XKR-R on prowl

[JohnBM01]

Most of you know I'm a sucker for stuff like this. I haven't liked the latest XK series as much as I liked the 1990s version. It even made a beautiful (and winning) Trans-Am race car. One almost thinks he/she is Paul Gentilozzi with a Trans-Am -type XKR Race Car. I'm not overly squeamish or hateful to see stuff like big wings and such like most others. It does look fairly respectable. Nothing in the way of "what the bloody hell were they thinking?" There is some Aston Martin in its design. For some reason, it has that sort of Aston Martin look up front and on the sides. I think a speed-sensitive rear wing would have been better (think Chrysler Crossfire or the Ford GT90 Concept Car). I might have even gone with a semi-functional and non-extravagant rear wing than this. I'll agree on the rear wing deal. It isn't very fitting.

Approval time. The basic design of the car is okay, but I don't like it as much as the previous-generation XK series. Having said this, I'll present it with 75% approval. Can you dig that?

 

[Mt. Lynx]

The first comment was the XK8, the second was the XKR, they called the XK8 "the XK is easily the best GT all-rounder on sale." It's not a track car, it's not meant to be a track car and if you compare it to a comparable BMW 6 series on a track the BMW will probably win with ease, but on the road the Jag is fantastic.

Funny you should say that! I just read the latest (Swedish edition) of Auto Motor & Sport, where they had a comparison article including a BMW 650i, Mercedes CL500 and Jag XK8! They wrote that the XK was the best handler in the bunch, that the BMW was the most fun to drive but was the most uncomfortable due to its hard suspension, and CL 500 the most comfortable (surprise!) and luxurious.All testing was done on ordinary roads though, and on a track, the Beemer would kick the others butts by far.

I like Jags, and I if could afford one, I would buy one! Not just any Jag though...

 

[YSSMAN]

What we Americans have said over the XK (Convertible):

After declaring the car “a cruiser” in his first logbook notes, tech editor Vander­Werp found himself surprised by the car’s good acceleration, despite its not having substantially more power than previous Jags. “The weight loss and the quick-shifting tranny must help a lot,” he wrote. Then we moved to the lane-change exercise, where the XK cut effortlessly through the cones. We held down the stability-control button, as instructed, to raise the intervention threshold and could detect no more than one brief brake application to settle the car during runs that were more than 2 mph better than the second-quickest car.

Out in the hills the XK continued to impress. The car tackles the twisties with real poise yet never seems to stiffen its ride or responses to the point of severity. The paddle-directed fast upshifts and blipped-throttle downshifts lend real sporting character, and on several occasions we found ourselves drawing to a stop and pulling on both paddles to find neutral, the way it’s done in Ferraris and Lamborghinis. That’s how authentic the experience is.

 

[Sakiale]

A small pic concerneing the heritage of the design.

Omg, they're all Tauruses!!

I am familiar with the story of the design, and I think the new XK looks fine from most angles, but from some angles, it just screams 'TAURUS?!?!!' to me.

I see the Aston resembalence, but how else is a sports coupe expected to look?

 

[harrytuttle]

A small pic concerneing the heritage of the design.

Why is the XJ-13 in there? The E-Type was out 5 years before the XJ-13 project.

I still can't see Jaguar putting such over-the-top aerodynamic devices on their E-Type descendant. It's possible, I guess, considering that the XK120 through XK-SS were visually very similar to the Le Mans versions. It used to be that Jaguar really was at the forefront of sports car design; the current stodgy image is a result of decades of stagnation. Maybe they really are moving forward and these images are genuinely representative of the real thing. I'd be pleasantly surprised if they do, but surprised nonetheless.