You're cracking me up, but certainly some of the greyer guys would have had a sports car in their youth, and most were convertibles back then. Not all the safety requirements, theft and 18 wheelers on the roads then that make a convertible less enjoyable in urban areas and on interstate highways today. But you can't beat the thrill of driving a convertible on a gorgeous day on the open road, and if that's what you bought the car for then the convertible is a perfect choice...and for everyone else Jaguar generously offers one with a roof! And apparently some even prefer it's lines

I'm sure the F-Type convertible will be very rigid and bank vault solid like the current XK is. The windsield A pillars on a friend's '02 Roush Mustang GT must move sideways close to an inch in left and right corners on the track, and my '94 Supra TT has a slight shudder over bumps with the targa roof section removed, but I haven't noticed a hint of flex in the XKR, even on the track at 140+ mph.

Bruce

 

I got a chance to see the F-Type in person at the LA Auto show. My take on it is it's a very nice car but it is smaller than the XK and also the lines make it appear significantly smaller than the XK. That for me makes it less appealing. Had Jaguar designers made it the same size as the XK, the car would have much more appeal IMO.

 

I've followed the F-type from concept to,actually seeing it at the recent LA Auto Show. Looks great and full of promise. We can only hope it fulfills that promise.

The XKR-S also drew initial praise and held great promise too, but as experts and owners really got into it, the rough warts began to pop up. I had a spec'ed R-S ordered, but health issues got in the way just as it arrived. Thus, I had to decline the car after an initial drive. The dealer was great and understanding about it. I initially regretted the loss, but after reading many eventual reviews, I felt somewhat relieved and grateful. I don't believe it turned out as great as we all hoped. Let's hope the new F is the real deal and thrills owners and the experts from the get go.

 

For some reason I thought this was going to be available with a manual transmission but I see it's just an 8 speed auto. Love the look, and it'll surely perform like a champ, but not sure I could live without the back seat area we now use on weekends away in the XKR. The coupe version will have a more usable space.

Bruce

 

The XK is really sized like a GT car. The F-Type is really intended to be a sports car! My XKR is very long--only 1" shorter than my fiance's 2012 Hyundai Sonata!

 

Just for fun I looked up the length of my old XKE vert. and found it was 175.5" to the F-Types 176", and the 2+2 E-Type was 184" to the XKR's 188". I also found an interesting reference that claimed the original and shorter XKE was more of a GT than a sports car like the C and D-Types. puzzling terms indeed.

Bruce

 

That's what I had always thought about the E-Type--that it was more GT than sports (i.e., like a MGB, Midget, Spitfire, etc.). That is, until Jaguar started claiming that the F-Type is Jaguar's first sports car since the E-Type...

I don't think it's an insult to call a performance car a GT car. If the XKR has taught me anything, it's that!

 

Not exactly! Porsche will stop offering manual transmissions in the next few years, because the demand for the PDK double clutch is so high. Even the track-focused GT3 will go PDK.

Here is what Walter Rohrl, who is a legendary rally champion, as well as Porsche test driver recently said that he "doesn’t need a manual gearbox anymore. The PDK shifts perfectly and I don’t have to do anything."

 

The car is going to be a beast...the auto with paddles will be perfectly fine and although I have a preference for a manual...in no way did that effect my buying decision. Looking forward to July 27..

 

Well, got to see the F type yeserday in person and i love it. It looks outstanding from every angle.
Got to play around with the electronics, it's gotten better. The interior was full of accoutrements.

As mentioned in most reviewes, the cockpit is very very driver focused.

The exhaust: it has to be one of the throatiest and (can't believe i am going to say this) most pleasant V6s i have ever heard. It was the S model with the active exhaust system.


From what i heard, US won't be getting manual F type.

 

Well what the heck! How come there still haven't been ANY magazine reviews of the F-Type?

 

I got to spend some time with the F Type at the Jaguar Drive event.

It's a striking car, very beautiful, but too small for me.

I'm 6'4" and it just didn't "fit" me right.

How did I ever drive an MGB, TR7 and Europa? I was young and flexible I guess!
Vector

 

Did you get to drive it?!

 

.

 

600bhp Jaguar F-type road racer planned
http://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/co...-racer-planned


Extreme supercharged V8-engined Jaguar F-type, in the spirit of the XKR-S GT, is under consideration
A concept of the F-type GT has been tipped for the Goodwood Festival of Speed






An ultra-high-performance Jaguar F-type is being considered by the company’s specialist engineers, with the range-topping model potentially being powered by a supercharged V8 with as much as 600bhp.

The car is believed to be at the planning stage but would become the most powerful Jaguar on sale, cementing its status at the heart of the brand’s sporting values. Although it would probably be powered by the 5.0-litre supercharged V8 found in models such as the recently launched Jaguar XJR and XKR-S, the power output would stretched beyond the 542bhp found in those cars.

Jaguar boss Adrian Hallmark didn’t confirm the project. But he conceded that more limited-series vehicles in the spirit of the XKR-S GT, revealed at the New York motor show last month and set to be built in a run of no more than 50 units, were likely to happen because of their marketing value as halo cars. And, more important, Jaguar sees them as test beds for future technology that can used in more mainstream cars.

“Clearly, building a run of 30 to 50 exclusive GTs isn’t going to have any impact on the fortunes of the company in sales terms, but the importance of these projects lies in the knowledge they give us,” he said.
“Jaguar is already well known for its ability to create sporty, dynamic cars, but the XKR-S GT project has shown us that we can learn more by pushing the envelope. Lessons learned from the dynamics, aero and braking work on that car will enter the mainstream.”

Hallmark also confirmed that, during testing for the XKR-S GT, engineers had experimented with higher-output versions of the supercharged V8.
“There’s a lot you can do with supercharging,” he said, “but the lesson we learned was that driveability must always come before brute force. For most people, 542bhp is enough anyway, and whatever power you have, the trick is in being able to get it down on the road. You can have all the power in the world if you want it, but getting the traction to use it is the key.”

The hot F-type is unlikely to reach production until at least 2016, but rumours suggest that a one-off concept could appear as early this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed, where Jaguar has traditionally shown innovative projects ahead of schedule. Last year, for instance, an F-type prototype was driven on the hill by Jaguar chassis guru Mike Cross.

This year’s festival celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Porsche 911, a key sales rival to the F-type, giving added appeal to such a project. Hallmark confirmed only that Jaguar would do something “special” at the event.

Although high-performance models have long been a part of Jaguar’s heritage, the company is believed to have firmed up a definitive business case for pushing even further with the new GT brand.
Developing low-volume halo models allows Jaguar to push its credentials as a manufacturer of sporting premium cars harder, and higher price points give the company room to develop its product range.

Jaguar’s plans to enter the hypercar field with the C-X75 were abandoned earlier this year, and although it hasn’t ruled out returning to that sector, Hallmark describes projects based on existing cars as “much more marketable in the short term”.

Cars bearing the GT badge will be developed by Jaguar Land Rover’s Engineered To Order (ETO) division. ETO is set to take on a bigger role in the company as it expands to develop more bespoke styling and performance projects for Jaguar and Land Rover.
Pete Simkin, director of ETO, told Autocar: “We judge each project on its merits, but we hope the XK GT is just the start. We would definitely look at the business case for an F-type GT. The ETO division is about extending customer choice by offering a bespoke package. That might mean developing low-run option packs or doing one-offs.
“Many customers are demanding more in terms of individuality and exclusivity, and we are well placed to deliver that. Our performance heritage is well known, and we have designers within the division who are there to work on customer-led projects. Our role is to consider anything that stays within the values of the brands we represent.”

As well as an F-type GT, Jaguar is expected to develop more moderate (but still hard-edged) versions of the F-type. Insiders have confirmed to Autocar that sporting Jaguars will henceforth be developed under the R, R-S and GT brands. R models will be sporting versions of mainstream cars, R-S versions more extreme performance models and GT cars limited-run, track-focused specials.

Although the higher-performance F-type models are likely to be the most eagerly anticipated, it is not certain that the sports car will be the next model to get the GT treatment. Instead, an XFR-S GT is thought to be likely.

 

No, it was inside the tent, not to be driven that day. But we had lots of fun with the XKR-S outside!
Vector

 

Hey amcdonal86,

Heres an article that Top Gear UK just released. Have a look.

Top Gear drives the Jaguar F-Type - BBC Top Gear