Jaguar's Final Roar... The F-ing Experience That Left Me Crying

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This was meant to be a review of the Jaguar F-Type 75 Coupé after my experience behind the wheel for a few days—maybe with some information on how big the engine is and how much it costs. That was my plan, at least. I did attempt to write my personal opinion on the car, as I love to do, but I sat looking at the screen, unable to find the words to describe the car for the first time. It wasn’t working, so here’s something different and personal… I have to take you through a series of events—no structure, probably a bit of a wild ride.

Before I Got F-ed

I’ve had a weird time with cars lately, and my feelings and emotions have changed quite a bit, which was surprising. I never wanted a sports car or a two-door. My desire was to have an SUV—the big soccer-mom car that I went to bed dreaming of or planned the perfect two-car garage around—but nothing too flashy or noticeable because lately, I quite like keeping to myself and not being too noticed in life. I found the perfect car a few months ago: an older Jaguar F-Pace diesel. I’ve religiously sent my partner a photo of every one I see on the road. The F-Pace made me feel something; it was the right size, and the 2.0Ds on AutoTrader are decently priced. But the attraction was the understated class and sophistication it has, without the flash its cousin has. A win. I want one. I even have my number plate options in a note: PURRRR-GP or PSYWGN-GP.

(I’m writing from the heart, not with any structure… it hopefully comes together at the end. I’m not there yet, so I’m not sure.)

I don’t write because I’m good at it or add any value to the topic, but I enjoy the process of taking my thoughts and seeing them come through my fingers onto a screen. It’s an opportunity to do something without needing approval or feedback—it’s my creative therapy. I needed to write about a car, to see where my heart is with cars, and to experience something new. The opportunity with the Jaguar F-Type came, and I got excited—a Jag… not my Jag, but I was excited to see if being in one was as incredible as the idea of it in my garage. However, little did I know that a Jaguar would be responsible for what happened next. I wasn’t ready.

F-irst Impressions

I wasn’t overly excited to be doing something with a sports car, and I would have been happy to have it for a day, just to add the personal feelings I had to my already planned idea of what this article was meant to be.

The Jaguar F-Type’s key was in my hand as I looked at the front of this car, about to experience my first-ever sports car. My hands were shaking. I didn’t know why and blamed the coffee I had just finished. I unlocked the car and sat in the driver’s seat… and this is where the F-ing Experience started… leaving me clueless about what I am, who I am, and crying over a car I never thought of.

I wasn’t overly excited to be doing something with a sports car, and I would have been happy to have it for a day, just to add the personal feelings I had to my already planned idea of what this article was meant to be.

The Jaguar F-Type’s key was in my hand as I looked at the front of this car, about to experience my first-ever sports car. My hands were shaking. I didn’t know why and blamed the coffee I had just finished. I unlocked the car and sat in the driver’s seat… and this is where the F-ing Experience started… leaving me clueless about what I am, who I am, and crying over a car I never thought of.

A V8 Experience

I pushed a little button and started the first V8 car I had ever been in, and experienced the Jag start up, releasing a sound that left my hands shaking, my face pale, and a tear rolling down my cheek. What the F-… You don’t know what a V8 feels like, and Jaguar is going to be my first and most probably last V8 experience. That is something that I cannot express in words; it makes Jaguar one of the most special experiences I have ever had in my life. Trying to control my overwhelming explosion of emotions and feelings, my first drive was very special. I listened to the noise coming from this very special car, stayed under the speed limit, and didn’t care to put my foot down for the first time in my life. The BMW M5 that teased me and made a horrendous scene as it overtook me didn’t even get me worked up, and when I pulled up behind it at the robot ahead, I felt sorry for the driver that their car makes them feel like they need to prove something… a Jaguar proves itself. Wait, what the F-ing hell happened to me? I’ve diced an M3 in a C180 before…

I took a video of this car starting and sent it to my husband because it was just wow. He sent “cool” back, as usual, not being interested in cars.

I drove with the biggest smile on my face, feeling something I hadn’t felt in a long time, and enjoyed the time not being in a hurry or making more noise than I needed to. I started the car a few times because I could not get bored of the sound it made and how it vibrated through my body, releasing dopamine.

My Partner Doesn't Like Cars...

My partner is not in love with cars like I am. He hates being in the car for long and has never gone for a drive without having a destination at the end. He drives a car for the purpose of transport, and then it stays in the garage.

For the first time in my life, we were driving for no reason… we were driving for the feeling, the emotion, and the excitement this car gives you. He was smiling, giggling, and looked happier than I had ever seen him… in a car. The person who does not want to drive the longer route, who doesn’t listen to my hour-long stories and thoughts on cars, and who claims, “I don’t care, as long as it’s automatic I’m happy” when buying a car, was showing emotion—feeling the way I feel about a car for the first time.

Jaguar has been the only car I’ve ever been able to use to show my partner what I feel about cars. The love and excitement I have for a car could only be shown to him through one car… a Jag. He’s driven nice cars before. A G-Wagon left him saying, “It makes me anxious, and I don’t like driving it, so I don’t want one, but it suits you.” I wish I could explain what this meant to me—seeing the person I love sharing the same love I do for the first time. Because it’s a Jaaaaag.

We made a memory together that I don’t think we could ever relive. We experienced a V8 Jaguar together, giggled when we accelerated, went pale when the exhaust screamed its most beautiful sound, and sat in a car that felt like a car… something very few cars today do—be a car. We both enjoyed the same thing together, and we both never thought was possible, and we also both looked at second-hand F-Types on AutoTrader because we both made the decision that we need to own a Jag… we would be stupid to live life without owning a Jag.

Crying In A Jaguar Is Very Different To Crying In A Car: Tried & Tested

The feeling of the Jaguar F-Type 75 Coupé is something special. I have cried multiple times since the first start of this car. The entire car is crafted with the purpose of creating a car, creating history, and making it meaningful. Jaguar did not create an iPad on wheels with the best reverse camera quality and thousands of ambient light colours to choose from, nor did they make the interior an LG Curved TV with the latest update. They created a Jaguar, with a Jaguar interior that is meant to last. The entire interior of the car made me think about the future, and I really think they are so clever, and we just don’t see it. Having the interior be less tech-focused, Jaguar made something meaningful and lasting because this car is not an iPhone like every other car we see on the road these days. You don’t want to upgrade when the next one is out; you want this timepiece to be history, to remember what cars used to be when we still drove cars. Jaguar did something no one else can do—make a car feel like a car. This was the most eye-opening feeling to experience, and it made me think about where we are going with the F-Type, as Jaguar’s goodbye to the car as we know it.

The feeling is so personal, so unique, and I promise every person who is lucky enough to sit in the F-Type will have a different feeling and emotion, but I can promise you one thing… crying in a Jaguar is a lot better than crying in any other car because it’s something so special, so unique, and so different from anything else around.

The F-inal Drive

It was hard to say goodbye to this car—not because I didn’t want to get into my own car and be normal again, but because this car means so much to anyone who loves cars. Jaguar did something clever—they made an experience and a feeling that a person who doesn’t love cars won’t always understand. They took their ‘newest’ car and made it ready to be a classic. I cherished every moment I had left in the car, experiencing it in every way possible to make sure I remember what we had, even if I didn’t realize it at first. I know this is not something I can ever recreate; I will never have a first time in a V8 again, even if I drive another one. I will never have the feeling of driving a car that made me think and think again, no matter how many Jaguars I drive in the future. This car was made to give people a feeling they will never experience again, no matter how hard they try… It was that special.