drive - primarily because it looks and feels like a real car, not some kind of spaceship on drugs. It still has all the high-tech features you'd expect from a high-end vehicle like this - even individual tyre-pressure sensors in each valve for real-time monitoring - but they're all subtle, and many of them can be turned off and ignored once set up or if you simply don't want to use them. That's why I still love this car; its essential "car-ness" - and why I found it so hard to hand back.

    

Click here for more information on the Jaguar I-PACE.