What's the difference?
What sets the most iconic Jaguars apart?
Here’s a theory. Consider history’s greatest: the 1948 XK, its 1961 E-Type replacement and the first XJ of 1968. We’re talking about a grand tourer, sports car and luxury sedan respectively that broke ground in each of their segments.
Despite being a sales disappointment, let’s add the 2018 I-Pace to this elite group.
Like the others, it was a pioneer, this time in the luxury electric vehicle (EV) SUV field, beating most competitors and seemingly influencing newer ones ever since, from the excellent Kia EV6 to the coming Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV.
Now, five years and a comprehensive update later, we revisit the 2023 I-Pace to see if it’s still a standout.
The SUV craze is such that high-riding wagons are increasingly being tasked with also doing the job of sports cars, despite the immutable laws of physics clearly working against them.
While the results have been mixed, Mercedes-AMG has some serious form in this area, so much so that it’s been confident enough to unleash the second-generation GLE63 S.
Yep, this large SUV is looking to do its best impersonation of a sports car, so we’re looking to find out if it’s a convincing Jekyll and Hyde. Read on.
In the 1960s Jaguar used to promote its range as providing “grace, space and pace”. Nowadays, the I-Pace may as well also be known as the I-Grace and I-Space, because all three terms still ring true.
Jaguars were never cheap but the greatest hits felt like exceptional value because they were special. The same applies here. Five years might seem like an eternity, but age has not yet wearied the British luxury EV SUV nearly as much as you might imagine. Especially when optioned up as per our test vehicle.
Bereft of any post-modern brand baggage, the I-Pace remains a modern great. If only more buyers would catch on to that.
There’s little wonder the GLE63 S is back for a second go around, after clearly putting the frighteners on the Audi RS Q8 and BMW’s X5 M Competition and X6 M Competition.
After all, it’s a large SUV that sacrifices little in the way of practicality (especially the wagon) in its pursuit of high performance.
And for that reason, we’re itching to go for another drive – with or without the family.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with travel and meals provided.