New Jaguar F-Type review, test drive

We drive Jaguar's stunning new 2013 F-Type V8 S in Mumbai.

Published on Jul 08, 2013 03:04:00 PM

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The other problem we often encounter with sportscars in India is that they're normally too stiffly sprung and hard, and that makes them difficult to use here. It isn’t just bone-jarring ride quality per se, but also the ability to put down power cleanly. Jaguar, however, has taken care of that with the new F-Type. The ride is really absorbent and at times even shockingly comfortable. This means you can drive over some really rough patches, especially on our city roads here in Mumbai, which makes this car just so much more usable.

What you do get accustomed to very quickly is the extra attention from bikers and motorists, many of them with phones on the ready. Escaping them, once an appropriate opportunity presents itself however, is no sweat. And Mumbai’s new Eastern Freeway is one such opportunity. This new 14km-long elevated freeway is the ideal place to stretch the F-Type’s legs.

Jag has always been good at supercharged engines, but this V8 feels like it has just everything you need. It is responsive, always on the ball as soon as you hit the throttle and push harder, and you soon come face-to-face with the ferociously strong top end. The shove in the back once the car is able to put the power down is so strong that it feels nothing short of supercar-quick in bursts. And what makes driving this monster of a car even better is the phenomenal soundtrack. Put the hood down and you can hear the howl from the quad pipes in the back in surround sound. It pops, crackles and growls when you lift off and then goes completely bananas when you stand on the throttle.