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And it’s not just the XFR that’s set to benefit from the firm’s thumping new supercharged V8 engine…The XKR will benefit from the changes made to the flagship powerplant too. Priced from £79,999, the top of the range XKR gets the same 503bhp power output as the new XFR, but thanks to a slightly lower kerbweight it is even faster – sprinting from 0-60mph in a staggering 4.6 seconds.

Top speed is limited to 155mph, but numbers alone don’t do justice to the improvements made throughout this car. New look lights at the front and rear boost the quality of the detailing, while inside the car also gets the JaguarDrive gear selector described opposite. There’s new suspension, plus the addition of the firm’s electric limited slip differential.

On the road, these modifications combine to ensure that the XKR is not just incredibly fast in a straight line, but a fine performer on twisting roads too. The brakes are enormously strong, and coupled with the car’s well judged traction and stability control systems offer a good blend of performance and security.

In all this car’s combination of speed, agility, poise and balance is even greater than that of the XFR, and to our mind is one of the finest high performance GT cars money can currently buy.

 

That's a bit of a surprise. I always thought the XKR was a bit of a porker. Now, if they could only put all of that technology back into the previous generation car...

 

The 420hp version of the XKR I have is pretty fast, I cant guess how fast this would be with the top end. The bad thing about the XKR its very comfortable that it doesnt feel sportive like the SLK55 I have, I guess a GT car is meant to be a GT car and not a tad sporty. I wish the steering wheel was thicker and the car was harsher, lower.