Jaguar F-Type coupe finally launched

More than two years after it was first shown to the public as the C-X16 concept car, the production-model Jaguar F-Type coupe has finally been unveiled--a few months before it goes on sale in the first half of 2014.

\"Creating a sports coupe is the purest of design tasks and also the most challenging,\" said Jaguar design director Ian Callum. \"Get it right and aesthetically the result will be as dynamic as the car should be rewarding to drive. In the F-Type coupe, I believe we\'ve got it right.\"

Like the F-Type roadster, the hardtop version is built on a rigid bonded and riveted all-aluminum platform. Unlike its soft-top counterpart, however, the F-Type coupe has ample trunk space that can easily accommodate golf bags.

The F-Type coupe is also available with either an aluminum or panoramic glass roof panels that are bonded into the main roof structure. Jaguar claims that torsional rigidity is identical regardless of which roof is fitted.

The flagship F-Type coupe is the F-Type R, which is powered by a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 engine that produces 542hp and 680Nm, allowing it to sprint from zero to 100kph in four seconds before reaching its electronically limited top speed of 300kph.

For those looking for milder performance, Jaguar also has the F-Type V6 and F-Type V6 S coupes.

While both models are propelled by a 3.0-liter supercharged V6 engine, the F-Type V6 puts out 340hp, sprints from zero to 100kph in 5.1 seconds, and has a 260kph top speed. The F-Type V6 S, on the other hand, produces 380hp, can sprint from zero to 100kph in 4.8 seconds, and has a top speed of 275kph.

Putting the power down to the rear wheels of all three F-Type coupe variants is a close-ratio eight-speed Quickshift transmission.