The Electric Circuit: Jaguar I-Pace Takes on Nürburgring
I-Pace takes on the legendary Green Hell; proving itself an EV pulsing with Jaguar performance.
When Jaguar introduced the I-Pace, the all-electric SUV garnered a lot of attention. An all-electric Jaguar crossover? Sure, it was a definite departure for Jaguar, but a necessary one. Ultimately, the I-Pace proved it was a vehicle that befit the marque. It brought in praise, awards; and gave drivers a distinctly new and creative vision of electric vehicles.
But, enthusiasts that we are, we wonder if an EV really could ever truly compete with the internal combustion engine. Would it offer the same emphatic performance?
Last year, Jaguar began offering customers a chance to pilot the all-electric I-Pace Race eTaxi experience around the epic Nürburgring Nordschleife track.
The folks at Goodwood Road & Racing decided to put the rubber to the road and take the race taxis around Nürburgring, the iconic and challenging track that has earned its nickname “Green Hell.” So does the I-Pace fair against the competition?
“In the F-Type or Project 8 I’ll get three laps before I need to refuel,” race taxi driver Dale Lomas told Goodwood. “Environmental conditions make a big difference but I can easily do four laps to a charge, meaning 16 passenger laps in a day and more than we ever did with the XJR.”
In addition to better time between fill ups, the performance is enhanced by the powertrain.
“It gets better too. In the I-Pace every downhill gradient or braking zone is an opportunity to put energy back into the battery,” says writer Dan Trent. “And on a hilly, twisty circuit like the Nürburgring there are plenty of both. By running the I-Pace in the higher of its two regeneration modes [Lomas] can actually claw back as much as a quarter of the energy he uses on each lap, equivalent to someone pouring…petrol back into the tank of the V8-powered cars on the same and, for every three turns round, enough to charge the battery for a ‘free’ fourth one.”
Of course, it takes some time to learn how to how best to handle an EV. However, once drivers get the hang of it, the result is satisfying. And the I-Pace delivers a nice amount of high-performance.
“The I-Pace handles the circuit really, really well,” says Lomas. “Customers just don’t know what to think. You’re doing 120 mph in utter silence and whipping past 300 bhp internal combustion cars like they’ve missed a gear. It’s a very strange sensation and I get to share the sense of awe I felt the first time I drove an electric car at the Nordschleife. It’s really fun!”
We can’t quite imagine the lack of revving and sexy exhaust note, but we’re certainly game to give it a try. Although, we think we’d need to also try a 2020 F-Type and Project 8. Just for science.
Photos: Goodwood; Jaguar
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