Hey all,

Many posts here over my happy years with my '05 E55. Miss her often.. Such a unique car; the ultimate sleeper, an absolute speed appliance, I had mine modded and dialed in, just a magnificent car, comfortable but ferocious.

I had a tortured time picking a successor (the E hit road debris and the rear end blew out, quite and ending). I just didn't see any sedan surpassing the E enough to spend the extra $, but wanted something different. So...

After many months of testing and soul searching, I ended up buying a six-month old Jaguar XKR coupe in liquid silver, dark charcoal interior with contrast white stitching, B&W stereo, radar cruise, etc... Fully loaded AND with a bumper to bumper 7/100k warranty from Jaguar. Too good to pass up, I flew from S.F. to Houston and drover her back.

Love, LOVE the car. Like the E, huge torque at even lower rpm. The most amazing transmission, though not a dual clutch it is unreal in shift speed, smoothness, rev matched downshifts, the whole thing.p, awesome tranny. Motor pulls like crazy, more rev-happy than the E...

A more rough ride, though still incredibly comfortable given handling ability. Has those magnetically dampened shocks that go from super soft to rock solid 200x/sec. Great active exhaust, from E55 silent to shockingly loud depending on settings and throttle input, etc.

Like the E55, capable of passing for a 'normal', comfortable and quiet car, then turning itself into a raging beast capable of scaring the most sanguine passenger.

Dislikes: the community is by and large NOT as performance oriented as the E55 community. Since the car carries some prestige, people are hostile to the notion of driving them all out and expecting results in line with the cars specs.

For example, I think my modded E55 would take my XKR from a dig to 60. Which seems odd, given the numbers. When I tried to push the issue, hoping for launch/mod advice, it tuned ugly, with (I suspect) golf course bound convertible owners with the older 4.2 engine getting on me for debasing the Jaguar brand by 'worrying about' such trivialities as 0-60 times.

Check out this thread:http://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/xk...0-4-4-a-67459/, I even talk extensively about the E55 and attitude of this community. Didn't seem to make a dent, the attitude seems to be that expecting fast times from a fast car is 'beneath' the brand. Check it out, tell me if I sound like I ***** over on that board.

I miss you guys and the 'go for broke' attitude most people on this board display. No attitude that a noble Mercedes shouldn't be expected to turn fast 0-60 times, just grat adipvice, knowledgeable posters, and an open mind.

I'll keep pushing with the XKR. A damn sexy beast, especially in coupe form. And it is highly enjoyable to drive an "old man's" car the way an aluminum 500+HP GT coupe should be driven, never mind the prestige. Jaguar was built as a brand that made fast cars, not as a retiree's weekend shuttle to the country club at low speed. The sound of the open exhaust at 6k rpm is insane and these things were made to be driven well and pushed when safe.

Shout out to all my E55 brothers, miss being here more often...

 

Why no pics?

As long as you are happy is all that matters. Sounds like a great car.

Sadly, some car 'groups' just have completely different attitudes toward different uses of each particular car. I'm sure you find other performance enthusiasts eventually and find that niche to get what you are after. It is harder sometimes in some groups than others as you are noticing. Just stick with what you want to do and don't let anyone else tell you to not do what you are looking to do.

 

Apologies... Here's a quick pic I took on my phone. I have to get it details and photographed properly before (argh) mounting the front plate on her. Car looks WAY better in person, hard to describe but it looks more radical and extreme than it photographs.


Beautiful car. Crazy good looks, tuns heads, people bust out phones to take pics, almost. A bit more than expected. The price for the incredibly beautiful lines of the coupe is AWFUL rear visibility. But that's the price you pay for fashion. Also magnificent interior quality and style. I miss the higher up command position of the E, the XKR is no fun at all in traffic.

The car is scary fast. From a roll it is insane. But, like I said, a modded E55 is close or faster from a dig so far. It seems 565HP and 525 lb.ft. Is attainable with ecu only (more with the pulley, but ecu only isn't likely to void warranty). Traction is a big issue already, it'd be crazy with an extra 50+ HP. Word is that traction is the limitation, so we will see if more power helps

How people can buy a car this aggressively designed, this tight, loud, and grippy, and maintain that a faster 0-60 time is beneath a car of this type is beyond me. Yes, it was the >500 HP that helped seal the deal, and I want to use it! No weekend jaunts with a set of golf clubs in my future, I'm pushing this thing and enjoying it endlessly.

Still a special place in my heart for that E. so many fantastic memories, such an over-achieving car...

Skeeter

 

A summary of the thread I linked: Me asking why an aluminum GT coupe with over 500hp and a ton of torque down low can't seem to turn better than ~4.4 second 0-60 times. Answer: "if you want a car that goes fast from 0-60 buy a WRX" (or a GTR, or a 'Vette, or a Mustang, etc). Unreal. I'm thinking we should be flat 4's, and the answer is 'why would you care what a beautiful car like that goes a little bit faster... you bought the wrong car if all you care about is 0-60 times..." etc. WTF kind of answer is that? Here you'd have talked pumps, pulleys, ecu, tires, launch methods, cooling mods, etc. Very little of that over there...

Wrong brand to drive hard I guess, according to the majority of posters. Feels like the right car for me, I just want to extract as much as possible, and 0-60 rush is one of the most frequently accessible aspects of a car's performance.

Long live blown 8's!

Skeeter

 

Those guys seem like old farts with their nose so high up in the sky, a damn UFO could land on it.

Your post makes total sense to me now, about two months ago I was on an undisclosed interstate and pulled up to the exact care you have in my E55, well I wanted to play so I opened my electric cutouts and blipped the throttle. The guy looked over, and seemed to be in his mid 40's, well, he shook his head and waved his finger back and forth infront of his face, like no no.

That is fine, not everyone wants to play, but what got me next was hilarious, I went WOT with open headers, and he jumped so high off his seat, he almost hit his head on the cabin roof, old turd.

Shoot me a pm if interested, the shop who does all my work is building a whippled jag, and the customer wants 700HP out of it. It received a new forged bottom end, sleeved block, 2.9 whipple etc. They have done alot of Jag mods and know a ton about the cars. Just park your internet time on this board mang, we would love to hear your development and performance increases as it happens.

See the modded jags below sir:

http://www.buckhead-imports.com/media.html

 

Very nice..I alsmot considered one when searching for my last car. How is the interior? It seemed cramped to me with a very upright seating position. Do you find this to be true?

 

Congrats, that's a great choice. XKR's are quite something. Enjoy.

 

sweet car!

We just started doing pullies and tuning for them, they make great power tuned!

 

fantastic car - nice buy!

 

Enjoy the car, keep us updated on the reliability, being english I dont trust it to backout of the driveway.

 

I really can't believe I read all three pages. One thing for sure, the spelling, punctuation and content are leagues ahead of most forums.
To me it didn't seem that there were too many posters negative towards you. A couple for sure but most people seemed a bit interested in one form or another. Obviously though you will be one of the only people trying to better the performance. Good news there is if you ever have a meet, you will be able to spank any of them.

 

 

You consider someone in their mid 40's an "old turd"?

 

Not at all, he seemed like a cool cat, but his reaction to a car with a loud exhaust seemed that off an old fart.

I know some people that try to act WAYYYY older than what they are, for whatever reason, who knows. Have some fun and let you hair down, no need to have aires about you because you drive a particular car, that is what I was getting at

 

Whew,
I'm 48 this year.
Worried you may think I wear depends...

 

man that thread was painful...

Skeeter....

Put a pulley and tune on and that will silence the naysayers...

85hp/90tq

Hint

Tune alone is 50hp...

 

Is Jaguar owned by Ford? And is the 4.4 jag same as 4.3 ford?
Sorry I never paid any attention to Jaguar, but that XKR is good looking.

 

I feel your pain, I hate that the jag forum is not modification oriented. That is the reason I read here daily to, just a good community. Look up Avos on there he is a wealth of modding knowledge on all jags and drives a 600hp xjr. My STR is making 425 on boost and over 500 on spray, just a shame there is no one to bounce ideas off of on the development of it.

Great car you have. I agreed look into high flow cats, exhaust, pulley and a tune. Will be a very fun ride but if you want to make real power your going to have to experiment on your own unfortunately.

 

What??? You drive to H town and no shout out to us? Just for that ,, I`m selling my Skeeter and getting a Ranger Comanche..

 

Well that XKR sure is better looking than the new SL! I had two Jags, a 1995 XJ6 and a 1998 XJ8. Both beautiful driving cars, but built like absolute GARBAGE! At 65k miles the steering was so loose I felt like I was driving a freakin Bus!

Oh yea and the timing chain decided to snap at 60k miles bending several valves...

 

The XKR-S is

 

Great car choice. I too am considering an XKR but have been worrying if I'd get that smile every time I drive. The smile that comes from the inside out like you did when you were a kid and you mounted your bike - freedom, control, speed, handling and nothing can stop you... I got that in my NSX's, M cars and Porsche's.

Wonder if the XKR can deliver this. Nice to hear it has a killer sound - that plays a big role in a coupe/GT. The trans is also huge. Now we just need steering and reduced lean and we're set. Have you lowered yours yet? There is a guy on that jag forum with a black XKR that has been lowered among other things and it is just nasty!

Regarding the community that also was my concern. I don't see lots of posts or pics of modded, exhaust, lowered, wheels, pulley etc. But your post seemed to awaken some and nearly everyone one that had an "R" was into the speed discussion - it's why they sprung for the "R" after all. The guys with the XK's are the main ones trying to downplay performance and focus on the elegance. But the overall theme holds true. XK is a GT and not meant to be a Vette, Viper or even 911 competitor from an all out performance & handling perspective. Having owned Z06, Viper, Lotus and everything in between I would have to adjust my expectations to appreciate more of it's virtues like quiet, effortless cruising along with sophisticated yet taught and aggressive lines - a bit of a sledgehammer in a velvet glove! I do also wonder if it would age me simply due to the Jag rep. I'm 35 but look 23 or so.

Anyhew, it sounds like it is pushing nearly all of your buttons and you don't think you could have done better?

 

Raron,

The 2010+ XKRs will put a HUGE smile on your face. Every time. No question. It goes from being ultra smooth, silent, swift, and refined, to CRAZY loud and raucous, tight and torquey, hard and solid. The shocks are those new magnetic fluid-filled deals, so suspension goes from firm but smooth to VERY stiff depending on how you are driving. Traction control can be easily and totally disabled at the push (and long hold) of a single button.

The exhaust is one of the top features. Being active, it is the best of both worlds. In 'loud' mode, it is surprisingly raw, popping and snapping off throttle and blatting like a bass trombone at low RPM. Up high (above say 4k rpm) it is pure fury, almost set off car alarm type volume. All from a 'snob' car, it was one of the biggest features that turned me around and made the XKR my new ride.

But seriously, features abound. Most of it is hidden, subtle, only visible when needed. For example, it has an air filtration system that detects the quality of outside air. If it gets below a certain quality threshold (say a bad day in L.A. smog), the climate system will intervene, automatically shutting off vents, keeping the outside air out, and recirculating the interior air through a series of filters. You can even set the threshold of when it should activate, and of course turn it off if you want. But it is the kind of thing you wouldn't even know is there were it not for a thorough read of the manual.

Bumping Bower and Wilkins stereo, docks iPhones, has a USB port for thumb drives (I have a 32 gig drive filled with thousands of mp3s plugged in), and the usual (6 disc changer, nav, etc).

Interior build quality is 'A' quality in finish and materials. Leather dash (beautiful), awesome and impeccably finished black ultra-suede headliner, burled wood here and there (not overdone like in the cliche old man's Jag though), contrast white stitching (killer look), heavy switches and buttons (but few, not alot of gauges), killer radar cruise control and awesome steering wheel controls for everything, simple but does everything perfectly.

They nailed a bunch of things with this car. Very few complaints. Traction is a challenge on launch, for one. It has a crazy advanced electronically controlled posi type rear diff, but with all the torque it is impossible to get the 0-60 times that a car with this much power and torque should be capable of. Oh, the back seat is a joke, but you don't buy the XKR to drive people around in the back. Think of it as a two seater with a nice leather shelf in back to put your stuff...

The transmission is a thing of wonder. For a non dual-clutch setup, I don't think anyone could do better. It is that good. Instant shifts, throttle blip downshifts, psychic shifting when you engage the transmission in automatic 'Sport' mode. It is amazing at predicting when to downshift into a corner, when to upshift on exit, etc. Smooth as silk, quick and precise, impeccable in automatic mode (both regular and sport), and instant shifts when you grab a paddle. In performance mode, with the gear selector in 'S', it will hold whatever gear you are in past redline, letting you toast your motor if you don't let up. It can be set to truly do what you want, with no intervention @ all. Cool stuff, the transmission is a highlight of the car.

It really is a brute of a car, which is what drives me crazy when I get so much static talking about performance, or talking about driving the hell out of her. Yes, it is a beautiful and graceful GT. But it is also a rough and loud car with over 500 horsepower and a TON of torque and massive brakes.

Raron, if you are young, that is a HUGE reason to buy the XKR. I'm a bit older than you but probably a decade younger than the average Jag owner, at least... People do a double-take when they see me get in or out of the car, expecting a gray haired gentleman rather than a younger dude with a full head of hair. No knock on our elders, but the time to drive a car that is stereotypically an 'old man's car' is when you are young. Do the unexpected, and drive it like you drive your E. You'll get more looks and more surprised observers than you'd imagine.

For the $, I couldn't think of another car that combines the looks and the performance qualities of the XKR. My other choice (runner up) would have been the GT-R. But the Jag comes with a 100k mile warranty (select edition), needs a service 1x/year, has been as reliable as an F150, and is incredibly comfortable and sexy looking. The GT-R was harsh, loud, uncomfortable, and NOT a head turner for non-car enthusiasts (i.e. females). Don't get me wrong, it was a tough choice, but having a stunningly sexy car that is smooth, comfortable, AND scary fast, along with a night-and-day better warranty and lower cost of operation, and the XKR won. I still have second thoughts some days, owning the fastest thing on the planet (virtually) would have had its rewards. But the short warranty and high estimated costs of long term maintenance made it a no-go.

It is a good transition car from the E55 also. Similar torque curve, similarly smooth but potent, same supercharged V8 formula. But the improved handling, braking, styling, and modern amenities make it worth considering. I miss my E, no question. Loved that car. But from a 'smile' factor, you'll look like the Joker in an XKR, trust me.

As far as maintenance concerns, I've been rock solid to 10k miles. Hard miles. Never so much as a hiccup. Add to this a killer warranty and I'm not the least bit concerned. Parts are surprisingly cheap, fwiw. If you are looking for a potent and attention grabbing GT capable of daily driver use, take one for a test drive. Put her in 'dyno' mode and romp on the throttle and you'll be surprised. I was (and continue to be). Build quality looks top notch, as are materials, fasteners, seals, etc. A very solid car build on a proven engine and a wold leading blower, the same one used on the 'Vette ZR1: http://www.caranddriver.com/features...harger-feature

ECU is gonna happen. Just gotta fine me a local dyno shop so I can do a 'before' run and make sure I'm getting what they are selling. BIG gains for ECU only. Pully is gonna wait, don't want to mess with my warranty. Gotta get busy and find a shop close to Berkeley/Oakland/S.F.

Thanks for the kind comments and reading my long *** thread! I'll be lurking, thinking of switching cars with my friend's E55 for a weekend just to remember the good old days behind the wheel of the torque monster and ultimate sleeper... If my money gets good, I might consider looking for the rare E55 wagon as a utility car/daily driver. THAT would be best of both worlds!


Skeeter

 

Wow, great post and excellent colorful feedback. I think you have just sold me on the XKR. Although I'm not looking at XKR-S as it just came to stats and is about $120k and for that I'm in a gently used Gallardo! But an XKR lowered with exhaust, pulley just might do the trick.

You have any pics to share of that beauty! Sound clips as well.