The Jaguar F-Pace hasn’t even reached showrooms yet, but the car maker is reportedly already hard at work on a version of their new SUV that will put all the other ones to shame. Envision an extra-sporty version of the F-Pace that packs a supercharged V8 engine beneath its contoured hood, and you’re moving in the right direction.
According to Car and Driver, Jaguar’s Special Vehicle Operations division is cranking away on a performance version of the F-Pace that will make more than 500 horsepower, thanks to the blown 5.0-liter, eight-cylinder engine found in everything from the F-Type R to the Range Rover Autobiography. Considering every one of its major competitors—cars like the BMW X4 M40i, Porsche Macan Turbo, and Mercedes-AMG GLC43—packs a forced-induction six-cylinder, Jaguar appears intent on bringing a Desert Eagle to a knife fight.
Prototypes of the F-Pace SVR (as such an SUV would likely be called) are purportedly already running around, presumably in super-secret testing locations where Jaguar’s employees can properly hoon test the superpowered sport-ute. If given the green light for production, the speedy F-Pace supposedly could be on sale by 2017.
Of course, assuming the V8-powered F-Pace becomes a thing, it wouldn’t remain the uncontested king of the small SUV hill for long. Mercedes-Benz is reportedly working on a GLC63 AMG that packs the same 4.0 liter twin-turbo V8 and nine-speed transmission as the next E63 AMG. Audi is supposedly developing an RS Q5 that would likely pick up the turbocharged eight-pot shared amongst the S6, S7, S8 Plus, and RS7. And if those two are going all-in on compact performance sport-utes, BMW likely won’t be far behind with an X3 M or X4 M.
After all, as brands from Bentley to Porsche have learned, powerful luxury SUVs are like banana stands: There’s always money in them.
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