We recently rented a FType, and am shopping around now. Need help with questions, totally new to FType and cars in general.
1. I couldn't figure out which trim we drove, attached photos.
It's a 2018, that's all I know about it (less than 500miles on it). If you guys could help me determine which trim this was merely from the photos alone, that'd be super.

2. I am exploring used/cpo. Correct me anywhere that I may be mistaken:
2014-2015 problematic (you name it, vents, etc.)
2016 go-to year
2017 not much different from 2016 in all aspects
2018-2019 note worthy upgrades from Jag but premium wallets

3. Quite sure I will skip out on any R or V8 trims, out of budget. Not interested in the new v4, so looking at something V6. Which trim to be looking at? There seems to be many naming conventions for the V6 trims depending on year. Let's stick with 2016-2017 for education sakes. Which would be the more desirable V6?

Thank you in advance!

 

Photos doesn't seem to have uploaded, linking this instead https://imgur.com/a/muZSgYl

 

That's a base model V6, so 340 PS / HP.
Mixed opinions on whether the extras you get with the V6S are worth the extra $.
More power (but all of it above 4,000 RPM).
Bigger front brakes.
LSD.
Active suspension.
A few other minor things.
A lot depends on the options, pretty much everything could have been added to the base model except for the higher tune and the LSD, so you need to find out in detail what the car you drove did and did not have, and what options you like/want/need.

 

Thanks so much Ozxfr! How could you tell it was the V6 trim? And not the I4?

We really liked that the rental had blindspot and rear and front monitoring, I'm assuming that is one of the options you mentioned for the 2018 base v6.

2016 and 2017 same too? Will be available as options?

Things to look for when I'm shopping for used

 

The V6 has the twin central exhaust tips and the I4 has a central single large trapezoid tip (and the V8 has quad outboard tips), and they all sound very different.
Blindspot motoring and cross traffic alert etc are parts of the Vision pack which is not standard on the base or the S but was on option on both.
Rear parking sensors and maybe front sensors as well are standard on all F-Types as far as I know, but not the reversing camera which is another option.
Like most higher end manufactures these days the current absolute "base" model is a bit of a stripper then you can/need to add various cost options, and annoyingly Jag do pretty much all of these desirable options as packs or packages so to get what you want you usually have to pay for other things you don't want, there is no a la carte menu.
In 2013/2014/2015 the S and especially the R came standard with many of these options, but over the years Jag has gradually decontented most models (R and SVR not so much) so now you pay extra for the gizmos and doo-dads.
Bottom line - every second-hand F-Type is different with different standard equipment and different options so you need to shop around and ask lots of questions of the seller to find the one you want.

 

Not sure why you list 2015 as "problematic". Mine as been an absolute dream.
I choose my particular car because it was absolutely loaded with all the options. It had been driven (30K miles), so any problems had been taken care of. And it as history of being very well taken care of.

CPO, service history and option list, were, for me, the most important things. But choosing your car is second only to choosing you partner in life. Very, very personal.

 

Nothing particularly wrong with a '15. These are great cars, it doesn't matter which one you get. Find one with the most toys and the most power you can afford, and buy it.

 

My '15 (R) has been great. Had it since new.

 

 

I bought a highly optioned 2016 coupe base off of a 2.5 year lease. It only has 13,XXX miles and 2 years of warranty left which is another plus to getting a newer one. I looked for about 3 months to find the combination of options with a color that I liked. I couldn't justify the S markup but would rather have one if the price difference was less. I settled on a coupe because I believe they look better than the convertible and this one has a glass roof which still gives it an open feeling. I have always been a convertible guy and this is my first coupe. It has the Vision Pack, Sport Seats, Extended Leather, and Premium Pack. I have been satisfied with the power realizing that it is a street car. I get my kicks with a Lotus on the race track. I purchased it in the low $40's.

I am also making the following modifications to make it more like the S:

- Paint the brake calipers red and add JAGUAR lettering
- Remove the resonator and installed a X pipe to give it a little more volume
- VAP tune to 400+ HP. I may wait on this until after the warranty is out.
- Other small items for convenience or appearance.

 

I wouldn't rule out the V8 right away just because of budget. The reason why the 16 V8 is looked at in a more favorable light over the 15 V8 is the AWD. Some people see that as a good thing, others as a bad thing. What I have learned is the biggest draw back to either is the stock tires. Apparently, a tire swap makes the RWD V8 much more manageable. In early years, you could get the V8 in the S trim (I assume you are looking at a convertible as that's what's in the picture).

When I shop for used cars, I try to get as many options as possible as options don't hold their value and they can be had on the cheap. A $5,000 new option will often only elevate the price of a used car by a fraction over another used car without that option.

My 2016 has the vision package (blind spot monitoring) and I have grown to really like that, although correctly adjusting the side mirrors for greater visibility was the best thing I've ever done.

 

I hate the dipping-on-reverse passenger mirror - it dips too far and I find it unusable. On my previous XKR you could adjust the dip position, which was perfect. My workaround is to disable the dip and program my memory 3 with the mirror dipped as I like it - not perfect and I do keep forgetting to switch back to my memory 1, but ...,

 

Weird. I was able to adjust my dip. I wish it did both sides, if anything.

 

I've never needed the driver's side to dip, I'm sufficiently on top of it to get a reasonable view that side. I think my 2004 XKR dipped both sides (my 2001 XK8 definitely did), but not the 2010 XKR. Seems what Jaguar gives, Jaguar takes away ....

 

Yes, you can adjust the dip, and select whether it dips or not.

 

The dip is fully adjustable and you can select up to 3 different auto dip settings and save them separately with the 3 memorized seat settings. All of my seat settings remain the same, so I just use the seat memory buttons to move the mirror to preset views depending on circumstances.

 

Looks like two dips responded at the same time...

 

+1 Touche'

 

Okay, I RTFM-ed. Page 61 - "The dipped position of the door mirror is a preset position. In R, the door mirror can be adjusted, but the new position cannot be saved." Over to you ....

Seems like they change the feature every year?

 

Not sure when that changed, but on my 2015, I can adjust the dip and save the settings.
Yet another reason to buy a beautiful earlier model