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2019 Jaguar F-Pace SVR First Drive Review | Magnificent beast

ST. TROPEZ, France — Summarizing a new car in just two words is a wicked challenge, but here goes: Magnificent beast. That's the nickname Jaguar's engineering team gave the 2019 F-Pace SVR, and ... spoiler alert ... it's actually a damn fine descriptor for the 550-horsepower sport ute. The hot-rod SUV genre has been endlessly expanding, pioneered by the likes of the Porsche Cayenne. Recent contenders like the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio and Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 keep the competition on its toes by busting Nurburgring Nordschleife lap records that shamed supercars from just a few years ago. The Jaguar F-Pace SVR arrives a tad late to the high-speed party. Previously available with as much as 380 horsepower from a supercharged V6, the new SVR plays ball packing a 5.0-liter V8 beneath its vented hood. The supercharged mill punches 550 hp and 502 lb-ft through an eight-speed ZF automatic. Power is routed to all four wheels, naturally, but the SVR is also the first F-Pace to get torque vectoring thanks to an electronically controlled rear differential. Also aiding the F-Pace through the corners are stiffer springs, reprogrammed adaptive Bilstein dampers, 12-inch forged aluminum wheels and a brake-based torque vectoring system. Additional go-fast goodies include lift-reducing aero, better engine ventilation, and larger four-piston front and two-piston rear ventilated brakes housed in larger 21-inch wheels. The F-Pace SVR's cabin offers more sporty austerity than before. Slimmer, supportive 10-way adjustable seats echo the SUV's more focused road manners, as do aggressive color schemes, contrast stitching, and a suede headliner. Small touches also signal the sharper edges, including an F-Type-derived shifter in place of the mediocre rotary gear selector. It doesn't inherit Jaguar's latest dual-screen infotainment system, updated steering wheel, or second-gen heads up display, as does the recently updated XE sedan. The F-Pace SVR shares a similar tune to the 575-hp F-Type SVR, but the SUV's V8 fires up with a milder bark. A new exhaust valve adjusts its butterfly valves gradually, avoiding the "light switch" transition from quiet to loud. And speaking of loud, while the blarty exhaust note isn't as in-your-face as some of Jaguar's more vocal models, U.S. versions might be slightly raspier since the European model I was driving was equipped with a gasoline particulate filter that has a slight muffling effect.

Jaguar Land Rover gets to work on new university R&D center

Jaguar Land Rover has a raft of new products in the pipeline, from the new Defender to the next-generation XF sedan. But new product isn't the only thing the British automaker is investing in: it's also opening new facilities around the world, including what it's calling the National Automotive Innovation Centre back home in the UK. Based at the University of Warwick, the new $220-million R&D center is the result of a joint effort between JLR, its parent company Tata, the manufacturing arm of the university and the British government. The facility will bring together professionals from the automaker as well as its suppliers with academics to encourage, as the name suggests, innovation in the automotive sector. Its 355,000 square feet are earmarked to become the hub for Jaguar Land Rover's advanced research activities, including "workshops, laboratories, virtual engineering suites and advanced powertrain facilities, equipped to enable a full range of design, visualisation and prototyping activities." The cornerstore was just laid in a ceremony this week, but the facility isn't due to open until the Spring of 2017 when it will encompass some 1,000 employees, including 600 relocated by JLR to the new location from other sites in the UK. Related Video: Construction Begins On New UK Automotive Innovation Centre For Jaguar Land Rover - GBP150 million National Automotive Innovation Centre (NAIC) will open in Spring 2017, providing a state-of-the-art technology hub for Jaguar Land Rover's advanced research team and collaborative partners from the supply chain and academia - To keep the UK and Jaguar Land Rover at the forefront of global innovation, the team will develop the vehicles and personal mobility solutions of the future - The NAIC will focus on inspiring the next generation of engineers - from schoolchildren to undergraduates.

Jaguar F-Pace snapped inside and out

We've seen the Jaguar F-Pace undergoing testing before: at the Nurburgring, in the snow, and wearing a variety of different bodywork as development has progressed. But we've never seen it this close, and we've never seen it inside, until now. This latest batch of spy shots shows Coventry's new crossover out on the road undergoing warm-weather testing in what looks like Spain. It's tellingly parked in between a Jaguar XE and Range Rover Evoque, the gap between which the F-Pace is expected to bridge. It's still wearing heavy camouflage, of course, but this is our first glimpse inside the cockpit. The cabin rather similar to the one on the new XF sedan – and hardly any more upright, either, which tells us a bit about the handling character Jaguar is going after with the F-Pace. Expect to see the finished product at the Frankfurt Motor Show this coming fall – the same show where it unveiled the C-X17 concept two years ago to preview its arrival. Related Video: