Was rolling along the divided highway (70mph posted) @ roughly 84mph in the left (passing) lane. Just minding my own business. The Dodge Charger in the right lane decided to stand on the pedal as I rolled up on him. Challenge accepted. I think he overestimated the horses in his hemi. I roared past him like he was standing still and he quickly slowed down to highway speeds and disappeared in my rearview mirror. Not 60 seconds later, I'm back @85mph in the left lane and roll up on (what I thought was) a late model Subaru WRX STi (in the right lane) who must have seen me coming and he proceeded to downshift and go. Having just defended Jaguar's honor only moments ago, I wasn't expecting another challenge, so I was admittedly slow on my reaction, so he actually pulled away for half a second, then I was triple digits and he was a white blur fading fast. He "frollicked" around and found out. That was fun!

I should add that I normally would not "take the bait" on these types of interactions--typically choosing to simply let them race off--but I got caught up in it. I strongly recommend NOT doing things like this as the risks truly do outweigh.

 

Three years ago I posted in another thread about a similar experience - but in reverse:

Was a beautiful day yesterday and was out for a drive in the F-Type when a little blue Dodge Neon starts acting like he wants to race. He was behind me so I decided to play a bit and floored the car. I was quite surprised that the Neon after falling behind initially started to quickly catch up! Because of road conditions we slowed down and got onto another stretch and we did it again. Same result. We come to a stop and talked and it turns out he did a modified SRT 4 engine swap - the car was a sleeper. At the end of our conversation we were about to go our separate ways and he said to me that he had fun and wished he had a grandfather as cool as me (I am old enough to be his grandfather).
Should I have been insulted or flattered?

​​​​​​​BTW. After this experience I researched these cars/engines and found that the SRT4 engines could be easily modified to put out 350 to 450 Hp. Nothing to sneeze at in a car that weighs 100 to 1500lb. less than an F-Type.

 

I was waiting to back out of a spot. Cars behind me and on both the left and right waved me on. Feeling pretty good. Backed up, pulled it into drive, gave it the gas and realized I was in neutral! What a fish!

 

Had just taken delivery in Baltimore, MD.

Flew in from Florida, and couldn't take some BASICS on the plane

Was not in the best of neighborhoods, but decided to stop at an auto parts store and get a tire repair kit (the long rubber slugs/tools) a can of Seafoam, and a couple of cans of FIX A FLAT as TRIP INSURANCE.

A group of older men had the hood open on a car in the parking lot and exchanged pleasantries.

When i returned and hit the remote to open the boot, one of them exclaimed..... "IS DAT A SPACESHIP OR SUMPIN?"

I just smiled and loaded up the trunk.

BEST !

RWS

 

That tells you right there that it's not stock. Same goes for just about any otherwise ordinary-looking car wanting to play with the big boys. Very high odds that they know exactly what you - and they - have. And yes, weight is a really big deal that people have to learn over and over. Yes, 550hp in an F-Type R is a lot, but 400hp in a 2500lb car is a lot more!

 

I was pulling into a parking lot today and paused for a car that was backing out of a space. Meanwhile, a pedestrian crossed between us and speaks up to say,
"Beautiful Car."
I responded, "Thank you very much. It's my favorite toy."
"What kind of car is it?"
"Jaguar."
"It must be new."
"She turns 11 next month."
"Wow!"

That just never happens with the 911.

 

Not in my F but my S a few years ago. Took a road trip to Las Vegas. Driving down the strip, stopped at a light. A guy casually walking by, stopped, turned to face me, pointed at the car and said "nice car", smiled and kept walking. It was worth the cross country trip just for that. It happened again a mile from my house recently just before I sold it. It was a gorgeous car.

More recently in the F Type at a local gas station a couple " urban youths" were gassing up a "modded" BMW. No hood. Bad paint. Etc. Etc. As I passed by With the top down I heard one of them say something like "jaguar nothing but problems". I forget exactly what he said but I had to turn around and set him straight. We ended up talking about the car for about 10-15 minutes. They were surprised it was such a nice car with an even better engine. Gave them something to shoot for.
​​

 

Filling the tank of my F-Type and a new BMW SUV pulls up on the other side of the pump. The female driver looks at my F-Type and says :
“Beautiful car! What is it?”

”A Jaguar F-Type.”

”Oh…I have always loved the way Jaguars look but I’ve been told that they stop in the middle of nowhere for no reason” (this is verbatim)

Yup, everybody who has never owned, driven or even sat in a Jag knows that, especially BMW owners. I didn’t ask her if her car had the optional turn signal package.

 

Between the two F-Types I've owned I have lost count of the compliments but the two most unusual instances were a couple followed me into a gas station so the gentleman could tell me his wife said it was the most beautiful car she's ever seen; and the other more bizarre one was a couple actually followed me home and into the driveway behind me as I pulled into the garage.

 

You should reply "Oh, there's always a reason - usually to help a broken down BMW that's just out of warranty".

 

Well, actually I did not relate the end of my gas station story. After the lady in the BMW told me that Jaguars stop anywhere for no reason (!), my response was to tell her that her comment related a myth about Jaguars that was perpetrated by BMW owners. For some reason this abruptly terminated our conversation.

 

What are the chances of meeting someone whose IQ is the same as your age?

 

A Japanese friend was here in Australia and I took him for a ride.. when he saw the car he was like "Is that a Holden?" 😆 Holden would be the most Australian car he knows of.. I said "Hehe no it's a..." just as he was looking at the front badge and we both said "Jaguar" at the same time lol

I used to be a very poor semi-homeless travelling ski-bum photographer living in dormitories and on friends' couches and this guy used to be my boss (sort of, customer might be a better word, kind of halfway in between)... we hadn't seen each other since I left that life behind and built a few companies, he knew my situation had changed but I don't think he realised by how much until he saw that badge

 

A few comments from folks in the neighbourhood while washing it, or having the garage door open, but generally speaking while out on the road my initial feelings is that this car is pretty under the radar…Something which I personally kinda like to be honest…This is my impression so far, but it is early days.

 

In the past 4 months alone, with the car being 10 years old, I’ve had strangers approach me two separate times while filling up at a gas station. The first time was an older retired couple. The funnier one was a boy, maybe about 8, with his dad. The boy was like “I love your car!”

And just two weeks ago, I was running a couple of errands and a kid on a bike who was waiting to cross at a signal light as I passed him yelled into my open window “I love your car!”

I get mostly frowns from older ladies though! (Not always, but a lot)

 

Gretta Thunberg came by and really didn't like my white F-Type.

I'm heartbroken, and just don't understand............

BEST !

RWS

 

She was probably just tired from swimming the Atlantic - gotta practise what she preaches!

 

Until reading this thread recently and posting what I posted above I never really took the time to truly observe reactions on the road. I was too busy focusing on enjoying the new car, figuring out stuff, getting used to it, etc… Since posting what I posted above this made me a little more conscious since going out in the car a few times now since…

Yeah, okay, this cars is breaking a few more necks than I thought…lol…You notice this when you actually focus on it and observe reactions. Had a guy scream at me last night from 2 lanes over saying he loves the car…lol…That was a first…haha

I still think it’s pretty under the radar compared to the Lambos, Mclarens and such rolling around these parts ;-0 Obviously…But I guess even the F-type has a road presence that is undeniable…

I was considering an Emira at one point but It didn’t have the same presence for me for example that the 911, F-type have etc…

A car that I find has even more presence is my buddy’s 2009 Aston Martin Vantage…Not sure what it is with that car, but it just has it when you see it rolling along…Incredible…One of my favourite vehicles ever…

 

I think the biggest factor (besides the gorgeous styling) is they are relatively rare compared to Mercedes, BMW, Porsche, and Corvettes. I can go weeks without seeing another one in my area, whereas I'll see multiple 911s and Corvettes every day.

 

It's not an accident that you think of Aston's along with the F-Type. There's a common denominator: Ian Callum.

The average person sees a F-Type as being in the same class as Lambo's and McLaren's, even though they're not nearly in the same price range. The others are more exotic, but the Jag is more beautiful. People notice, and it's not likely to change. I ran two errands today and got three separate comments on the 11 year-old F-Type.