What's this then?

This is the extra-hot with bonus vindaloo and some firecrackers Jaguar F-Pace SVR.

Hmmm. Looks a bit quick. Is it?

Just a touch, yeah. It's Jaguar's New York Motor Show star, and it's packing the 550hp supercharged V8 engine, driving all four wheels through an eight-speed automatic gearbox.

Quite mean looking...

Indeed. Jaguar's Special Vehicle Operations (SVO) team has added bigger front air intakes, massive wheelarch vents that are good both for extra cooling and for stabilising the airflow down the side of the car, snorting great bonnet vents, a rear spoiler and a new rear bumper with space for a quad-pipe sports exhaust system.

And the inside?

Yup, the cabin's been given a going-over. You get the sporty pistol-grip gear shifter from the Range Rover Sport SVR and Jaguar F-Type sports car, plus slimline bucket seats with an embossed SVR logo, and all-aluminium paddle shifts.

Presumably there are some proper mechanical changes, or is this a 'Turbo-Look' car?

Not a bit of it. The suspension is 30 per cent stiffer at the front, and ten per cent stiffer at the rear, and body roll has apparently been cut by five per cent thanks to new anti-roll bars. You can choose from 21- or 22-inch alloy wheels (the bigger ones are lighter) and behind them are massive 395mm front brakes, made in a two-piece design which saves unsprung weight.

There's also a new Electronic Active Differential nestled between the rear wheels, which works with the existing Intelligent Driveline Dynamics four-wheel-drive system to get the power to the wheels that can use it best.

So how quick is it?

Well, with 44 per cent more power than the next-quickest F-Pace (the 380hp supercharged V6 S) the SVR sure isn't slow. It'll manage 0-62mph in just 4.3 seconds, so if you've recently bought a Porsche Macan Turbo, I'd be concerned...

"The F-Pace SVR delivers the handling and agility to match its performance. Everything from the steering to the bespoke suspension set-up has been tuned specifically for our performance SUV and the result is a vehicle that lives up to the promise of both the F-Pace and SVR names," said Mike Cross, chief engineer at Jaguar Land Rover.

Neil Briscoe - 28 Mar 2018