Follow-Up Test: 2007 Jaguar XKR Convertible

The 2007 Jaguar XKR is going to change the way an entire generation thinks about Jaguar.

Unless you're an old geezer, say, over 60, or a history buff, you have no awareness whatsoever of the Jaguar brand being an intrinsic piece of the high-performance/motorsport maelstrom. And why should you? Since the '70s, Jaguar has been as removed from the high-performance sports car world as the New York Jets have been from the Super Bowl.

But the 2007 Jaguar XKR is a legitimate heir to the great high-performance cars of the brand's storied past. Cars like the XK120, C-Type and XKSS. It's a car that can legitimately say, "I belong here. I deserve to wear this nameplate. I am a high-performance Jaguar."

Yes, the Jaguar XKR, that's "R," is able to hold its own and then some among its large premium sport category peers — the BMW M6, Cadillac XLR-V, Mercedes-Benz SL550, Porsche 911 Cabrio and whatever else costs around a hundred grand nowadays and has only two (real) seats. The previous-generation XKR could not make that statement.

The R upgrade
The newest XK in standard coupe and convertible versions debuted in late 2005. Forget frequent flyer programs. The R is perhaps the world's greatest upgrade of all time. For a mere $11,000 premium, here's what you get:

• An extra 120 horsepower and 103 pound-feet of torque — to 420 hp at 6,000 rpm and 413 lb-ft of torque at 4,000 rpm from a supercharged 4.2-liter double-overhead-cam V8
• Specially tuned suspension calibration
• Bigger brakes with huge 14-inch discs and tougher cast iron rather than aluminum pistons
• Bigger 19-by-8.5-inch wheels
• Bigger 245/40ZR19 front and 275/35ZR19 rear Dunlop tires

Our particular test car, a convertible with a base price of $92,500, had several options including the premium sound package ($1,875), adaptive cruise control ($2,200) and 20-inch aluminum wheels and gigantic 255/35ZR20 front and 285/30ZR20 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx J tires ($5,000) which pushed the sticker to over $100,000.

How does it go?
For that much money, you should expect a lot — and the XKR delivers. Go back through our previous road test archives and you'll find that the XKR is not the quickest, not the fastest or the absolute best in handling among the cars in its class. But you know what? Throw the numbers out on this one. This is a case where the total package is what counts, much more than any individual quantitative track test statistic.

Suffice it to say that with a 0-to-60 time of 4.9 seconds, the quarter-mile in 13.4 at 105 mph, braking from 60 to zero in 115 feet and 0.88g on the skid pad, the XKR will not embarrass you in any street confrontation you may encounter. That's more than a second quicker to 60 mph and through the quarter-mile than the run-of-the-mill XK convertible. Still, in an all-out, light-to-light drag race you will be taken by a Bimmer M6 or the odd SL65 AMG. And how many of them do you cross paths with on your daily commute?

If you do run into one, get into the six-speed automatic transmission steering column shifter paddles. They are step one in extracting max performance out of this powertrain. Lots of performance cars have Formula 1-style shifter paddles on the steering column these days. But the XKR's transmission is one of the few automanuals that incorporates a computer program that automatically heel-and-toes for you.

Flick the left paddle to downshift and the computer perfectly matches revs with the throttle, then shifts down a gear with no lurch. You find yourself pulling up to lights going down through the gears just to hear the engine blips. It's one of the coolest things about this car. Conversely, upshifts with the right paddle bang off right now under full throttle. The only thing missing is rubber in each gear.

A rock-solid foundation
Drive the XKR for about five minutes and you'll immediately be aware of the tremendous feeling of solidity. It's not an illusion. The new XK's unique-to-the-industry aluminum monocoque body is, in effect, its own chassis. There is no conventional spaceframe with separate body panels hung on it. The XK coupe is more than 30-percent stiffer than the previous-generation XK and the convertible is more than 40-percent stiffer.

This results in all kinds of benefits, starting with a higher level of passenger safety, reduced noise and vibration, and improved ride and handling characteristics thanks to improved suspension dynamics. What's more, Jag says the XKR convertible is 220 pounds lighter than the car it replaces. At 4,032 pounds, it's still no lightweight, however.

Contributing to the "smash 'em flat" feel is the uprated XKR suspension. Compared to the standard XK convertible, our R test car's front springs were 38-percent stiffer and rears 24-percent stiffer. Also, an additional rear suspension brace is fitted to R models between the rear shock towers to accommodate the significant increase in rear spring stiffness.

Jaguar's suspension engineers have hit a home run on this one. Despite all the increased suspension stiffness, the car never feels stiff. It's still very much a luxury ride, just firmer when you need it. You go over a bump and the car goes thunk. That's it. No wasted motion at all.

Now the bad points
Too bad our test car had several quality glitches. We've complained about the XK's new touchscreen in previous reviews, and we had problems with it this time around, too. This time the climate controls were locked on 83 degrees Fahrenheit no matter what temp we set, which made for some interesting drives out in the Palm Springs, California, desert area where we spent most of our time with the car.

Other glitches included a gas flap that worked intermittently; and on one occasion, the convertible top decided to freeze while halfway up. In 2006, at $100,000, there is simply no excuse for this kind of BS.

Enough power on tap
The normally aspirated 300-hp engine in the standard XK is OK, but really, the XKR engine should be the standard power plant. Four hundred twenty horsepower is a starting point in this league and around 500 is where the players are these days. But those numbers are just talking points for the country club cocktail party on Saturday night. The truth is, most of the people you see driving these cars will never tap into even 10 percent of the performance available. In the XKR, there's enough, and the car likes to hustle.

Hustle? What's that? Say you're in the Hamptons and you have to get back to the city in two hours for a meeting. The XKR is the car to be in for that kind of 125-mile trip. It's where all the car's attributes come together — speed, handling, braking, steering, control. You work the car, the car works the traffic. You power out, downshift with the paddles, brake, get around that minivan, upshift and power out again. You get into that rhythm, in rhythm with the car, the way Michael Schumacher does in his Ferrari F1. It's an exhilarating zone to be in and the 2007 Jaguar XKR can put you there.

But be forewarned. The top might stick halfway up.

The manufacturer provided Edmunds this vehicle for the purposes of evaluation.