New Jaecoo 7 v used Jaguar F-Pace – which SUV is best for £30k?

If there’s one thing new Chinese car brands such as Jaecoo want to deliver on, it’s bang for your buck. The Jaecoo 7 has the looks of a posh SUV and the equipment list of one to match, but it’s let down somewhat by the user experience and its on-road manners.

Going for a brand-new alternative from a premium brand is clearly far more expensive, but what if you scour the used market instead? Well, that’s just what we’ve done, and we’ve turned up a particularly fine challenger for the same price – a Jaguar F-Pace.

There’s a lot of Jaguar in the news lately – after a much-publicised rebrand, the company stopped building new cars altogether to make way for the future of the brand, which will start out with a new all-electric GT car.

Jaguar’s first SUV was – and still is – a seriously handsome beast, and it’s great to drive too. Better yet, for the price of an entry-level Jaecoo 7 you can get a nicely-specced, low-mileage diesel example. Up your budget to match the top-spec Jaecoo 7 SHS and you can get even posher trim levels, petrol engines or even a plug-in hybrid.

Our ideal model? We found a 2023 diesel in the eye-catching Firenze Red with just 26,000 miles on for less than £31,000. It’s even in the handsome R-Dynamic S trim, with 19-inch alloy wheels and a leather interior with aluminium trim.

But the question is – should you buy it?

Remember, whether it’s a Jaecoo, a Jag, a Jeep or even a J-ercedes-Benz, you can buy a brand new or used car right here on Carwow. And you can sell your car, too. We’re here to help you through every step of your car-changing journey.

New Jaecoo 7 v used Jaguar F-Pace: engines, performance and running costs

With the Jaecoo you get a choice of two engines. There’s a 145hp petrol, paired up to a seven-speed automatic gearbox and either front- or all-wheel drive, depending on which trim level you select. You can also have the SHS – standing for ‘Super Hybrid System’. This is a plug-in hybrid with 204hp, a claimed 56 miles of electric range and much better fuel economy.

For between £30-£35,000, you can get a few different Jaguar F-Pace engines. Most models you’ll find while scouting the classifieds are badged ‘D200’ – that means a 2.0-litre diesel outputting 200hp. There are also a very scant few D300 models with a 3.0-litre six-cylinder engine and 300hp.

On the petrol front, the P250 is a 2.0-litre with 250hp – sadly, the supercharged 5.0-litre V8 F-Pace SVR is a bit out of our price range here. But there are plenty of examples of the P400e – a plug-in hybrid offering up to 40 miles of range. All of these are all-wheel drive, with only the cheaper and slower diesel engines coming as rear-wheel drive models.

The Jaguar is the clear performance winner here. Even the slowest D200 model does 0-62mph in less than 8.0 seconds, while the plug-in hybrid P400e manages the same sprint in just 5.0s. Compare that to 10.3s and 8.5s for the petrol and PHEV Jaecoos respectively.

As for running costs, it’s a mixed bag. The petrol Jaecoo 7 returns only about 30mpg in the real world, where the diesel F-Pace will easily do over 40mpg and with much more performance. But the Jaecoo plug-in hybrid has a longer electric range than the Jaguar, and uses less fuel when the battery’s depleted too.

New Jaecoo 7 v used Jaguar F-Pace: interior and practicality

You might think this one’s clear-cut – the newer the car, the better the tech. But that’s not necessarily the case. The Jaecoo’s touchscreen absolutely dwarfs the Jaguar’s – it’s 14.8 inches across in the Luxury model, while the F-Pace has either a 10.0-inch unit if you’re buying prior to the 2021 facelift, or an 11.4-inch unit thereafter.

But the truth is that the Jaguar’s interior is much easier to use. All versions get physical climate controls, and plenty of proper switchgear. The touchscreen may not be the best, but it’s pretty logically laid-out and nicely responsive. The Jaecoo, on the other hand, has a screen littered with small, hard-to-hit buttons and long menus to scroll through.

Both cars use plenty of luxurious-sounding materials, but it’s the Jag where you’ll find the nicer soft-touch plastics, real leather and proper chrome. The Jaguar is more spacious, too, though this is one area where there’s not much in it – the Jaecoo’s boot ranges from 410 to 500 litres, the Jaguar’s from 485 to 650.

New Jaecoo 7 v used Jaguar F-Pace: reliability and ownership costs

Now here’s where the Jaecoo starts clawing points back. It’s not that Jaecoo cars are known to be particularly reliable – they’ve not been sold in the UK for long enough to have much data on that front – more that Jaguars are known to be historically unreliable instead.

Jaecoo certainly has confidence enough in its cars to offer a seven-year warranty, while the Jaguar F-Pace only came with three years of cover from the factory – all of which will be used up now. Spend a bit more on an approved used Jaguar from a dealer, and you get two years of cover, which is better than nothing – but if the brand’s reputation is anything to go by, you’ll need it.

Neither vehicle qualifies for especially cheap road tax, but it’s worth mentioning that most F-Paces cost over £40,000 when new – meaning they’re subject to the expensive car supplement for a few more years, adding £390 a year to the tax bill.

New Jaecoo 7 v used Jaguar F-Pace: verdict

So which should you buy? Well, the Jaguar wins out in most categories here – there’s no doubt that it’s bigger, nicer to drive, more powerful, and commands rather more kudos in the car park.

But if you rely on your car – and let’s face it, most of us do – then the uncertainty of a somewhat unreliable used SUV, plus the repair costs that come with a premium badge, might turn you towards the new and shiny Jaecoo instead.

The Jaecoo 7 isn’t a bad SUV by any stretch – and for the price it’s actually rather good. If you’re in the market then it’s definitely worth test-driving one.

Also consider

MG HS

The MG HS is even cheaper than the Jaecoo but offers more space and an even more tax-friendly plug-in hybrid variant.

Toyota RAV4

If you want the maximum dependability from your car, go for a Toyota or Lexus hybrid. The brand’s ‘Relax’ warranty means that if you buy a 2023 car (which you can easily do for our budget) you’ll have cover until 2033.

Porsche Cayenne

Desperate for a premium badge but want something you can rely on? Porsche came fourth in the 2024 Driver Power survey, and though the Cayenne is still quite pricey you can pick up a 2018 or 2019 example within our budget.

Car change? Carwow!

Looking for a new set of wheels? With Carwow you can sell your car quickly and for a fair price – as well as find great offers on your next one. Whether you’re looking to buy a car brand new, are after something used or you want to explore car leasing options, Carwow is your one stop shop for new car deals.

Click here to follow us on WhatsApp, where you can keep up-to-date with all the latest news, reviews, advice guides and videos.