For an idea of the scale of ambition embodied in the new Jaguar E-Pace, consider that 80% of those who choose to buy one over, say, an Audi Q3 or BMW X1 will be new to Jaguar showrooms. ‘Conquest customers’, as they’re dispassionately known within the industry.
That’s a mighty statistic even for a car expected to supplant the F-Pace as the brand’s bestselling model, although it is one bolstered by the fact that quite a few will be built specifically for the Chinese market in a state-of-the-art plant in Changshu.
To grease manufacturing wheels and meet anticipated demand in Europe, every other E-Pace will be assembled in Austria by Magna Steyr, the firm that has built the G-Class for Mercedes since 1979 and is currently configuring its lines for Jaguar’s new electric I-Pace.
If all goes to plan, the E-Pace will be something of a breakthrough car for Jaguar, and one, it is hoped, that will push annual global sales past the quarter-million mark. Predictably, we’re talking about a compact SUV here, one that slots into the range beneath the F-Pace, although mechanically it has more in common with a Land Rover Discovery Sport.
