Two significantly similar cars, no doubt about that. Still, each one has something different to offer. Having both cars powered by petrol engines and utilizing the 5-door suv body style within the same 'SUV' segment, the only major difference here really is their wheel drive configuration (front for the Jaguar and 4 x 4 in the case of the Cupra). The first one has a Jaguar-engineered powertrain under the hood, a 3-cylinder, 12-valves 160hp unit, while the other one gets its power and torque from a 4-cylinder, 16-valves 300hp engine designed by Volkswagen.

The first thing to look into here would be the results from European New Car Assessment Programme (Euro NCAP) tests performed on the two cars. Good thing is that both vehicles got tested, with the same number of safety stars gained in the process. That aside, let's consider some other aspects which affect safety. Both vehicles belong to the suv segment, which is generally a very good thing safety-wise, but that fact doesn't break the tie between the two cars. Furthermore, if we'd like to consider vehicle mass in this context too, which we definitely should, the British car offers a considerable difference of 15% more metal.

Manufacturers have been building their reliability reputation for decades now and, generally speaking, it appears that Cupra as a brand displays somewhat better results, all the models observed together. These are the official statistics, while our visitors describe reliability of Jaguar with an average rating of 4.2, and models under the Cupra badge with 4.7 out of 5. Unfortunatelly, I don't have enough insight that would allow me to comment in more details on the specific models level. Above it all, drivers of cars with the same engine as the British car rank it on average as 3.0, while the one under the competitor's bonnet gets 5.0 out of 5.

Cupra is way more agile, reaching 100km/h in 5.4 seconds less than its competitor. In addition to that it accelerates all the way to 247 kilometers per hour, 50km/h more than the other car. When it comes to fuel economy an obvious choice would be the British car, averaging around 6.8 liters of fuel per 100 kilometers (42 mpg), in combined cycle. That's 40% difference compared to the Spanish car!

Cupra is apparently more reliable, not too much, but just enough. The most important thing when deciding between any two vehicles should always be safety, both passive and active. In my opinion, everything taken into account, the British car offers significantly better overall protection, taking the lead here. From there things take a different direction, with Cupra outracing its opponent in any situation possible, making it better choice for boy racers. It does come at a cost though, and that's the fuel consumption... At the end, as much as I'd like to give you a winner here, it's simply a pure tie if you ask me. In any case that's my personal view, built upon all the data available to me. What should decide here though is the way you feel about the two vehicles, and I hope you'll find my guidelines useful in the process. In case you have two minutes to spare I invite you to define your needs, desires and budget and see which car would be chosen by the virtual adviser™, among thousands of similar, yet so different vehicles.