Jaguar XKR 2008 News

It says everything about the ubiquity of such things that the authorities in Baghdad are holding one. What better way to present the image that all's well in this most dangerous of cities than to stick a bunch of cars on stands and charge admission?The realisation that these things are becoming a bit of a yawn has not been lost on the organisers of the British International Motor Show, which has kicked off in London's Docklands.It started with the most memorable pre-launch stunt in recent history, Opel's new Insignia being lowered by a massive crane from atop Tower Bridge. Cute as these things go, but counting for nothing if the show lacked stars and substance.Unlike some other international motor shows, the Brit edition has plenty of both. There are 600 cars running the alphabetical gamut from Alfa Romeo to ZEV (that'd be Zero Emission Vehicles) worth some $100 million.While Britain's biggest consumer exhibition comes close to being all things to all people, it's the 23 models making their debut that is the chief draw for the anticipated 550,000 punters.The show-stealer is undoubtedly the Lotus Evora. The Norfolk marque's first all-new model in 12 years is a mid-engined 2+2 V6, intended to give Porsche something to think about, especially if _ as anticipated _ it combines the brand's trademark lightweight build (just 1350kg) with razor handling.While the Evora represents a significant step forward for Lotus, Jaguar has looked to the past for the XK60, a captivating special edition of the current production coupe to commemorate the unveiling of legendary XK120 sporters in 1948.Powered by the atmo version of the 4.2 V8, the Jag cops enhancements such as 20-inch Senta alloy wheels, alloy gear knob and selector-gate surround, new front spoiler, chrome-finished side vents and special tailpipe finishers. Which is nice.Performance with an eco-conscience? Why not? Mercedes-Benz is showcasing its BlueTEC version of the stylish CLS. Reassuringly for the rev-hungry, there's a Brabus-built Bullit Black Arrow, their V12-engined C-Class.The show's green tinge is evident in the Lightning Car Company's Lightning, a 100 per cent electric GT sports car, and Allied Vehicles' E7 electric taxi, whose lithium-ion batteries imbue the seven-seater with a range of 160km and top speed of 100km/h. Other green gambits include the Ford Fiesta ECOnetic with carbon dioxide emissions of less than 100g/km.While the British blowout is not spoken of in the same breath as the biennial Frankfurt or Paris salons, the lesson for organisers of Australian events are salient.Not least of these is making `events' singular _ just as we have too much government for 21 million people, there are too many annual shows. Oh, and staging it in a venue that's spacious and accessible isn't a bad idea, either. 

Only 10 XKR Portfolio coupes will be available for sale in Australia at a cost of $246,000. The 4.2 litre supercharged sports coupe will come in 'Celestial Black' with 20-inch Cremona five-spoke alloy wheels, alloy and leather gearshift selector, soft grab door handles, contrast upholstery stitching, leather edged mats with a Jaguar logo and distinctive Portfolio treadplates on the doorsills. The XKR Portfolio also marks the first production example of Jaguar's new partnership with audio entertainment specialists Bowers and Wilkins. Taking Jaguar's 525W Premium Audio system with Dolby Pro Logic II surround sound as a starting point, Bowers and Wilkins have crafted a signature speaker system specifically for the XKR's cabin. It has high-output, low-distortion Kevlar mid-range speakers and specially designed aluminium dome tweeters. Jaguar's Special Vehicles team also has worked alongside motorsport brake manufacturer Alcon to create the largest, most powerful brakes a production Jaguar has yet carried. Alcon is a technical partner to the Honda F1 Racing Team and their brakes have been used on the 2003-05 Indy Racing champions. The XKR Portfolio brakes comprise huge 400mm discs at the front and 350mm discs at the rear with high-performance brake pads and stiff, lightweight monobloc calipers. The red-coloured brake calipers with R branding feature six pistons at the front and four at the rear. They are designed to dissipate heat and cool the braking system quickly to prevent fade. The discs have crescent-shaped grooves to keep the pads free of grit and debris, which could impair their effectiveness. This also prevents thermal stress raisers or hotspots which can induce judder.  

  “The full initial allocation of XKRs for our first six months has already been sold . . . interest in the car has been unbelievable,” says Land Rover spokeswoman Lesa Horntvedt. “The wait for it is out to six months.” That initial allocation was 60 cars — not a lot in global terms — but it's been some time since anyone lined up for a Jag. Jaguar Australia sold 1011 cars last year, of which 88 were the XK8, the new model of which was launched mid-year. Those figures are already looking pale next to a 2007 first quarter that has seen 30 XK8s delivered and 60 XKRs (at $227,900 for the coupe and $249,900 the convertible) presold. The XKR takes the core of the basic XK, adds a load of performance and a minimum of styling changes. “When we started down this track there were some truths we knew we had to face,” says Jaguar senior body engineer Mark White. “The goal was to create the ultimate sports GT and to do it we set the target of exceeding the XK by some 30 per cent in a range of performance criteria.” What the engineers aimed for was a benchmark of five seconds for the 0-100km/h sprint. They achieved a 5.0 flat for the coupe and 5.2 for the convertible but, more important, performance had to be accessible in the crucial mid-range for overtaking and it had to be refined. A large part of the XKR's credentials come from the high standards set for the new XK. Although there was no need to stiffen the superbly rigid chassis and all-aluminium body of the XK, the XKR engineers concentrated on providing an engine with extra heart, suspension that delivers a stiffer ride without additional harshness, and brakes capable of reining in a rampant XKR. Strapping the twin induction supercharger to the 4.2-litre V8 was the obvious first step and with it came variable valve timing on both inlet and outlet cams. The power boost was some 40 per cent over the XK, taking maximum power to 306kW at 6250rpm and a thumping 560Nm of torque from 4000rpm. The whipcrack engine has been coupled to the latest of the ZF auto gearboxes, as seen in the Maserati Quattroporte and Ford Falcon. Featuring shift changes as smart as 600 milliseconds and as smooth as custard, the box can be driven as a full automatic in cruise mode, a sports automatic with computer-generated blips on the downshifts or as a full-control manual utilising the wheel-mounted paddle shifts. To keep the extra urge from its attempts to separate car and road, the spring rates were stiffened 38 per cent at the front and 28 per cent at the rear, rollbar thickness was increased a millimetre and damper response improved by 25 per cent. The CATS (computer active technology suspension), which switches the dampers between soft and firm, has a similar response time to the XK's but has been tweaked to switch from soft to firm earlier. The other critical area of improvement is in braking. Compared with the XK, the R car has 26 per cent greater swept area on the discs and a huge 37 per cent improvement in cooling efficiency. One of the joys of the XKR, particularly the convertible, is the oh-so-angry exhaust howl. Its throaty note is a simple affair: the more you poke it, the louder it growls. However, poke it really hard and you risk scaring yourself. What's not immediately obvious is the expected induction whine of the supercharger. It's far more muted than the outgoing model — or than the same engine tuned for the S-Type R. Absolutely reassuring about the XKR at full charge is the rock-like stability. It does not so much attack the road as seduce it, caressing the corners with gentle assurance. With the stability control in operation the intervention is gentle and unobtrusive. Each time you think the limits of adhesion are approaching and push that little harder, the chassis finds even more limpet-like grip.