Daily News: Thursday 7/13/17

2018 Jaguar E-Pace DetailedDespite the confusing nomenclature, the new E-Pace is not Jaguar’s promised electric crossover (dubbed the I-Pace), and is instead their ‘compact’ offering in the premium SUV-class, being able to seat five. While the car itself has been known about for a while, Jaguar has finally released full details on their 2018 E-Pace. Designed to compete with smaller SUV’s like the Mercedes GLC and BMW X1/X3, the E-Pace shrinks the dimensions of the F-Pace, while attempting to maintain the dynamics of the bigger vehicle. Looking at the exterior of the E-Pace, the familial resemblance to the F-Pace is clear, as is the inspiration both take from the F-Type roadster. The interior of the car continues the trend of good-looks, being clad in leather although forgoing the availability of wooden trim: a first for a Jag.Whereas the F-Pace has a few engines on offer, the E-Pace has a single engine for the United States, in two levels of power. Coming from the new Ingenium family of engines, the 2.0L 4-cylinder turbocharged engine makes 246hp in standard trim, and a slightly staggering 296hp in R-Design trim. All models are equipped with a 9-speed automatic sending power to all four wheels, although the R-Design trim levels receive Jaguar’s new ‘Active Driveline’. While all models can modulate wheel speed through a brake-based ‘torque vectoring’ system, R-Design models come equipped with ‘Active Driveline’ which is Jaguar’s tricky AWD system in a similar vein to Ford’s Focus RS and Nissan’s GT-R. This system, combined with the high-power output, means that enthusiasts should only keep their eyes on the R-Design models. Prices start at $38,600 ranging all the way up to $53,100. A one-year only ‘First Edition’ is more-expensive still at $53,550. This launch edition is the only way to get a red exterior the first year, as well as a special contrasting leather interior (pictured above). Funnily enough, this edition has the visual package of the R-Design, with none of the performance enhancers.

Jaguar revealed the E-Pace in an exciting manner yesterday, setting the Guinness Book of World Records record for the longest barrel roll done by a production car (pictured top). This flashy launch—no pun intended—could be Jaguar’s way of acknowledging the less-than-exciting nature of the new car, when compared to all of the other company’s offerings. Look for the new E-Pace later this year or early next year.

Forbidden Fruit: i30 N RevealedHyundai has been building their new performance brand—N Performance—steadily over the past year in the public’s mind, despite having no car on offer. Yesterday, the N Performance group released full details of their first offering, the i30 N hot hatchback. Available essentially everywhere outside of the US, this hot hatch features a 2.0L turbocharged engine in two levels of power: 247hp as standard and 271 with the optional ‘Performance Pack’. This power is sent to the front wheels via a 6-speed manual transmission which features launch control and automatic rev matching. The N in the new brand stands for the Nurburgring, where the new cars are being developed. To help aid in the quest for Ring dominance, Hyundai offers an optional electronically controlled Limited Slip Differential, which supposedly increases cornering speed by 5%. The rest of the car features the normal hot hatchery, with red brake calipers, dual exhaust tips, exuberant body styling, and a lower ride height on bigger wheels. Hyundai also takes the opportunity to fill the car with tech, as the dual-exhaust tips are connected to an active, butterfly’d system which is controlled by a drive mode selector in the cabin and the shift light takes oil temperature into consideration.

While we cannot expect to be able to purchase the i30 N anytime soon on our shores, we can hope to see the engine a fair bit sooner. Already, rumors of a N-touched Veloster coming to our shores equipped with the engine are making the rounds. Stay tuned for further information as it becomes available.

Gran Turismo Sport Release Date RevealedI have already reported on the details of Gran Turismo Sport, the next in the long line of Gran Turismo video games. The final piece of information to be released before the game itself was the release date, with developers merely saying sometime in the fall. Today, the developers have given a more concrete date in the video below, with October 17^th being the exact date.

Watch the video below:

Look for my review of the game when it comes out this October!