2019 Jaguar F-Pace vs Porsche Macan

What's the difference?

Jaguar's first foray into SUVs was the F-Pace. Odd name but built on a brand new, aluminium platform, it is an impressive machine. More impressive is the fact that the vast majority of them now run Jaguar's own 'Ingenium' engines - with sometimes startling outputs - for a 2.0-litre turbo.

The F-Pace has been with us for a few years now and is holding its own in a very busy part of the market. It's always surprising to people when you tell them the price - they seem to expect it's going to be well into six figures but look pleasantly surprised when you tell them the F starts under eighty grand.

The range-opener Prestige is powered by a range of 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo engines of Jaguar's own making, with a lightweight aluminium-rich chassis and a surprisingly big interior.

If the Cayenne saved Porsche, the Macan consolidated its gains. SUVs print money for premium manufacturers, and you only have to have seen the Germans pivot to SUVs as their first major EV products to get the full force of what these types of cars mean.

The Macan held the distinction in Australia of being the first affordable Porsche, breaking well below $80,000 and nabbing yet more customers who had never thought, or ever dreamt, that they could take the wheel of one of Stuttgart's finest.

And with the sort of commercial and marketing nous few can manage, the fact it was basically an Audi Q5 largely passed unremarked. Possibly because the Q5 is pretty good to start with, but also because the Macan feels like a totally different car.

It's already time for a facelift, and in true Porsche style it's a hard one to spot. We've already driven the mid-spec S, but now it's time to get to grips with the base spec Macan.