Teamspeed.com - Had an exclusive play in the F-Type yesterday...

I was lucky enough to go to an exclusive preview of the new F-Type Jag yesterday with What Car magazine, and i'm now more in love with it than I was before. Wow.

Add in the fancy lunch with Ian Callum (a personal hero of mine) and the Engineering director and I was on Cloud 9. Here are some pics:

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There are some truly lovely little details on it, like the door handles that pop out when you unlock, revealing the etched Jag logo.

Also, on the inside, there is a vent panel that is above the satnav and the panel with 'S' on it in the image above. This raises and lowers as required for the AC, so when not in use there is a lower dash line.

The switchgear feels really nice to the touch, the auto gearlever has a great action to it as well. You can tell that they've really pored over every tiny detail on this car.

Mike Cross's favourite model is the V6S, apparently it's a touch lighter and a bit more feral in character than the V8S. Ian Callum has bought one himself, a V8 on 20" wheels. And there will be a manual offered on all engines, probably coinciding with the launch of the Coupe (Callum's favourite, he'll order one of those when released to replace his Convertible).

The chief engineer reckons you really won't notice the weight, and it's got the ride, even on 20's, of an XF when in Comfort. But it tightens up massively in the Dynamic modes.

They're effectively creating their own market for the F-Type. It's 100mm shorter than a 911, but has a 130mm longer wheelbase, and is 110mm wider. The cabin in very spacious and it has a large boot, so bar the rear seats it's as capacious as a 911, but it's cheaper. Very strange, but they've got modest sales hopes at first.

Add in the fact that I got a Ltd Ed 50yrs of the E-Type coffee table book signed by Callum, and I was one happy chap!