The Tesla Model Y may be seen as the standard in the compact luxury electric SUV space, but it actually wasn’t the first to market—that would be the Jaguar I-Pace. First launched in 2019, the I-Pace impressed us with its outright performance and its stylish sheetmetal, but early electronic gremlins and low driving range held it back from widespread popularity.

The automaker promises the mildly updated 2022 Jaguar I-Pace EV400 HSE is now “smarter, better connected, and faster-charging,” and so we decided to revisit the electric Jag to see how it’s improved over the past few years.

At face value, not much has changed with the I-Pace since we first sampled it back in 2019. The 2022 I-Pace looks about the same, costs about the same, and features the same dual-motor powertrain making 394 hp and 512 lb-ft of torque. But under the skin, Jaguar’s done some tweaking.

The buggy infotainment suite we hated has been replaced by one we don’t—Jaguar-Land Rover’s latest Pivi Pro system, which is quicker and more intuitive than the system it replaces. On top of that, Jaguar’s given the I-Pace’s battery management system over-the-air update capability, promising that things like charge speed can be updated remotely.

That gives it both short legs and a slow charge speed compared to competitors like the 2023 Genesis GV60 Performance (235 miles of range and a 235 kW peak charge speed) and the 2022 Model Y Long Range (318 miles of range and a 250 kW peak charge speed). Jaguar promises a coming software update will improve the 2023 I-Pace’s range (and the 2022’s via an OTA update), but it won’t say by how much as of this publication time.

The Jag may outgun the 384-hp Tesla at the dyno, but the I-Pace is slower at the test track. It accelerated from 0-60 mph in 4.2 seconds, and on through the quarter-mile in 12.8 seconds at 107.4 mph, trailing the last Model Y Long Range we tested. The 525-pound lighter Tesla hit 60 mph in 4.1 seconds and runs the quarter in 12.4 seconds at 114.8 mph. We haven’t tested the GV60 yet, but Genesis claims it’ll hit 60 mph in as little as 4.0 seconds.

Even if the I-Pace is slower than Model Y (and likely the GV60), it’s still a great-driving electric SUV. It has strong, rip-your-socks-off torque; quick, informative steering; and just enough rear-end wiggle when driven hard around bends to remind you that it is, in fact, a real Jaguar.

We also think the I-Pace’s design has aged incredibly well. Even in our Jag’s subdued blue hue, it looks futuristic and interesting—as if it were straight out of a Black Mirror episode. It’s a rethink of the SUV for the electric age, and we think the design risks Jaguar made in styling its first-ever EV paid off.

Despite the improvements Jaguar has made to the I-Pace’s Level 2 charge speed, the I-Pace’s Level 3 charge speed renders it completely uncompetitive in the space. 

Rivals like the GV60 can charge from 10 to 80 percent in as little as 16 minutes, and fully charge in just over 40 minutes when conditions allow. On the other hand, it took us 41 minutes to get from 10 percent to 80 percent in the I-Pace, and 69 minutes to hit 100 percent charge (though its peak charge rate actually crested 108 kW).

The I-Pace’s lackluster charge speed, coupled with its 222-mile range, make it hard to justify for a single-car household, especially considering both the GV60 and Model Y currently undercut its $71,050 base price.

The stellar-looking and fun-to-drive Jaguar I-Pace may be “smarter, better connected, and faster-charging” than before, but the I-Pace hasn’t kept, well, pace with a rapidly evolving segment.