Introduction

Jaguar’s Art of Performance Tour kicked off last month in Hyderabad and since then has travelled through three more cities including Bangalore and Chennai on its way to Mumbai. So when Jaguar invited us to experience the tour, we were quick to hop on. The Art of Performance events have the entire Jaguar line-up at disposal, from the entry-level XE to the luxe-barge XJ, the F-Pace SUV and the F-type sportscar. We had fun driving each of these cars through the specified courses and here is our experience through pictures.

India Maneouver

The gymkhana-style event has specifically designed courses laid out to get these Jaguars into their element. First up, the India-connect comes in with the evasive braking manoeuvre. The driver has to accelerate hard, get off the throttle, switch lanes and brake, all in quick succession to replicate that typical Indian ‘someone jumped in the middle of the road’ scenario.

Given the dusty concrete grounds of IndiKarting, Wadala, the ABS on the Jaguars had to work overtime, locking and popping each of the wheels individually to keep the big cats on course. The XE and the XF, naturally, nailed it but the surprise package was the 5,000mm long XJ L tucking it in style, changing lanes swiftly and coming to a halt in absolutely no time.

Speed Run

Next up was the ‘Speed Run’ and what would be better than nailing the throttle of the F-Type on the mini drag-strip. Despite the dusty concrete, the wide rubber dug in, catapulting us to 100kmph in absolutely no time. You could feel the horsepower and the torque making the car squirm, looking for more grip all the time.

Once you hit the 100kmph mark, you had to hit the brakes hard to come to a stop. The 0-100kmph-0 run had to be done in a measly 140m and the Jaguar F-type just sailed through this test.

Slalom Dance

After getting well-versed with their nimbleness and the horsepower, it was time to put their agility to test and so we headed to the final-section, the ‘Slalom challenge’. We had to zip between cones as fast as we could, come to a halt, take a U-turn and do it’s the other way round on the way back.

Again, the XE and XF with their small dimensions went through like rockets but here the Jaguar F-Pace impressed us with its composure. The massive SUV has all the DNA of the toothed-cat perfectly preserved despite its bulk. Swinging and swaying around the cones, the ESP had it all in control.

Well, this little experience, the Art of Performance tour, gives a glimpse of the sporty Jaguar DNA that often gets hidden under luxury in the mundane everyday usage and we certainly did enjoy our time with the Jaguars.

Photography: Kaustubh Gandhi