How the Porsche Macan Helped Jaguar F-Pace Development
The Macan Effect
While the in-house laundry list of F-Pace rivals runs from Lexus NX to Mercedes-Benz GLC, the folks at Jaguar will tell you they concentrated most on the BMW X4 and the Porsche Macan. Especially the Macan.
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"The Macan changed the class standards," admits Jaguar dynamics guru Mike Cross. So much so that a temporary halt was called to the F-Pace development program while the chassis team evaluated the Macan's ride and handling characteristics.
One major change to emerge from the evaluation of Porsche's compact SUV: A decision to increase the roll stiffness of the F-Pace chassis. "Initially we were working with a roll gradient of 4.5 degrees per g, which was similar to that of the Range Rover Evoque," says F-Pace vehicle dynamics lead engineer James Matthews. "Now we're at 3.5 degrees per g, and that's purely because of Macan."
F-Pace vehicle program director Andy Whyman also points out the F-Pace's front axle lateral stiffness is now 50 percent greater than that of the Macan, while at the rear it's 35 percent stiffer.
Read our2017 Jaguar F-Pace First Drive review HERE, and check out ourFirst Test of the 2016 Porsche Macan S and Macan Turbo HERE.
