Jaguar XKR Mark 2 (2007 - onwards)
Jaguar showed the Advanced lightweight coupe concept car around motorshows in 2005, which was simply the new XK with slightly glitzier show car bumpers and exhausts. The production version of the XK was shown at the Frankfurt motorshow in Sept '05, and Jaguar launched the car for sale the following March.
The XK got some very good reviews, and the smallest criticism levelled at the car being the lack of power (the car had a 300bhp 4.2 V8 almost identical to the previous generation XK) to make a proper sports car. Jaguar had however always intended to release an XKR version, and had simply held off launching the XKR version until March 2007, so all the early adopters who bought the new XK in 2006 would shell out again a year later for the XKR, which they did in droves.
The Jaguar XKR took the advanced construction methods that Jaguar has pionnered with the XJ, and took them much further. The car was designed from the outset to be a convertible (as the majority of sales were expected in the American market, which favours convertibles) and the roof added during production. This meant the car suffered very little loss of rigidity in roofless form - a major problem with most other cars that are modified from a hard top design, and made it fantastc to drive.
The other major benefits from the Aluminium construction were the light weight which menat better performance, better braking, improved fuel economy, increased agility in the corners, and increased resistance to minor dents, not to mention not rusting!
Jaguar was known for being fairly cash-strapped at this time, with current owners Ford unwilling or unable to inject more money for development, which resulted in the car having the same engine as the previous generation XKR, the 4.2 V8 supercharged unit with 420 bhp. This was by no means a bad thing, as the new model was much lighter than the old one, resulting in better acceleration of just under 5 seconds 0-60, with the top speed still limited to 155mph.
The car originally retailed for £67,495 in the UK at launch in 2007, £7500 more than the standard XK, but Jaguar decided it wanted a clear £10,000 price differential, so increased the price to £69,995 shortly afterwards, but made u for it by increasing the UK markets standard spec, so it came with and equivalent £2500 worth of options including the stunning 20" Senta Alloys as std.
Reviews of the new XKR have been spectacular so far, with most journalists loving the car, and some calling for even more power, as they feel the aluminium chassis could easily handle it. In one of the motor industies worst kept secrets, Jaguar is set to respond in 2009 by releasing an improved 5.0 litre supercharged V8 with up to 500 bhp.
For reviews of the XKR see: Jaguar XKR Reviews
