A new report suggests Jaguar is looking at shoehorning a V-8 engine, presumably a supercharged one at that, into its new F-Pace crossover SUV.
The F-Pace is Jaguar's first high-riding model, and while the brand says it has given up on wagons based on sedans, that doesn't mean that it has no intentions of making a high performance crossover to square off against rivals from BMW, Audi, and Mercedes-Benz, among others.
Car and Driver reports that Jaguar's SVO (Special Vehicle Operations) division is hard at work on a new F-Pace range-topper that would offer considerably more power than the 380-horsepower supercharged V-6 that currently serves as the model's flagship. The vehicle would likely carry the "SVR" badge that signifies the SVO division's highest-performing vehicles.
A natural fit for the vehicle would be the brand's supercharged 5.0-liter V-8, which is available in a multitude of tunes, culminating in a 575-hp unit under the hood of the 2017 F-Type SVR. This would make it a potential rival to Mercedes-AMG's recently spied GLC63.
Car and Driver says that prototypes powered by a version of the supercharged V-8 are already running around Jaguar's headquarters in the United Kingdom. However, Jaguar has so far remained mum on any F-Pace models other than the diesel 4-cylinder and gas V-6s it currently sells in the F-Pace.
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