2018 Jaguar E-Pace to land next year with sharp entry-level pricing

JAGUAR’S hotly anticipated E-Pace crossover will have a sub-$50,000 entry-level price tag when it arrives in Australia early next year.

Jaguar today released teaser images and announced a July 13 world premiere for the small-SUV, that’s tipped to become the UK brand’s biggest seller.

The E-Pace’s bigger F-Pace sibling helped boost the total global Jaguar sales by 83 percent last year.

As well making it the most affordable Jag, the E-Pace’s pricing will bring it in line with premium high-riding competitors such as the BMW X1 and Audi Q3.

While you could be forgiven for thinking the E-designation implies the use of electrons, it’s not to be confused with the all-electric I-Pace also due next year. The E represents its lineage to theJaguar XE sedan in the same way the F-Pace is essentially a jacked up Jaguar XF.

While it has a similar profile to the I-Pace, The E-Pace won’t share the EV’s all-new architecture. Instead it will sit on the same underpinnings as the Land Rover Discovery Sport, which is a modified version of the Range Rover Evoque’s LR-MS platform.

It will also share the Disco’s Ingenium 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol and diesel engines which will be horizontally mounted with a sports-car derived all-wheel-drive powertrain. Ahybrid version is expected to follow later in its model life.

While it won’t necessarily please the purists, Jaguar promises the E-Pace will remain true to the company’s trademark handling traits.

“The combination of sports car looks with Jaguar performance will ensure that the E-Pace stands out,” said Jaguar’s director of design Ian Callum.

“Every Jaguar is designed to excite the senses, and we think E-Pace will do just that, albeit with its own individual character.”

Further local pricing and specifications will be released closer to the E-Pace’s Australian launch.