Set to become the UK’s largest zero-emissions fleet.
The world’s busiest airport is about to become that much greener, after Heathrow inked a deal that’ll see some 200 Jaguar I-Pace’s conscripted into chauffeur duty this summer. With the We Know Group providing the cars, the airport has initially signed on 50, with the option to add another 150 over the next year should they so wish to.
“What we have created in the I-Pace is utterly revolutionary; A desirable, luxurious, and state-of-the-art electric vehicle that’s practical for genuine everyday use. Including the tough life of an airport luxury chauffeur car.” — Jeremy Hicks, Managing Director, Jaguar-Land Rover UK
Under that sleek, contemporary design lies two electric motors, one on either axle. Together, they make a whopping 294kW and 696Nm, with juice coming from a 90kWh battery pack mounted in the floor. Together, the I-Pace can rocket from rest to 100km/h in just 4.8-seconds… though if you floor it repeatedly, we doubt you’ll be able to hit the I-Pace’s claimed 480km range (based on new WLTP testing standards).
That’s more than enough to handle the 180km that the average British chauffeur car handles every day.
The placement of key components like the battery and the motors have helped the I-Pace maintain a perfect 50:50 weight distribution over the two axles, as well as a very low centre of gravity, which should give this car typically-Jaguar driving dynamics. Furthering this endeavour is the structure of the I-Pace itself, which is said to be the stiffest and most rigid of any Jaguar in history.
What will be of great value to the drivers of this 200-strong fleet will be the I-Pace’s ‘Smart Settings’ that will learn their driving habits and pair that to topographical information (that the car accesses online as needed) to provide hyper-accurate EV range estimations. It also utilises historical data (driving habits, favoured routes, driving conditions) to further sharpen that estimate.
For more information on Jaguar, check out our Showroom.
