Jaguar (yes, owned by Tata) has come up with a sports SUV called the I-Pace which is an electric car to rival the Tesla X and up-staging the forthcoming electric powered cars from Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Porsche.
Revealed as a concept at the Los Angeles show last month, it was shown in Virtual Reality, but Jaguar is saying that it will be in the showrooms by 2018.
The claims for the I-Pace include zero to 100 kays in under 4 seconds, with a range of 320 km on a two hour rapid charge.
The I-Pace has four electric motors producing 516 pound-feet of torque in its four powered wheels, with electric motors that together produce 400 horsepower. Batteries are slung along the floor of the chassis – keeping the center of gravity low, but not taking up passenger space consisting of liquid-cooled 90kWh lithium-ion battery pack. That allows Jaguar to build a higher, bigger vehicle with proportions that are more suited to the brand’s legacy of roomy, luxurious performance.
Jaguar has also worked hard on the aerodynamics of their new concept, with the I-Pace delivering a drag coefficient of 0.29. The aggressively styled crossover with its big wheelbase and short overhangs has the same footprint with a conventional mid-sized SUV but Jaguar claims they were able to design a cabin that offers the same room with some full-sized SUVs, especially at the back.
“I think what’s really great about this car is that we didn’t set ourselves any rules,” says Jaguar design chief Ian Callum. “Don’t try and make it look like an F-Type or give it an E-Type boat tail because that’s nice to have. Just accept the fact that this is a whole new vehicle and takes Jaguar’s rules to a whole new level.”
