Thanks to my good friend Matt winning a charity auction (Well done Matt!) I got to hijack his week-long prize for an afternoon along side Chris from Sirck. Designs and Images.

You can see Chris’ full set HERE.

The first thing I noticed as Matt arrived to pick me up was the growl coming up the street. Not overbearing or harsh, but still with enough note to wonder what happens when the accelerator is pushed.

Lets talk about the best part of the car first.

375kw/503hp. 625Nm of torque. The supercharged 5.0L V8 sits at the front of this beefy feline, and let me tell you, you can feel every kw…. in absolute comfort.

Sitting in the passenger seat, under full noise, I was shocked to realise that whilst yes, we were picking up speed quickly (obviously just to the 110km/h zone), it didn’t throw me back in my seat or react violently. The benefit of a supercharged motor.

For a car priced in the mid $200, 000 price range, I was surprised that there didn’t appear to be many buttons or ‘gadgets’ that I would expect in something like this. However, upon playing around with the digital car controls on the centre screen, I felt that it had everything a style savvy businessman or woman would want. All your digital climate control, phone connection, radio, hidden Iphone/AV input, seat heaters (and coolers! Thank you Jaguar, so good on this 35 degree day) and much more.

I loved the little interior details. The plastic into the carbon fibre, into the alcantara and leather trimmings. The only downside being that the back seats are suitable for not even the smallest of people. At a seating position for me to sit in the front, with my knees up against the dash, there still wasn’t enough room for me to fit more than a fist between the back and front seat.

Huge Jag brakes wrapped in 20inch wheels.

I found the exterior aesthetics of the XK-R nice. It was pleasant to look at. A sleek, professional, rounded styling. I think with fatter rear guards, the XK-R could look much more aggressive, but I get the feeling that Jaguar were going for Elegant over Intimidating here.

Overall I enjoyed the experience. It was comfortable, stylish and responsible, with the ability to hold its own performance wise.