2007 Jaguar XK - Review

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Looking purely at Jaguar’s most recent vehicles, it would be easy to say that the brand is on a roll. Especially if you focus in on the lithe, luxurious XJ sedans and the new XK coupes and convertibles, Jaguars are, by a long shot, better than they’ve been in decades and arguably, the best ever. They’re well built, with striking designs, and engineered as well as anything from Germany . But despite the wonderful products coming from the brand, with Ford’s financial woes, and the reputation of Jaguar in recent years as a loss leader, there are rumblings that the brand faces an uncertain future. Despite that, they’re doing everything but hanging on in quiet desperation.

Earlier this year, Jaguar introduced its all-new XK coupe and convertible. With a completely new chassis, including a lighter, stiffer, all-aluminum body, beautifully designed inside and out, with a uniquely British style, the new XK is a revelation among grand touring coupes.

While the new XK, thanks to its lighter weight, is already about as fast as the former XKR, it’s been no secret all along that an even higher-performance, supercharged XKR version was on the way.

It’s almost here. Set to arrive in dealerships beginning in October, the new XKR gets 120 more horsepower (40 percent more) than the XK, yet the ‘R’ tips the scales only slightly heavier than the XK and about 200 pounds lighter than the last-generation XKR. With 420 horsepower on tap for well under 3700 pounds for the coupe, the XKR has an impressive power-to-weight ratio that’s actually 36 percent better than the standard XK. The Mercedes-Benz SL55 and M6, though they have more power, are also considerably heavier and it’s not that big of a difference.