Used Jaguar E-Pace 2017-present review

Jaguar was rather late to the SUV club, but from its elegant and premium-badged portals, we've had the sizeable F-Pace, the all-electric I-Pace and this, the baby of the range, the E-Pace family SUV.

Style-wise, it looks enticing, provided you don’t mind your cars short and tall. The ovoid headlights, wrap-around taillights and butch haunches all offer a glimpse of that proper Jaguar look – like a large and powerful cat about to pounce. It’s based on proven Land Rover underpinnings, notably the Range Rover Evoque and the Land Rover Discovery Sport with the consequence that it's very heavy: heavier even than the larger and more opulent F-Pace.

Engines: Under its bonnet initially was a range of three 2.0-litre petrol engines and three diesels, in varying states of tune. The petrol lineup encompasses 197bhp, 245bhp and 295bhp versions, and the 2.0-litre diesel units can be had in 148bhp, 178bhp and 236bhp forms.

Following a facelift in 2020, the entry-level became the D165, which features a 161bhp 2.0-litre diesel that’s available with front-wheel drive guise and a six-speed manual, or four-wheel drive and a nine-speed auto. This latter transmission combination is standard on the 201bhp 2.0-litre diesel D200 and the 246bhp 2.0-litre petrol P250. At the top of the range is a plug-in hybrid P300e, which delivers a hot hatch-humbling 305bhp.

By 2023 the range had been further refined to the 201bhp D200 diesel, the 158bhp P160 petrol, the 246bhp P250 and the P300e plug-in hybrid.

Trims and equipment: New buyers would have been offered the choice of two initial trim levels, the standard car or the sportier-styled R-Dynamic version. The latter gets you a more aggressive bodykit, satin chrome side vents, a gloss-black grille and twin tailpipes. After that, you’d have to decide how much equipment you wanted. All versions come with dual-zone climate control, cruise control, front and rear parking sensors and LED headlights, but S trim adds leather seats (electrically adjustable in the front) and a more sophisticated infotainment system. Pricier SE and HSE trim packs add bigger wheels, a wider range of electric seat adjustments and increasingly more safety kit.

Ride and handling: On the road, the lower-powered petrol and diesel engines feel slow to respond, even if their actual on-paper turn of speed is pretty good. The automatic gearbox is often hesitant in its responses, which can be problematic on roundabouts and at junctions, but once on the move, it changes gear smoothly. Opting for the more powerful units and gathering speed is no problem, but there is an obvious drop-off in fuel economy. The middle-ranking 178bhp diesel, the 2.0d 180, probably strikes the best compromise between outright punch and efficiency.

The ride is a mixed bag. The E-Pace isn’t horrendously firm and only crashes over the worst potholes, but you are jostled around quite a bit along pockmarked and beaten-up urban roads. The ride doesn’t settle out on the open road, either; even on the motorway, things are far less settled than in a Volvo XC40, for example. Adaptive suspension was available as an option and that improves things. Smaller wheels are likely to do so, too, but this does reduce the obvious visual appeal of this sporty Jag.

From new, the E-Pace was available with front-wheel drive or four-wheel drive. Most versions come with the all-wheel-drive option that predictably offers plenty of traction, although the entry-level diesel engine came only with front-wheel drive. In that guise, the E-Pace’s handling isn’t quite so assured; the steering wheel squirms under your hands if you accelerate eagerly through corners – something that you don’t find in the four-wheel drive versions. That said, most will only really feel the benefit of four-wheel drive in bad weather.

Interior and practicality: Inside is a clean and handsome layout with some good-quality plastics and materials and a set-up that’s surprisingly user-friendly. The dials for the air conditioning are a doddle to use and you sit suitably high up, whereas in rivals such as the Audi Q3 and BMW X1 you could almost be sitting behind the wheel of a regular hatchback. Having said that, visibility to the sides is a little restricted by the fat pillars, and to the rear by the high and small rear window. Better still, on all but the entry-level trim, you get electrically adjustable front seats that make it super-easy to fine-tune your driving position.

All versions of the E-Pace come with a 10.0in touchscreen infotainment system that Jaguar calls Touch Pro. It’s relatively snappy to respond when you prod it, the graphics are sharp and the interface reasonably easy to get your head around. Mind you, some of the icons are small so can be a bit tricky to hit with any degree of confidence on the move.

Space up front is good, with a reasonably good amount of head room, but rear seat passengers long of leg will find it cramped behind a similarly tall driver. The rear seats fold down to leave an almost flat floor, while the boot is easy to access and usefully shaped, and has a good carrying capacity on paper. However, one or two rivals are able to carry slightly more luggage.

As mentioned, the E-Pace was facelifted in late 2020, gaining subtly refreshed looks, plus an even smarter interior with improved infotainment. It also saw the introduction of the aforementioned plug-in hybrid, with its 39-mile range and claimed fuel returns of up to 201.8mpg.

If you're interested in finding a used E-Pace, or any of the other family SUVs mentioned here, head over to the Used Car Buying pages to find lots of cars listed for sale at a great price.

It’s possible to pick up a high-mileage E-Pace for around £10,000. We'd spend a bit more though, for one with under 100k miles on the clock. You'll need upwards of £11,000 for one of those, and if you spend between £12,000 and £15,000 you should get a good 2018 or 2019 car. Spend between £16,000 and £20,000 and you'll get a good 2020 or 2021 model, a little bit more for the facelifted car. Spend upwards of £25,000 on post-2022 models, up to £30,000 and more on the latest 2023 and 2024 ones.

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MPG

On paper, the 2.0d 150 with front-wheel drive only is the most economical, with an official WLTP combined figure of 42.7mpg. The 2.0d 180 gets 39.5mpg, while the four-wheel drive and auto-only 2.0d 240 manages 37.1mpg. The best-performing petrol is the plug-in hybrid from 2020 onwards, with an official figure of 201.8mpg. The 2.0 i4 200 is at 34.4mpg, while the 2.0 i4 250 drops to 29.8mpg, followed by the 2.0 i4 300 at 28.3mpg.

Road tax (VED)

Annual car tax is currently charged at a flat rate of £180 for petrol and diesel cars, and £170 for hybrid cars. Beware of the supplementary luxury car tax on cars costing more than £40,000 new, because that adds an extra £390 to pay per year for years two to five of the car's life. Many E-Pace variants fall into this category, so click the following link to read our guide on current road tax costs.

Insurance and servicing

Insurance groups range from 31 to 40, so costs are average to high for this class of car. Servicing costs are likely to be higher than they might be for the equivalent Audi or BMW, but Jaguar offers a number of different servicing options for used cars that will allow you to pay via direct debit and plan your costs.

Reliability

The Jaguar E-Pace impresses with comfort and style but raises reliability concerns, according to our annual What Car? Reliability Survey, drawing from real-world owner reviews. Many owners face electronic issues, such as malfunctioning infotainment systems and unexpected warning lights. There are also reports of battery and engine problems, necessitating frequent dealer visits. Dealer service experiences vary: some commend their efficiency and friendliness, while others are frustrated by slow service, high costs, and unresolved issues, leading to mixed satisfaction levels.

Find out more about the reliability of the used Jaguar E-Pace on our dedicated reliability page.

Engine

We’d look for the earlier 2.0d 180 version, which packs a flexible, reasonably smooth, and fairly economical diesel engine under its pert bonnet.

Specification

We’d also plump for an early car in S trim because this adds leather seats (electrically adjustable in the front) and a more sophisticated infotainment system compared with what you get with the entry-level model.

Our favourite Jaguar E-Pace: 2.0d 180 S

The Volvo XC40 was our 2018 Car of the Year. It’s a grown-up car, with a solidly constructed and high-quality interior full of soft-touch materials. It’s comfortable, classy, practical and good-looking inside and out. its reliability is stronger than the E-Pace's too.

The BMW X1 is spacious, practical and also comes with a high-quality interior. It handles well, too, and has a great infotainment system. Used examples look particularly good value. Reliable too.

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If you're interested in finding a used E-Pace, or any of the other family SUVs mentioned here, head over to the Used Car Buying pages to find lots of cars listed for sale at a great price.