Jaguar E-Pace review
The Jaguar E-Pace is a compact SUV that packs the stunning looks of a sports car and a premium badge into a practical, family-friendly package.
Author: Charlie Harvey
17th Dec 2025 – 9 mins read
If you've always dreamed of owning a Jaguar but need the practicality of an SUV, the E-Pace could be the car for you. Launched in 2017, it’s the smaller sibling to the brilliant F-Pace and manages to squeeze all of that car's style and desirability into a more compact and city-friendly size. It's a car that's designed to turn heads, borrowing many of its good looks from the F-Type sports car. The E-Pace is more than just a pretty face, though. It’s surprisingly practical, with a big boot and a roomy interior that make it a very capable family car. It's also great to drive, with a range of powerful engines and sharp handling that make it feel every bit a proper Jaguar. It might be the brand's most affordable model, but it still delivers a true premium experience.
Pros
- Stunning sports-car-inspired looks
- Spacious interior and a very large boot
- Comes with a lot of standard equipment
Cons
- The ride can be quite firm on bumpy roads
- The infotainment system feels a bit dated compared to rivals
- Petrol engines can be quite thirsty
Interior
Dashboard & tech
The interior of the E-Pace has a sporty, driver-focused feel, with a smart-looking dashboard that wraps around you. The centre console is dominated by a large 10-inch touchscreen, and you’ll often find fun details like the grab handle for the passenger, which is another little nod to the F-Type sports car.
The material quality is excellent, with plenty of soft-touch plastics and leather that give it a genuinely upmarket feel. One area where it feels a little behind the curve is the infotainment system itself. While the screen is large, the software isn't as quick or intuitive as the systems you’ll find in the latest rivals from Audi or BMW. However, Jaguar did add Apple CarPlay and Android Auto in 2019, which is a huge help and lets you use your phone's apps instead.
Comfort
The E-Pace has a firm and sporty feel on the road, which is great for handling but means the ride isn't as soft as in some rivals. You will tend to feel more of the bumps and imperfections in the road surface, especially on models with larger alloy wheels. It’s not uncomfortable, but if you’re looking for a car that glides over potholes, this might not be the one for you.
On the plus side, the seats are very comfortable and supportive, and it’s a quiet and refined car on the motorway, making it a great long-distance cruiser. It’s easy to find a good driving position with a commanding view of the road ahead.
Quality
The E-Pace feels like a high-quality, premium product. Jaguar has used lovely materials throughout the cabin, and everything feels solid and well put together. From the soft-grain leather on the steering wheel to the cool metal finishes on the air vents, the attention to detail is impressive.
It’s a cabin that feels built to last, and it has that special, luxurious character that you expect when you buy a car with a Jaguar badge on the front. It successfully creates a premium environment that feels a cut above more mainstream family SUVs.
Practicality & boot space
Interior space
This is a real strong point for the E-Pace. Despite being a 'compact' SUV, it’s surprisingly spacious inside. There’s plenty of room up front for the driver and passenger to get comfortable, and adults will find a generous amount of legroom and headroom in the back seats too.
It’s a car that works really well for families, with lots of clever storage solutions, including a huge central cubby box between the front seats that’s big enough to store tablets or a couple of water bottles. It's a thoughtfully designed cabin that can easily handle the clutter of family life.
Boot space
The E-Pace has one of the biggest boots in its class. With 577 litres of space, it’s larger than what you’ll find in a BMW X1 or Volvo XC40. It’s a huge, practical area that will have no trouble swallowing holiday luggage, a pushchair, or the spoils of a big shopping trip.
With the rear seats folded down, the space opens up to 1,234 litres, which is useful for those occasional trips to the tip or furniture store. Many models also come with a powered tailgate, which makes opening the boot a breeze when you have your hands full.
Driving
Driving experience
The E-Pace is a Jaguar, and it drives like one. For a relatively tall SUV, it feels remarkably sharp and agile on the road. The steering is nicely weighted, and it turns into corners with enthusiasm, making it more fun to drive than many of its rivals.
It’s a very satisfying and engaging car to drive on a country road. The trade-off for this sharp handling is the firm ride, and you can also feel the car's weight in the corners if you push it hard. However, for most day-to-day driving, it offers a great blend of comfort and sporty response, feeling both secure and entertaining.
Performance
There’s a wide range of powerful 2.0-litre petrol and diesel engines to choose from. The diesels are the most sensible choice for many, with the D150 (148bhp) and D180 (177bhp) models offering a great mix of performance and reasonable running costs. If you want more punch, the D240 diesel is seriously quick.
The petrol engines (P200, P250, and P300) offer even more performance, with the top-spec 296bhp P300 model turning the E-Pace into a proper performance SUV, capable of 0-60mph in under six seconds. Most models come with a smooth nine-speed automatic gearbox and all-wheel drive for extra grip and security in all weather conditions.
Running costs
Fuel economy & CO2 emissions
If you want to keep running costs down, the diesel engines are the best bet. The most efficient model is the front-wheel-drive D150 with a manual gearbox, which can officially return over 42mpg. The petrol engines are quite a bit thirstier, with even the least powerful P200 struggling to get much above 30mpg.
It’s also worth checking the original list price of any used E-Pace you’re looking at. Cars that cost over £40,000 new have to pay an extra road tax supplement for a few years, so a slightly lower-spec model could save you money in the long run.
Value for money
The E-Pace is a premium SUV with a price to match, costing more than rivals like the BMW X1 and Volvo XC40 when new. However, it doesn’t hold its value quite as well as some other Jaguars, which is bad news for new buyers but fantastic news for used car buyers. You can find nearly-new models with huge savings, making the E-Pace a very tempting and stylish used buy.
Reliability & Warranty
Jaguar’s reliability record has been mixed in the past, but its modern cars are much improved. The E-Pace feels like a solid and well-built vehicle. From new, all Jaguars come with a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty, which is better than the mileage caps offered by some rivals. This means that many used examples will still have some of that valuable cover remaining.
Safety
Safety features
The Jaguar E-Pace is a very safe car for you and your family. It was awarded the maximum five-star rating when it was crash-tested by the safety experts at Euro NCAP, scoring highly in all areas.
All models come very well-equipped with safety kit as standard. This includes autonomous emergency braking, lane-keeping assist, a driver attention monitor, cruise control, and front and rear parking sensors. A reversing camera is also standard on every model, which is a huge help when parking this stylish SUV.
Trims & Engines
Trim levels
The E-Pace is available in a wide range of trims, often split between a standard and a sportier 'R-Dynamic' look.
E-Pace (standard): The entry-level car is very well-equipped, featuring 17-inch alloys, LED headlights, a 10-inch touchscreen, two-zone climate control, heated front seats, and a host of safety systems.
S: Adds 18-inch wheels, leather upholstery, and electric front seats. Later models also gained Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
SE: This trim brings 19-inch alloys, a powered tailgate, a premium Meridian sound system, and a 360-degree camera system.
HSE: The top-spec model is loaded with luxury, including 20-inch wheels, keyless entry, softer Windsor leather seats, and a 12.3-inch digital driver display.
R-Dynamic: Available on S, SE, and HSE trims, this adds a sporty body kit, a black headlining, and sports seats for a more aggressive look.
Engines
The E-Pace uses a range of 2.0-litre petrol and diesel engines from Jaguar's 'Ingenium' family.
D150 / D180 / D240 Diesel: These engines produce 148bhp, 177bhp, and 237bhp respectively. The D150 and D180 offer a good balance of performance and economy, while the D240 is very quick.
P200 / P250 / P300 Petrol: These produce 197bhp, 247bhp, and 296bhp. All offer strong performance, with the P300 delivering near hot-hatch levels of acceleration. Most models are all-wheel drive and automatic.