FLEXING JAGUAR MUSCLE AT THE WOODWARD AVENUE DREAM CRUISE

Every year the annual Woodward Dream Cruise in Detroit sits on the calendar right on top of the wonderful Pebble Beach Concours, and since for the past 17 years, our Director of Design for Jaguar, Ian Callum has been a judge at the Concours he has never been able to attend the Dream Cruise, but with the launch of the F‑TYPE ‑ a true modern‑day British muscle car ‑ we knew this was the year to change that, writes Stuart Schorr, Vice President of Communications and Public Affairs, Jaguar Land Rover North America.

Those who know Ian know that he’s always had a passion for hot rods, muscle cars and the whole American car culture. In fact, back in the UK, he keeps a very fine 1932 Ford Model B “Deuce Coupe” with a Windsor V8, and a slightly less fine 1956 Chevy Two‑Ten custom sedan.

While American muscle cars are usually the stars of the Cruise, we think that 495HP doing a quarter‑mile in less than 12 seconds* classifies the F‑TYPE V8 S as a serious modern hot rod. So to Detroit Ian and I went with two goals: share our new F‑TYPE with some of the most knowledgeable automotive enthusiasts in the world, and spend as much time checking out the local muscle cars as possible.

We’d brought along a pair of F‑TYPE cars ‑ a 380‑horsepower supercharged V6 and my V8 S ‑ and based ourselves at the wonderful Vinsetta Garage. After 90‑odd years as a full‑service gas station, it’s now a fun, automotive‑themed restaurant. With our two Jaguar cars parked outside, the attention they received was phenomenal.

Certainly the crowd lining miles of Detroit’s Woodward Avenue, as we cruised the strip, gave us a warm welcome. In fact, the overall reaction to the F‑TYPE was just amazing and very gratifying. I lost count of the number of “thumbs‑up” we got. All I could hear from the thousands of enthusiasts lining the sidewalks was “Hey, that’s the new Jag,” or “cool car” ‑ It felt great.

Of course it helped that I had clicked the ‘Active Exhaust’ button to engage the full, free‑flowing, straight‑through active exhaust that gave that sensational snap, crackle and pop over‑run. Most of the big‑block ’70s American classic cars around us didn’t sound as vocal but, on the other hand, a few dragstrip‑ready machines did shake the pavement and us.

Throughout the Cruise, it was fantastic to talk to so many people who knew so much about the F‑TYPE and the Jaguar brand in general, and thought it was really great that we were there taking part in the whole event.

In the middle of Birmingham, we parked right outside that wonderful old movie theater on Old Woodward, with its flashing marquee, for an impromptu photo shoot. Within seconds we had crowds three‑deep around the cars.

Then we got back on Woodward and cruised all the way up to Bloomfield Hills to visit the Jaguar enthusiasts in the Jaguar Affiliates Group of Michigan (JAGM) ‑ who were holding their annual Concours d’Elegance, now in its 46th year. Again, our two F‑TYPE cars took star‑billing.

There was just something wonderful about a bunch of passionate Michigan Jaguar enthusiasts taking part of this annual celebration of the American car culture. They’re not wrong when they call the Dream Cruise the world’s biggest one‑day automotive event.

The slow drive back in the lovely, warm afternoon sun, with my elbow hanging out over the F‑TYPE car’s door, waving at the estimated 1.5 million fans lining the route, was truly a magical experience. I’m glad Ian was along for the ride and that our all‑new F‑TYPE was welcomed with open muscle arms. Click here to see a video of how the F‑TYPE fit in at the Dream Cruise.

*Always obey local speed limits.