Overview

The Jaguar F-Type R Coupe is the flagship model in the F-Type range.

It’s pretty, luxurious and fantastically fast. After an initial drive we were left staggered by the R’s sheer capability, both on the road and on the race track. Not only that, but it’s docile and pleasant on the motorway and unintimidating in town too.

The interior is a plush yet functional place to be and the seats strike the perfect balance between comfort and performance motoring.

Serious speed

Underneath its beautifully sculpted bodywork sits a 5.0-litre supercharged V8 petrol engine developing a brutish 542bhp and 680Nm of torque to drive the rear wheels.

It’s the fastest F-Type Coupe available, smoking its way from 0-62mph in 4.2 seconds and on to an electronically limited top speed of 186mph.

Like the rest of the range, all R Coupes are fitted with Jaguar’s eight-speed ‘Quickshift’ automatic gearbox. There are steering-mounted paddles for those who like to select gear themselves, though. Find out why we were blown away by this gearbox in the Performance section of this review.

Brilliant handling

Compared with the rest of the Coupe line-up, the R has a different suspension setup to help keep tabs on the extra power. Its adaptive dampers are automatically adjusted up to 500 times a second for optimum stability.

As standard the F-Type R is also fitted with what Jaguar calls an Electronic Active Differential, which constantly monitors and adjusts the balance of power between the rear wheels. It works in conjunction with a Torque Vectoring braking system, which can gently apply the brakes to the inside wheels when cornering to keep you going in the direction you intended, even if you’ve got in too fast.

Carbon ceramic brakes, which save weight and resist fade more effectively, are available as an option, as are special high-performance tyres and a panoramic sunroof.