One of the last carmakers to finally jump on the crossover/SUV bandwagon, Jaguar->ke39 is said to be working on its first electric model as well, with British sources indicating that the new F-Pace->ke5038 SUV will provide the basis for the future EV. This bit of info comes from Autocar, so you may want to take it with a pinch of salt or at least consider it a far-fetched speculation, although some parts do sound realistic.

According to the British car magazine, Land Rover->ke46 would also offer a version of this future all-electric SUV, courtesy of the Jaguar-Land Rover union, which would obviously help reduce R&D costs. Using the aluminum-intensive platform of the Jaguar F-Pace would also help keep the weight down, despite the heavy battery pack needed to offer a projected 300-mile range.

With more Alpha cities introducing "zero emission zones" and Tesla proving that you can make good business selling premium electric cars, the Jaguar and Land Rover EV may have a brighter future than some might expect at first glance. On the other hand, it seems a bit counterintuitive not to offer a plug-in hybrid model first, just to test the waters with something that blends the advantages of both worlds. Sure, the Tesla Model X may need a few competitors in order to evolve faster, but I'm not entirely sure that the first electric Jaguar or Land Rover will be the best ones for the job.

Click past the jump to read more about the Jaguar F-Pace.

Why it matters

First previewed by the Jaguar C-X17 concept at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show, the F-Pace will be the first SUV for the British carmaker, with recent reports saying that it should hit showrooms in the first half of 2016. Based on the aluminum-intensive platform used by the new Jaguar XE,->ke3138 the new SUV is expected to be among the lightest models in its segment, if not the lightest.

Its engine range will consist of turbocharged inline four-cylinder and supercharged V-6 engines, all of them being shared with the XE entry-level sedan. The rather odd moniker of the model was chosen to emphasize both its relationship with the F-Type and to bring back part of Sir William Lyons' famous maxim of "Grace, Pace and Space." An all-electric version would probably deserve the F-Grace name better, but since nothing about the matter is officially confirmed, it can go either way.

Jaguar F-Pace