MANUAL JAGUAR F-TYPE IS THE THRILL RIDE FOR FLORIDA'S PALM EVENT ORGANIZER

Scott Shrader, 42, president of the fast-growing ‘The Palm Event’ sporting car lifestyle weekend, explains how his Jaguar F-TYPE convertible model makes an exciting daily driver.

Can you tell us about your F-TYPE?

It's a 3.0-liter supercharged V6 roadster, red with a tan interior. I bought it in 2016. I really wanted the R version, but it was more important to me to have manual rather than an automatic. Pretty much every car I've ever owned has been manual, and I wasn't going to break that tradition.

How many miles has it covered?

I've done 30,000 miles in 30 months. It's my daily driver and part of the joy of owning this car is getting behind the wheel every morning. It just makes me smile. Without exception, the first thing I do the second after starting the engine is to hit that Dynamic Mode button. The car just comes alive, and the sound is fantastic.

Is this your first Jaguar?

It is. I'd been a Porsche guy pretty much all my life and traded a Boxster S to buy the F-TYPE. I'd owned the Porsche for 12 years and put 150,000 miles on the clock. But there was something about the F-TYPE that appealed to me. I definitely loved the design - it felt like a direct descendent of the E-type, but with a lot more muscle.

What do you enjoy about driving your F-TYPE?

It truly is a great sports car. I love the supercharged power, 340 horsepower and 0-to-60mph acceleration in 5.5 seconds is exciting enough for me. While the automatic version of the F-TYPE is actually quicker than my manual, I can't tell you how much I enjoy running through the gears manually. For me, that involvement really adds to the excitement of driving the car.

How is the interior space?

That was certainly one of the features that appealed to me. I'm 6’2 and, as you say and I was concerned that I might not fit. The cockpit is really spacious and this is a wide car, yet it still manages to feel intimate. The sports seats are just terrific, with a lot of adjustment.