Jaguar Cars’ latest offering: the XKR-S GT

                                                          Jaguar XKR

A Jaguar, most will agree, is an animal that inspires with its awesome beauty. Part of that beauty is the sense of danger associated with the deadly predator. This trait, we believe, has been convincingly translated into automotive terms with Jaguar Cars’ latest offering: the XKR-S GT.

 This GT's purpose is to fight, and to win. Based on the already manly XKR-S and developed by Jaguar's Engineered to Order (ETO) division, the GT receives several chassis and aerodynamic enhancements aimed at increasing its on-track prowess. The standard car’s brakes are swapped out for carbon ceramics that benefit from automatic pre-filling and pressurizing the brake system as the driver lifts off the throttle for quick top-of-pedal response. The new discs measure 15.7 inches up front and 15 inches out back, and are clamped by six- and four-piston calipers. The entire suspension has been revised with a wider front track, increased camber, and revised bushings; the adaptive damping system is height-adjustable, and the steering has been tweaked with a quicker ratio. ETO also fits unique, 20-inch forged-aluminum wheels on Pirelli Corsa tires sized 255/35 front and 305/30 rear.

The XKR-S GT is easily recognizable by the large intakes stretching nearly the length of its hood.Such exotica on low-hanging body panels will require the utmost care when navigating curbs, driveways, ramps, parking structures, or anything else you might experience driving in Any town, U.S.A. All XKs are all-aluminum cars, and the GT is no different, and it adds an aluminum undertray for aerodynamic purposes.

Engine

The GT’s supercharged 5.0-liter V-8 is rated at 550 horsepower at 6500 rpm, and it produces 502 lb-ft of torque from 2500 rpm—identical levels of output as the mill found in the standard XKR-S. Jaguar promises a 0-to-60 sprint in 3.9 seconds, a conservative claim that we believe can easily be beaten. Top speed, somewhat curiously for a track special, is governed at 186 mph. But at that velocity, the XKR-S GT generates 320 pounds of downforce, and it probably wouldn't go much beyond this marker anyway.Even in its GT form, the XKR-S retains an aging six-speed automatic, a competent unit to be certain, but one that seems slightly outdated after the adoption of the eight-speed automatic in other Jaguar Land Rover products. While the slushbox fails to generate excitement, we like the fact that the car has been fitted with a louder exhaust system with the ability, as the press release states, to "enunciate the car's aural character." The traction-control system also has been modified, and Jaguar cites the change as one of the reasons for the GT’s improved acceleration times versus the standard XKR-S, leading us to believe there’s a little more wiggle room to be had in the new setup.