2017 Jaguar F-Pace

While we might not be learning much about how the new Jaguar F-Pace will deal with the challenges typically faced by luxury crossovers, we’re certainly having fun.

jaguar Land Rover’s test facility near Arjeplog in northern Sweden is practically in the Arctic Circle, and at this time of year every surface is covered in either snow or ice. Or, in the case of the 300-foot-diameter circle that we’re drifting a prototype F-Pace around, a combination of both. Although it’s just past noon, the sun is barely above the horizon and starting to fall, and the outside temperature is a bracing negative-22 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet this supercharged V-6 F-Pace seems entirely happy to slide around seemingly indefinitely, the cabin staying warm and the well-mannered chassis politely declining every invitation to spin out, despite the provocation of a pinned-open throttle and the deactivation of every dynamic aid.