Auto Channel

Jaguar brought in three TV presenters to sample prototypes of the F-Type on the Snetterton track and the roads around it. The F-TYPE, launched at this year’s Paris Auto Show, is Jaguar’s attempt to take on the might of Porsche’s 911. It’s a two-seater, convertible sports car, although we expect a coupe version to join the range later next year or early in 2014.

Jaguar gave them the F-Type to drive around the Snetterton Race Circuit in Norfolk, England. In cold and challenging conditions at the UK’s Snetterton 300 circuit and on the surrounding Norfolk roads, the trio of international racing drivers and television presenters – resident in the UK, Germany and the US – were able to experience the F-TYPE’s performance in full.

The F-Type video would still be a delight thanks to the sonorous exhaust notes from the supercharged V-6 and V-8 powerplants. Those forced-induction engines are the base, 3.0-liter V-6 making 340 hp; the mid-grade F-Type S that milks 380 hp from the same V-6; and the 495-hp F-Type V8 S that uses a 5.0-liter eight cylinder.

The F-Type will show its gorgeous face sometime in 2013. The standard 340PS supercharged V6 car will be available on the road for £58,500, while the 380PS supercharged V6 F-Type S and 5-litre F-Type V8 S will retail for £67,500 and £79,950 respectively.