Jaguar I-Pace is a cool cat on the road

South West roads were being prowled last month by the most silent and efficient big cat ever.

Jaguar’s new I-Pace is the company’s first all electric vehicle and will pounce almost silently from 0-100km/h in just 4.8 seconds, shredding the stigma that electric vehicles are dull.

It is not hard to see why this cool cat was recently awarded World Car of the Year, World Car Design of the Year and World Green Car at this year’s World Car Awards, it is simply breathtaking.

While it may not be the most beautiful car ever made, it is certainly a head turner and looks like nothing else on the road.

The cabin continues this elegance boasting spotless upholstery, gorgeous seats and a futuristic, all-touch dashboard.

Quite often in unfamiliar cars it can take a while to find and set your seating position, but in the I-Pace it took less than a minute for me to set my preferred driving position, faster than anything else I have ever driven.

The seats are firm, supremely comfortable and supportive and feature both heating and cooling functions... you could drive this car a long, long way and never feel uncomfortable.

Being electric, there is no engine noise and so Jaguar had to pump a synthesised whirring sound into the cabin via the speakers such is the brilliance of the electric motors.

All I-Pace variants pack the same 290kW, 696Nm punch which results in 0-100km/h being dispatched in less than five seconds as the drive is shared between all four wheels.

With nothing but a quiet whir accompanying the sudden shove from behind, the acceleration is relentless and roll-on performance borderline insane given every one of the almost 700Nm are at your disposal the millisecond you touch the throttle.

Unfortunately we were unable to let the big cat off the leash through the twists and turns of the Ferguson Valley, but it felt tort and agile through the curves and roundabouts of Bunbury and Australind.

The ride is firm but never uncomfortable and balances a perfect mix of sportiness.

The steering has good feedback even at suburban speeds and regenerative braking means the claimed 400km range can be further extended, even if it does take a while to get used to.

Pricing starts at $119,000 before on road costs while this SE example starts from $130,200 and the range topping HSE starts at $140,800.

Wheels South West would like to extend a big thanks to Bunbury Jaguar Land Rover for the opportunity to drive this futuristic masterpiece.