Here's your original question:

You speak of "pure performance and handling" as if that is an objective and readily apparent standard, applicable in all situations. You're clearly optimizing for something different than I am. I'm more "lighter is better" but you seem to be in the "more power is better" camp. We have corners here, and elevation changes. They're delightful. I could feel the extra weight of the V8S on a test drive back in the introductory year, and on many of the nice driving roads around here, that would not add to the "performance."

If I lived somewhere where all roads were straight and flat I'm sure I'd feel differently. Enjoy your car. I enjoy mine, although it's still about 500 lbs. too heavy for some of the *really* fun roads around here.

 

You have the tune but not the pulley? I haven't noticed any change in supercharger whine with just the tune, but I've got active exhaust, symposer defeated, and serious hearing damage. (Will Motörhead get inducted to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this year? Judas Priest?). The supercharger whine mine just fall into the range where I can't hear.

 

Performance is objective, to a large extent. The RWD V8 has a both tremendous power advantage and a smaller, but still significant weight advantage over the V6 S AWD. The V6 doesn't have a traction issue without AWD, so it's not apparent why Jag went that direction. The ZR1 has identical weight and weight distribution to the 2015 R, proving that RWD Cup2s can handle 755 HP and provide enough grip for 0-60 well under 3 secs.

 

Performance is meaningless without a standard, so is quite literally subjective. You seem to be focused on 0-60 times. Horsepower and traction bear heavily on that. Does horsepower help slalom speed? Skid pad? Road course? But which road course? How about better braking? That generally hurts acceleration because it adds weight, but it helps *braking* performance.

The original question in the thread is whether someone can be happy with a base V6, plus a tune and pulley. You're saying no, I'm saying maybe, depending on what makes one happy. With that much power I'd want the LSD from the S, but I'm sure it'd be a hoot nonetheless.

 

Of course someone could be happy with any F-Type. But someone interested in a V6 for lightness plus a VAP tune should definitely go with the even lighter, RWD, V8, IMO. No question.

 

Dont want to argue but I actually dont agree. The nose of the RWD v6 is noticeably lighter than the RWD R when pushed into corners. I have driven them a number of times on large tracks and small, the v6S is for me a much nicer car on a tight track and that view is supported by the majority of professional drivers I've spoken to on the Jag drive days (and I never tell them what I own before I ask). That said, the R will smash the S in particular on the straights. A 450hp RWD V6 seems to me to be the best of both worlds, not that I am going to track mine.

But I'd take the RWD R over an AWD 6, mainly because I didnt really like the weight in the front of the AWD, especially the AWD R.

I should disclose that my forearms are about the size of pipe cleaners...

 

Yep, like many here I upgraded to a V8 S from a V6 S. I paid close to the same with 15K miles on each, and thanks to CPO the older V8 came with the same amount of warranty. To me, the cars are night and day. The V6 is cheaper in the same MY, thats what I liked better about it.

I couldn't feel a weight difference, probably because my cars weighed about the same. But the V8 "feels" like a feather in front of 560 WHP and to me the stock V6 S felt sluggish. I didn't bother to tune it because I knew there was no way it was going to be a keeper for me.

The V8 + tune + pulley is the perfect car for my taste, because it is crazy over-powered. If that means it is unbalanced, then that's what I want. If the RWD V8's were tunable to 700 BHP instead of low 600s, there would be no way to improve them IMO. Other than tires.

 

Yes, but.... you can't get to 450hp and not hit thermal issues. Tune and pulley will get you there unreliably (100% fine for street use, unless you live in Dubai, but track is entirely different story), to get there reliably you have to spend a lot more on custom fabrication to address cooling issues.

My 100% stock F-type S hits thermal safety maps on very hot (100F+) track days, tune would make it a lot worse.

 

Going back to the original Q...

I only have the tune (V6 + tune = 415Hp), and for the area I live in, with dense traffic, and little opportunities to use the available power, that is more than enough.
Plenty of days I took the car out, without even one chance to completely floor the fun pedal, so it wouldn't make me a happier man if I were to have a pully on top of the tune. I've owned and still own cars with (much) less power, I had equally or even more fun in, than in the F.

One sure needs to look at the bigger picture as to what can make one happy in regard to a car and/or engine power...

 

Thanks for getting the thread back on track! I also live in a congested area, so I'm glad to hear your opinion. How does your car sound now that it's had the tune? Better, louder....something else?

 

I’d describe the sound as “beefier”, which is the best I can come up with.
Sound is of course quite subjective, but overall the sound is a tad louder, somewhat deeper.
I had the pops and bangs restricted in my tune, as not being really fond of it – tastes do differ…

Since living in a congested area, I personally would not spend the extra money on the pully, and leave it to the tune only.
As for the tune itself, though having not often the opportunity to enjoy the power, it sure gives an additional relaxing feeling to know
what power is available on demand at all times, whether that is to anticipate on traffic circumstances, or just for the fun of it.
The tune sure stretches the versatility of the car, from a gentle cruiser, to an even more capable sportscar.
It is a good and quite noticeable step up from the standard 340 horses.

 

Thank you, that's very informative (and just what I was hoping someone would say).

 

I've said it elsewhere but the step from "tune only" (416 HP) to "pulley plus tune" (450 HP) felt yuge to me.
I went from an S with 380 HP (really PS) to tune only with 416 HP so an increase of 36 HP but it just didn't feel that much of an increase to me.
With pulley took it to 450 HP so a further increase of 34 HP, so slightly less than the initial increase that you might as well call it "same again".
But it sure feels a helluva lot more than that to me.
It's not just the top end power (which completely blows away the stock S tune let alone the base tune), it's also the throttle response and the torque "under the curve', it is just so much more responsive in all gears and at all revs with the pulley & tune.
The biggest difference is when overtaking on the highway, from "legal" speed to (coff) "a bit over", it just flies. So much safer on a single lane each way road where you need to pass a slow poke as quickly as possible.
So Andrew, if you ever drive out Donga the "pulley plus tune" is definitely the way to go.

 

Thanks OzXFR. Your input has been most helpful so far. I'm still searching for a used V6S, but there are few on the market (as you well know). Plan B is a base 6. On a base 6 the tune would make a relatively large difference. The missus is against a base 6 (too slow!!!), but seems OK with a base 6 plus tune (which I calculated has 22% for HP). She's not that excited about changing the pulley though. Plan C is to buy yours.

Donga?? Some sort of army hut in my mind??

ps. Going on a JLR Jag drive day at Sandown raceway in a few weeks, which should be very interesting. I presume they'll have a couple of F-Types there.

 

Out donga - in the bush or the Outback!

 

Gooday, I've driven the P400 F Type which is pretty much what Oz is describing for the 6 plus tune. The difference is noticeable, not berserker. Pulley + tune is a lot bigger margin, you seriously laugh when you give it the boot, but it is really manageable. You cant just mash the accelerator around roundabouts like you can with it stock, and the back end does skip a bit at gear changes under the hammer, but you dont feel any loss of control.

 

Croweating slang? I come from a farming background (Vic-NSW) border and haven't heard that one before

 

Then you must be a young 'un!
I've heard it all my life and I've been a city slicker the whole time, and it's definitely not just a Croweater term.
(For our non-Oz members Croweater is slang/colloquialism for South Australian).

 

I'm on the wrong side of 50

 

The additional kick from the pulley comes from the increase in low end torque. Peak torque goes from 332/339 on the V6/S to 370+ with the tune and up to 425+ with the pulley. A yuge increase and a beautiful thing.