How fast is an xkr

At the same time, the 7-inch colour touchscreen that dominates the centre of the dash lights up, controlling satellite navigation, climate control, Bluetooth 'phone functionality and in-car audio. Around it, dark wood veneer and aluminium trim supply the necessary sporting ambience and electric adjustment of both seat and steering wheel mean it's easy to find the ideal driving position. Behind you, all models offer a couple of occasional small child-orientated seats that'll doubtless be more usually be used for the carriage of designer jackets or shopping bags.

Click here and we will email it to you. Early XKRs had their share of niggling faults, but by the time production reached this post model, the company had ironed out most of the issues. Most of the issues reported concern suspension issues - and there are a few reports of electrical issues that can prove costly to fix.

A few gearbox and clutch issues have been reported too. Make sure that the big alloy wheels haven't been unduly kerbed too. Otherwise, the usual cautions still apply: stick to main dealers or reputable specialists and don't be tempted by a potential bargain car that doesn't have its service history present and correct.

The supercharged engine can suffer cooling problems if subjected to hard track use. In this supercharged XKR, you don't have to travel very far before you understand one thing very clearly: this is a very fast car indeed. The 5. Even a gradual stroke of your right foot is enough to see quite a number of the available braked horses make a break for freedom, such is the low-down torque of this engine, its peak on offer from as little as 2,rpm, at which point you're starting to fully appreciate the multi-layered pulsing V8 bellow with its accompanying but unobtrusive supercharging scream.

Sixty two mph from rest flashes by unnoticed in just 4. But the really telling increment is the mph overtaking one, demolished in under two seconds. Flat out with the nannying mph speed limiter removed, this would be a mph car - as indeed it is in its ultimate bhp XRS-S guise, this the fastest and most powerful sportscar Jaguar ever produced in this era. If ever you were tempted to wonder just how much of a supercar a Jaguar XK could be with extra-power, sharper handling, more extreme looks and an exclusive Ferrari-style interior, then wonder no more: this is that car.

This flagship version's appeal doesn't shine out too brightly from the balance sheet - the 4. Many will think the louder, crisper engine note worth the price of admission all on its own - though your neighbours may not agree. More importantly, the handling created the closest thing to a Porsche that potential buyers back in had yet seen with an XK badge, thanks to much sharper steering, reprogrammed damper and differential controls, wider tyres and lighter wheels.

The ride, in fact, is the thing that sets any XKR from its German rivals and this was further enhanced in the second half of this Jaguar's production run by the adoption of what Jaguar called 'Adaptive Dynamics'. It's a system that continually monitors steering response, brake input, wheel position, body motion and throttle settings, then, millisecond by millisecond, adapts the Bilstein dampers to suit.

It's far better than the original XK model's rather crude selectable 'soft' or 'hard' damping system, 'Adaptive Dynamics' able to automatically choosing the right set-up for the mood you're in and the road you're on.

Put simply, it's a confidence thing: with this improved set-up, the car always feels as if it's working with you. Which is nice to have when you've the kind of power under your right foot that F1 drivers used to have back in the mid-Seventies.

If you want to stay permanently in red mist mode, pressing a centre console chequered flag-logo-ed 'Dynamic' button will not only keep the suspension firm and the gearchanges quick but also let the engine sing more lustily as the exhaust silencers are bypassed. Go a step further and select 'TracDSC' - one of four modes in the Dynamic Stability Control set-up - and you really need to be on a racetrack, for here there's enough slip allowed for you to hang the back out, though with a helpful safety net built in should your enthusiasm exceed your talent.

If this Jaguar could only have replicated its Porsche rival's pin-sharp steering, then it could have got itself right on the 's tail. It's there to generate extra traction on all kinds of surfaces in all kinds of conditions, but you notice it most the first time that you throw this Jaguar into a corner.

That's when the system can instantly divert torque to the outside rear wheel to stop the tail beginning to slide. So the car always feels planted, shifting its weight through the corners with the lithe confidence of a world class downhill skier. It all further emphasises that feeling we were talking about of complete control, complete confidence in its abilities.

The faster you go, the better it feels. Especially if you're in a Convertible model. The noise any XK makes is one of its biggest selling points and being able to drop the roof down and get a little more exposure to the angry bark the V8 engine delivers only makes the open top version's appeal all the greater. The Coventry engineers behind the XK's design emphasised that this Jaguar was designed right from the outset in Convertible form, so body rigidity is very little affected by the roofless stance.

Something you can convert to either stationary or at low speeds in less than 18 seconds, the triple-layered fabric top disappearing into the bodywork when retracted to be concealed by a neat aluminium tonneau cover. To be able to create a car that rides like a Grand Tourer yet changes direction and grips like a supercar is no mean feat.

Yet that's exactly what Jaguar managed with this XKR. It still isn't quite as focused as a Porsche for dedicated enthusiasts, but then if it was, it probably wouldn't be able to reward as much as it does on those occasions when you're not fighting against the clock. Of course if you are, you'd want to be behind the wheel of the XKR-S version if you could afford to be. Lacking our own private runway, we'd find the standard XKR frighteningly fast enough when we wanted it to press on, relaxed and laid back when we didn't.

No other car of this kind offers quite this Jaguar's blend of speed, refinement and driver involvement. To call it an E-Type for the 21st century is as big a compliment as we can give. This XKR is nothing less. Jaguar has brought us some great, and indeed some not so great, coupes down the years.

Right now, the company is on a great run of form and has been for quite some time. Perhaps the moment when Jaguar really came into its stride and started building the sort of cars we always hoped it might was in when the XK coupe and convertible models hit the market. These were followed a year later by the supercharged XKR, a car that embodied everything the company stood for. Here's how to track down a decent used example.

The Jaguar XK8 was a car that touched greatness in a number of ways but never quite made the grade. As the years roll by, the styling just looks better and better but the packaging, dynamics and efficiency measures of the car were never really anywhere approaching class competitive, let alone class-leading. Its replacement was a very different vehicle. Although the XK looked like an XK8 that had spent a bit of time in the gym, it was a radically improved car.

The cabin was more spacious, the handling livelier and so much weight had been taken out of the chassis that economy was much improved. Since then, we've had quite a few special edition models come and go, but the big change occurred in , when the old 4. The earlier 4. It would be tempting to think of a car of this sort as an evolution of the old pre XK8-based XKR model. Tempting but wrong. This 'X' generation car is built from entirely different stuff.

The advanced aluminium construction and massively superior technology embodied in the latest XKR raised its game enormously. There was also a welcome injection of practicality to the XKR. The high hipline remained but Jaguar worked at making the interior feel a good deal airier, with a low scuttle and clever use of colour combinations. The wheelbase was increased by mm and rear occupants noticed the difference immediately.

Up front, there was way more room around the pedal box and beneath the steering wheel. Gone was the rather mean boot of its predecessor - unforgivable in a car with Grand Touring pretensions - and in its place came a more versatile hatchback arrangement.

Unlike many premium convertibles, the XKR drop top model relied on a fabric roof rather than the voguish folding hard top, but there are valid engineering reasons for doing so. Folding tin tops require a whole host of heavy electric motors to operate and the ethos of the XKR is clever design and light weight.

This version may be a mere 1. Unlike earlier generations of Browns Lane cars which had their fair share of niggling faults, the XKR has suffered no major problems, which is great news for used buyers. The usual cautions still apply though: stick to main dealers or reputable specialists and don't be tempted by a potential bargain car that doesn't have its service history present and correct.

The supercharged engine can suffer cooling problems and expect to find heavy brake wear if the car has been subjected to hard track use. Those familiar with the punch of the 4. After all, the supercharged eight-cylinder 4. In the evolvement from XK8 to XK, the coupe model lost 70kg of weight and the Convertible shed kg. Jaguar quoted a sprint to 60mph in just 4. An electronic limiter intervenes softly at mph, fast enough for most of us. Without the limiter, Jaguar insiders reckon that over three miles a minute are possible given the car's slippery aerodynamics and leggy gearing.

With fully bhp more than the normally aspirated XK and good for a fulsome Nm of torque, the XKR has the firepower to make good on its aggressive styling. Go for the post 5. Quicker still is the quite magnificent XKR-S.

If you've never thought of a Jaguar coupe as a credible rival for a Porsche Turbo, drive this car and the one with the engine behind you will feel like the boring choice.

The bhp V8 powers it to a top speed of mph, which makes it comfortably the quickest Jaguar road car since the iconic XJ While the mph time of 4.

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies. Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today. Already subscribed? Log in. Forgotten your password? Want an ad-free experience? Dynamic mode also gives the exhaust its extremely full voice. Strangely on circuit the XKR actually feels slightly too twitchy with the nose reacting quickly and almost upsetting the tail at the same time.

Bizarrely the XFR is actually more enjoyable as a track car as it is better balanced. The ZF gearbox remains the best automatic available in any car on sale today. The algorithm which chooses when to change down gear in Sport Mode is uncannily, almost spookily good. How does it compare? Ultimately, it will probably boil down to how much you are seduced by the looks of the Vantage…. Skip to Content Skip to Footer. Find a car review Make Make.

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