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Jaguar InControl Touch Pro Infotainment Review | Improved, but far from the best

The infotainment systems in Jaguar or Land Rover vehicles over the past many years have been a cause for concern. They’ve been slow to respond, lacking in features and lagging behind the high-tech luxury competition by a wide margin.  Software updates and newer, better hardware keep coming, though. That being the case, it's time to take another look at what the latest infotainment system from Jaguar can do and how it goes about its business. We happened to be in JaguarÂ’s freshest product on the market for this test, too, the 2021 Jaguar F-Type R. Watch out for a full test on that car soon. Jaguar names its tech the Jaguar InControl Touch Pro system, and itÂ’s running on every model but the ancient XJ. The refreshed XE is also distinctive in that itÂ’s running the Touch Pro Duo screen setup that replaces the vast majority of the physical climate controls with a touchscreen. To get a visual guide and watch the screen in action, check out the video above.  In addition to the central screen, we also dive into the fully digitized instrument cluster thatÂ’s become the standard for other Jaguar models. The F-Type gained the screen this year, and it operates similarly to all the others.  On the surface, JaguarÂ’s infotainment system is rather simple and modern. ItÂ’s a clean UI thatÂ’s free of the many frills and fancies you might find in a Mercedes or Audi. YouÂ’ll never get lost in a sea of menus or settings a la BMW iDrive, as Jaguar never allows you to dive several levels deep. ThatÂ’s good for simplicityÂ’s sake and makes operating the system a cinch once you learn where the functions are. JaguarÂ’s bottom row of frequently used items is a perfect place to start, because thereÂ’s a good chance that youÂ’ll rarely need to stray from this small subset of functions. Both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto boot right up via a wired connection. They worked without issue all week long in the F-Type without glitches or failures to operate. In fact, we were generally impressed with this infotainment system and the accompanying digital cluster. It was only plagued by the occasional stutter or long pause between clicks, but not as often as in past Jaguars and Land Rovers. Unfortunately, itÂ’s tough to keep up when the German competition seems to be running systems that are faster, more fluid and bursting with features. Admittedly, some of those features are things that may never be truly useful and add to their aforementioned complexity.

2018 Jaguar F-Pace S is a fun but thirsty travel companion

I love road trips. I've moved across the country twice, spending weeks living out of my car, eating granola bars and sucking down energy drinks like it was finals week all over again. I get a huge kick out of calculating fuel economy, stretching out tanks of gas or diesel until the low-fuel light begins to sear itself into my retinas. I try to take each and every one of our long-term vehicles on some such trip. Not long after our 2017 Jaguar F-Pace S arrives, my wife and I decided to see some family in Asheville, North Carolina, roughly 10 hours and 700 miles from our home in suburban Detroit. Now, I knew from the outset this was going to be a far different experience than our previous long-termer, a 2017 Jaguar XE diesel. I managed to eek out nearly 700 miles per tank, averaging 42 mpg over 2,000 miles with that car. But the 380-horsepower supercharged V6 in the F-Pace is rated at 18 city/23 highway with a combined rating of just 20 mpg. Not good, and — unlike the XE — I didn't think I could do much better without greatly altering my admittedly aggressive driving habits. Still, I wanted to take our blue bomber to the Blue Ridge Parkway, so onward I went. There were a few other things I was worried about over what was sure to be another 2,000-mile trip. The F-Pace's suspension was a bit stiff thanks to the sporty S trim. The 20-inch wheels don't help matters, though things could be worse (some people on staff wanted to get 22s). At least they look good. Still, the seats are comfortable and the radio is top-notch. LCD Soundsystem's latest album had just come out, so I put it on repeat and headed south. The first part of the trip was going to be both the most boring and the most economical. The roads in Michigan and Ohio are flat and straight. It isn't until you hit Kentucky and head into the Appalachian Mountains that things get interesting. Just set the radar cruise control and barrel down Interstate 75 with as much urgency as you dare. I forgot my Valentine One at home. The ride was firm but not as bad as I imagined it might be, at least once we got off of Michigan's pockmarked pavement. The F-Pace tracked straight and true, but I became acutely aware that the steering wheel itself was out of alignment, leaning just slightly to the left. Fuel economy was fine, but I was just meeting the EPA estimate, not beating it like I usually manage to do.

Jaguar crossover won't be based on Evoque or have off-road chops

Jaguar's long-rumored crossover won't be built on the same platform as the Land Rover Range Rover Evoque, says the Australian site Car Advice. The future of the new CUV remains uncertain, but if Jaguar does dip its toes into the SUV/crossover pool, though, the new vehicle will likely be a car-based soft roader, lacking (or perhaps more appropriately, not needing) the off-road-engineered chops inherent in Land Rover's small CUV platform.
Jaguar product planner Steven De Ploey explained to Car Advice, "There's many groups around the world [platform sharing] - obviously Volkswagen Group is doing it all the time - but I think we have to be careful. He added, "Jaguar is something quite different... It's about capability, but very much on-road focused capability." That seems to gel with our suspicions that the XQ, as it's expected to be called, will share its platform with an upcoming small Jaguar sedan, the oft-rumored X-Type successor.
Still, we'd recommend taking any mention of a Jaguar crossover with a grain of salt. Based on many of the (quite compelling) statements made by De Ploey against a Jag crossover and previous statements made by Jag's design boss, Ian Callum, the case against a leaper-bearing crossover seems strong. If a high-rider were to arrive from Jaguar, though, the article insinuates that it'd be more in line with the BMW X6 or upcoming X4 - sort of a coupe-based crossover. Like we said, grain of salt. If a Jag crossover is going to arrive soon, the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show is the most likely locale for its debut. We'll find out in a few weeks.