Jaguar F-Type to get late availability V8

Jaguar announced at the Beijing Motor Show that their upcoming F-Type would be powered by a supercharged 3.0L V6 packing 380 horsepower but in recognizing the need for bigger power in the modern sports car world, it looks as though there will be a Jaguar F-Type with a V8 engine – although it is likely going to be some time before that bigger engine hits the market.

The Jaguar F-Type will enter the world as a new, smaller option based on the C-X16 concept that debuted in 2011 in Frankfurt. The company stated that the F-Type would feature a unique version of a new supercharged V6 engine family, packing 380 horsepower in this application but torque was left to be a mystery. This 380 blown V6 engine will likely make the new F-Type plenty of fun to drive while also affording good fuel economy but in the modern age of the sports car…you need more than 380 horsepower to keep up with the Joneses. Luckily, Car and Driver has confirmed that there will be a V8 engine option coming – although there is no indication as to when that will happen.

The new Jaguar F-Type is expected to hit the market in the middle of 2013 as a 2014 model year convertible with a coupe version following later that year; also presumably as a 2014 model year vehicle. When the first convertibles hit, they will pack the new supercharged 3.0L V6 with 380 horsepower and it is expected that this engine will also be the sole option for the F-Type Coupe that arrives later in 2013. However, when the 2015 model year of the Jaguar F-Type rolls around sometime in 2014 – few things would make for a more exciting model year addition than a higher horsepower V8 engine for the compact convertible and coupe.

It is totally unknown as to which V8 engine will show up in the future Jaguar F-Type but if they were to use a current V8 engine configuration, the company has a variety of supercharged 5.0L engines making various amounts of power that would make for a fine premium engine in the new F-Type. First of all, there is the supercharged 5.0L AJ-V8 Gen III engine that offers 470 horsepower and 424lb-ft of torque or the supercharged 5.0L AJ-V8 Gen III R that packs 510 horsepower and 461lb-ft of torque. Needless to say, either of those engines would surely make the new F-Type a serious contender in the world of European exotics. However, for those who want even more performance perhaps Jaguar will use the supercharged 5.0L V8 from the XKR-S will serve as the high end engine for the F-Type – offering drivers somewhere in the range of 550 horsepower and 502lb-ft of torque. If the F-Type got this engine, it would likely be as part of a high performance and high priced R package…although that is merely speculation.

Finally, there is a chance that in the two to three years between now and when the V8-powered Jaguar F-Type hits the market that the company will have come up with a new V8 engine. While this new engine would likely offer similar power to those supercharged 5.0L mills used in the current Jaguar lineup – it would likely use new technology to offer better fuel economy for its application in the future F-Type.

Again, it could be almost two years before we see the existence of a Jaguar F-Type with a V8 engine but when it arrives – there is a good chance that it will pack well over the 380hp offered by the supercharged V6 that will be standard at the launch of the F-Type in 2013.

Source: Car and Driver